Hisarya

Hisarya is Bulgaria's Roman spa town — and unusually, the spa and the history are the same story. People have come here to drink and bathe in the mineral water for nearly two thousand years, and the Romans liked it so much they walled the whole town. Today Hisarya combines 22 mineral sources (around 28–52 °C) with one of the best-preserved Roman sites in the country.

A cure since Roman times — Diocletianopolis

The Thracians settled here in the Bronze Age, but Rome turned Hisarya into a spa city. Around 135–136 AD Emperor Hadrian declared the thermal area imperial land and the first Roman baths were built; in 293 AD Emperor Diocletian granted the town city status — and, by tradition, came to be healed here — giving it the name Diocletianopolis. What survives is exceptional: Roman fortress walls 2,327 m long and up to 11 m high, enclosing a 30-hectare town, the monumental south gate locally nicknamed "the Camels" (Kamilite, up to 13 m), plus baths, streets, tombs and an amphitheatre — a National Archaeological Reserve since 1976. The later Ottoman name Hisar — "fortress" — simply names what was already there.

The mineral water — and what it's good for

Hisarya's water is best known as a drinking cure. Its 22 sources — sixteen working springs rising in two park groups, Momina Banya and Momina Salza, joined by drilled wells — are slightly mineralised, hydrocarbonate-sodium waters (with sulphate), weakly alkaline (pH ~8–9) and notably rich in fluoride (≈4–9 mg/L), silica and radon (highest at Momina Banya), with a faint hydrosulphide note. The water is used above all for the kidneys and urinary tract and for stomach, intestinal, liver and gallbladder complaints, plus joints, skin conditions, neuroses, post-stroke recovery and metabolic syndrome. You'll see people filling bottles at the public drinking pavilions — the bottled "Hisar" mineral water comes from here. Treat this as background, not medical advice.

Where to stay

Hisarya has a cluster of spa hotels and medical-balneo sanatoriums set among the parks and Roman walls, from four-star spas to simple guesthouses — several geared to longer therapeutic stays. Browse the hotels in Hisarya below; verify prices and treatment programmes directly.

Best time to visit

Hisarya is a year-round resort. Spring and autumn are especially pleasant for combining the springs with walks among the ruins; summer pairs well with the outdoor pools and the nearby wine country.

Combine your trip

Hisarya sits just 40 km north of Plovdiv, so it's easy to pair with Plovdiv's old town and Roman theatre. To the west, the Starosel Thracian temple complex and the surrounding wine cellars make a fine day out, with the Sredna Gora hills for walking.