Wellness in Greece

Greek wellness rests not on spa hotels but on what has always been at hand here: hot springs, the sea and olive oil. The thermal waters have been known since Hippocrates — he practised on Kos himself, and the island still has the natural hot beach of Therma, where the spring runs straight into the sea and the water in its stone basin keeps its warmth even in November.

The second line is man-made and marine. Santorini offers bathing by the volcanic sulphur springs in the caldera: catamarans go there, and the warm rust-yellow water is part of the route on a par with the sunset at Oia. On Zakynthos and Crete wellness also covers plain days by the water in quiet bays — no programme, just lunch and swimming, which is more honest than many a treatment. Hotel massages and spas exist on every resort island, but they are not worth a separate journey.

Practical notes. The sulphur springs of Santorini dye light swimsuits rust — take a dark one, as it is hard to wash out. The springs are reached by swimming from the catamaran; children and weak swimmers get a vest. Thermal water is warm rather than hot, yet anyone with heart trouble should still ask a doctor. The best time is May-June and September-October, when the sea is already warm and the crowds are not yet, or no longer, there.