Thayatal Vitalbad

The Thayatal Vitalbad stands at Hauptstrasse 2a in Raabs an der Thaya, in the Waldviertel region of Lower Austria, directly on the river Thaya. The operator describes an all-year operation with a bathing landscape, a sauna world, a restaurant, massage treatments, baby and children's swimming courses and children's birthday parties.

The bathing landscape is built around a relax and wellness pool at a pleasant temperature of up to 32 °C, fitted with massage jets, bubble loungers and bubble seats, and a sport and swimming pool 17 metres long held at 27 to 29 °C, which the operator recommends for lane swimming, aqua jogging and swimming courses. Children have their own warm, shallow pool at up to 32 °C, and the action slide runs 45 metres with a height difference of five metres. Rest areas and a quiet gallery, an infrared cabin, a swimwear shop and an outdoor lounging area with direct access to the river complete the bathing level.

The sauna world is named cabin by cabin. The herbal sauna runs at a mild 60 °C with light therapy and herbal aromas and the house's own rose oil; the Burgsauna indoors and the modern Vitalsauna outdoors both run at 90 °C and are the hottest in the house; the outdoor Thayatalsauna runs at 80 °C with a view over the valley and a sauna garden in front of it for cooling in the open air; and the aroma steam bath works at 48 °C and close to 100 per cent humidity. A relax outdoor pool at 32 °C with massage jets and bubble loungers sits in the sauna garden, and cooling is by Kneipp hose, showers or, all year round, a jump into the Thaya reached directly from the sauna area. Rest rooms and loungers are spread through the sauna area and the garden is used in the summer months.

The operator does not describe the water as thermal, mineral or brine; the temperatures given are heating set-points for an ordinary indoor bath. Regular hours are Monday to Friday 14:00 to 21:00 and Saturday, Sunday and public holidays 12:00 to 21:00, with bathing and sauna ending 20 minutes before closing; the same hours apply during the Easter, summer and autumn school holidays, while public holidays follow the weekend timetable. Separate hours are published for the Christmas and semester holidays, and the house is shut on 24 and 25 December.