Piedra de Agua thermal pools and spa in Cuenca, Ecuador
Piedra de Agua is a thermal bath spa located right outside of Cuenca, Ecuador. These hot spring baths are located in small town called Baños (not to be confused with the more popular Baños de Agua Santa in Tungurahua). They offer several spa package options, from the basic access to the main hot and cold outdoor thermal pools, as well as full package that includes access to a variety of outdoor and underground thermal pools and steam box baths.
We couldn’t get enough of this place during the last trip to Ecuador and visited a few times. It’s especially beautiful (and romantic – though I was with my kids) at night time. We visited during weekdays so it wasn’t crowded, but I can imagine that it gets very busy on weekends and holidays. I would recommend calling ahead to reserve during peak times, and ask if there’s a certain time when it’s quieter. It was particularly quiet and peaceful during our night visit.
The best way to get there is by taxi or cab, it takes about 10-15 minutes depending on what part of Cuenca you are coming from. You can also visit the church and town area; there is an area with several restaurants and food stalls that sell delicious local street food. If you go at night or are returning after dark, ask the front desk to call a taxi to pick you up – in general this is my recommendation for most remote places that you visit when it’s dark in Ecuador.
Piedra de Agua also has a decent restaurant; we had a quick lunch on our first visit since we had just arrived from Loja and were starving. We ordered a large pitcher of jugo de fresa or strawberry juice, some chifles de camote or sweet potato chips – which came with a trio of dipping salsas. I had a delicious caldillo de huevo or egg broth soup.
These photos aren’t the best and don’t do justice to this place, they were taken with my old IPhone and the night shots, well I didn’t have a tripod and I just generally suck at night photos. You can find better photos as well as directions, prices and hours on their website.
Thanks for the info, we havebeen wanting to go.