GraftTherme

The GraftTherme stands at Am Stadtbad 2 in Delmenhorst, in Lower Saxony, and is run by BAD - Baederbetriebsgesellschaft mbH. Despite the name, it is not a thermal bath. The operator names no spring, gives no borehole depth, quotes no source temperature and publishes no water analysis anywhere on its site. The only mineral water on the premises is in the brine pool in the sauna garden, and the operator is explicit that this brine is brought in rather than drawn on site: the pool runs at a 3 per cent brine content and the house states that it uses genuine Suelbeck thermal brine from the edge of the Harz, some 200 kilometres away. The house describes itself in its own page title as the adventure bath in Delmenhorst. It remains a substantial leisure bath, but the catalogue entry should not be read as a thermal one.

The adventure area covers nearly 3,000 square metres indoors and out. Its centrepiece is the Black Hole slide, a 76-metre enclosed tube with light effects. Alongside it are the Teufelsbrunnen, a well that fills unexpectedly and fast, a water-veil grotto with a rain ceiling, an integrated starry sky and underwater massage jets, a current channel, a water see-saw raised by the bathers' own effort, and a toddler pool with a water-spouting dragon called Paul whose depth runs from 0 to 30 centimetres. Outdoors there is a mud zone with maritime play equipment and a wide lawn and lounging area. A translucent foil roof, a partly opening sun roof and a large folding sun gate let the indoor hall be run in open-air conditions; the operator warns that the UV-permeable roofs tan guests indoors too.

The sports area covers 1,500 square metres. The indoor sports pool has six lanes and a graded depth of 1.10 m to 1.80 m, with two lanes separated off as a Powerbahn for clockwise swimming; the outdoor sports pool is 25 metres with four lanes and opens and closes with the weather in spring and autumn. The diving pool is 3.60 metres deep with a 1-metre springboard and a 3-metre platform, and contains the Deep Hole, a diving shaft six metres deep. Two course pools complete the area, one with a movable floor adjustable from 0.00 to 1.80 metres within minutes. The relaxation area has five saunas: an event sauna at 90 to 95 degrees in an outdoor sauna house with a roof terrace, a fireplace sauna at 85 degrees, a Vitalsauna at 60 degrees, a Finnish sauna at 90 degrees and a farmhouse-style Hofsauna at 80 degrees, together with a steam bath at 45 to 50 degrees at about 90 per cent humidity, a bathing tub, a Vitalbecken with massage jets used through the winter, five rest rooms and two communication rooms.

Hours differ by area. The sauna opens 10:00 to 22:00 Monday to Thursday, 10:00 to 23:00 Friday and Saturday and 10:00 to 21:00 on Sundays and holidays; wellness runs 10:00 to 20:00 daily. The adventure area is currently closed Monday to Thursday and open 10:00 to 19:00 Friday to Sunday, on holidays and during Lower Saxony school holidays. The sports area opens 6:30 to 8:00 and 10:00 to 20:00 on weekdays and is closed at weekends and on holidays. Published admission to the adventure area is 11.00 euro for an adult day ticket, 9.00 euro for children up to 16 and 25.00 euro for a family day ticket, with an 8.50 euro three-hour tariff and a 5.50 euro morning tariff on weekdays before 14:00. Children under one metre tall enter the adventure area free. The operator dates the opening to 2011.