Thermal Baths and a Stroll around Rheinfelden

The thermal baths scattered all over Switzerland are treasures that are rarely seen by visitors.  They're usually quite off the beaten path - so off the beaten path, in fact, that even people who live here don't know where they all are.  There are lovely baths in Vals, Yverdon-les-Bains, Lavey-les-Bains, Baden, Bad Ragaz, and many more; if you live in Switzerland, there's guaranteed to be one reasonably close by.

We recently took a Friday off from work and Matt planned a surprise excursion to Rheinfelden, a medieval town on Switzerland's northern border with Germany, about an hour's drive from Zurich. I had no idea there was much of anything in Rheinfelden, but to my delight our first stop was at the Sole Uno thermal baths, one of the largest and nicest facilities I've ever been to. The water is piped from 200 meters under a nearby salt mine and mixed with fresh water so it's mineral-rich.



There is an amazing selection of outdoor and indoor pools, both hot and cold, as well as scented steam inhalation rooms, wet and dry saunas, a Turkish hamam area, adventure showers (one is like a tropical rainstorm complete with light and sound, another like an alpine waterfall), and a large nude section with both finnish and russian saunas.  My favorite pool was this underground one, with a heavenly temperature of 36 degrees and very high salt content of 12%.  




Standing up, the water only comes to your knees, but once you lay back, the salt makes you so buoyant that it feels like you're floating on a cloud.  The water reflects prettily off the ceiling and once your ears dip underwater there's another surprise - peaceful, relaxing music!  Spending time here was worth the price of admission alone.

The trick to visiting thermal baths is to go on a weekday.  I can't stress this enough - on weekends, and especially on rainy days and in winter, they are incredibly crowded and it's nearly impossible to get a locker, a hairdryer, a shower, or any peace and quiet in the water for that matter.  Also, buy the 3- or 4-hour entrance ticket; the 2-hour is simply not enough time to see and do everything and be out by the time it expires.

Sufficiently relaxed, we wandered over to the old town and passed through the thick walls which enclose the city on three sides (the fourth side is the Rhine river) by way of the Oberturm.



Once inside, we admired the lovely old houses, each with their name painted above the lintel, and happened upon the home of Feldschlösschen beer, which originates in Rheinfelden.





An old cobblestoned bridge across the Rhein connects the town (and Switzerland) to Germany.  Each side of the bridge flies the flags of the different provinces or cantons in the two countries.



There wasn't much to see over there, so we only stayed a few minutes. Upon arriving back in Switzerland we had to laugh at this ghetto little customs box, propped up on wooden planks against a house.  It was the only sign on the Swiss side that there might be a border anywhere nearby.



We capped our visit with a stroll down the main street and a peek into Pane Amore e Fantasia, a cafe and restaurant named after a well-known Italian movie from the 1950's. 





As the slightly hyperbolic banner advertises, the specialty of the house, about 20 different kinds of panettone, were out on display ready for the holiday season.



I'm sure now that advent has started and the decorations and lights are up, Rheinfelden would be even more charming to visit.  And speaking of the holiday season - after hosting our annual Thanksgiving bash yesterday and a visit to our local Christmas market today, you can expect things around here to get very festive, very soon!