Font del Lleó
20 minAll agesDog-friendlyAll year
The thermal fountain in the centre of Caldes de Montbui, with water at 74 °C. Free to see at any time and the starting point for everything else.
Water74 °C at the Font del Lleó
From BarcelonaAbout 35 min
Cheapest bath€8 an hour
Best timeOct – Apr
What to do
What to do in Caldes de Montbui
Each plan says how long it takes, who it's for and whether you can book.
El Safareig Thermal Baths
1 hFrom age 13; ages 3 to 12 only on Xip-Xap daysAll year, Wednesday to Sunday; closed from 27 January to 7 February
Thermal-water bathing in the old wash-house of Caldes de Montbui: one-hour sessions, €8, booking required and from age 13.
From €8
Book
Roman baths and guided thermal circuit
1 hAll agesSaturdays, Sundays and public holidays all year
Thermalia guided visit to the Roman baths of Aquae Calidae and the places of Caldes's hot water. Weekends; €3.10, €5.30 with the museum.
From €3
How to do it
Itineraries
Itineraries that pass through
Days and weekends already planned out, with how to get between each stop and who to book with.
Plan the trip
Caldes de Montbui, step by step
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
When to go to Caldes de Montbui
All year, but hot water is most enjoyable from October to April, when the Font del Lleó steams over the square. In July and August a bath appeals less. Come at the weekend if you want the guided visit; midweek, if you want quiet baths.
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Best timeGood timeLow season
How you travel
Caldes de Montbui your way
Choose how you're travelling and we'll tell you where to stay, how to get around, where to eat and which services you'll need. We only show the ways of travelling that make sense here.
Park outside the centre and do everything on foot
By car you reach it in a little over half an hour from Barcelona by the C-59 or the C-1415. The centre, with the fountain, the baths and the spas, is walked on foot.
70–140 €per person per day, approximate
- Where to sleepThree spa hotels in the…
- Getting aroundFive public car parks; El…
- Where to eatRobert de Nola, with Sunday…
- ServicesTourist office in the Thermalia…
Where to sleep
- Three spa hotels in the centre: Broquetas, Termes Victòria and Vila de Caldes
- The Vila de Caldes is adults only
Getting around
- Five public car parks; El Sindicat is paid
- La Rectoria de Sant Sebastià de Montmajor, about ten minutes by car
Where to eat
- Robert de Nola, with Sunday lunch
- La Rectoria, weekend lunchtimes only
Services
- Tourist office in the Thermalia museum, closed on Mondays
By bus from Barcelona
Caldes de Montbui can be done without a car: Sagalés has the e9 line by motorway from Barcelona and everything to do with hot water is a few minutes' walk from the Font del Lleó.
60–130 €per person per day, approximate
- Where to sleepThe three spa hotels are…
- Getting aroundSagalés line e9, the fast…
- Where to eatRobert de Nola, ten minutes'…
- ServicesBook El Safareig and the…
Where to sleep
- The three spa hotels are in the old town, within walking distance of everything
Getting around
- Sagalés line e9, the fast one; 202 and 203 by road; N70 at night
- Taxi on Avinguda Pi i Margall
Where to eat
- Robert de Nola, ten minutes' walk from the centre
- El Remei, with a menu of the day from Tuesday to Friday
Services
- Book El Safareig and the Espai CEL before setting out: there is nothing to go and look for
How much does it cost?
People2
Nights3
Who you're with
Caldes de Montbui for whoever you're with
A trip with a toddler is not the same as one with a teenager. Pick yours to see what works and what to bear in mind.
Hot water to look at, and bathing when they are old enough
With children, Caldes de Montbui is experienced more outside the water than in it: the thermal baths have minimum ages, but the steaming fountain, the Roman baths and the hot-water wash-houses explain the village to them in a morning.
- What works bestThe Font del Lleó, with…
- Where to sleepBroquetas, on Plaça de la…
- Where to eatRobert de Nola, Sunday at…
- Bear in mindAt El Safareig, from age…
What works best
- The Font del Lleó, with water at 74 °C
- The wash-houses of La Portalera and La Canaleta, for putting your hands in thermal water
- The Thermalia museum, free up to age 10 and for everyone on the first Sunday of the month
- The guided visit of the Roman baths, Saturdays and Sundays
Where to sleep
- Broquetas, on Plaça de la Font del Lleó
- Termes Victòria, two minutes away; the Vila de Caldes is adults only
Where to eat
- Robert de Nola, Sunday at lunchtime
- La Rectoria, next to the Romanesque church of Sant Sebastià de Montmajor
Bear in mind
- At El Safareig, from age 13; from 3 to 12, only in the Xip-Xap sessions
- The Espai CEL is from age 16
- La Canaleta has steps: with a pushchair, look at it from above
What to do as a family
Where to stay
Where to stay if you're drivingwithout a car
We show you what suits the way you travel.Change how you travel
Broquetas Spa Termal
Why we like it: Three-star spa hotel on Plaça de la Font del Lleó, with its own 74 °C spring, 78 rooms, a heated pool open all year, a garden and animals admitted.
Hotel Balneari Termes Victòria
Why we like it: The Anglí family spa since 1917 in the centre of Caldes: 80 rooms, the Balneari Clàssic, the Espai CEL circuit, a heated outdoor pool and a buffet open to everyone.
Hotel Spa Vila de Caldes
Why we like it: Adults-only four-star hotel on Plaça de l'Àngel, with a thermal bath, outdoor pool and online check-in.
Services for this trip
Where to eat
Where to eat in Caldes de Montbui
From set lunch menus to Michelin stars. We mark the price level and what to order at each place.
Robert de Nola
What to order: one of the three menus for the whole table; from the menu, the Catalan-style cod or a stone-grilled meat, and the house flaó for dessert
La Rectoria de Sant Sebastià de Montmajor
What to order: the peus de porc a la cassola or the snails with rabbit, the house specialities; to start, the Montmajor cannelloni
Restaurant El Remei
What to order: the menu of the day on weekdays, or chargrilled meat and vegetables
Map
Everything on the map
The places to stay and services on the map are the ones for the way you travel. Turn on the layers you want and tap a point to see its details.
What to do
Eat
88 €Stay
Services
Nearby
Near Caldes de Montbui
The closest places, whichever country they are in.
Tips
Worth knowing first
- 1Book the bath before lunch
El Safareig has 15 places per session and the Espai CEL fills up on Saturdays.
- 2Bring a cap
At El Safareig it is compulsory; at the Espai CEL it is not.
- 3With children, look at the Xip-Xap sessions
They are the only ones in which under-13s can bathe at El Safareig.
- 4First Sunday of the month, free museum
Thermalia charges no one that day.
Caldes de Montbui is the spa village closest to Barcelona. In the main square, in front of the Ajuntament, a fountain pours out water at 74 °C, the hottest on the peninsula according to the Ajuntament, and beside it are preserved the baths that the Romans built over the same spring. Around it are three spa hotels, a municipal thermal bath in a former washhouse and a museum devoted to water. It all fits into a ten-minute walk.
How to get there from Barcelona
Caldes de Montbui is in the Vallès Oriental, about 30 km from Barcelona. By car, take the C-59 towards Mollet and Moià: allow about 35 minutes without traffic. You can also arrive along the C-1415 from Granollers and along the C-1413 from Sabadell. From Girona, along the AP-7 to Granollers, a little over an hour; from Vic, about 40 minutes; from Manresa, around 50.
Without a car, the Sagalés bus is the option: line e9 goes by motorway and is the fast one, and the 202 and 203 go by road. Check the Sunday timetables at sagales.com, which are reduced.
Where to park
The centre, around the Plaça de la Font del Lleó, is done on foot and has narrow streets. The tourist office lists five public car parks: the Les Cremades sports area, Carrer Bigues, Carrer Balmes, the Centre car park and El Sindicat, which is paid. From any of them it is a few minutes' walk to the fountain.
Where to bathe: three ways
Caldes has no free open-air pools like Ourense: the water comes out too hot and is used in facilities. You have three options, from the simplest to the most complete:
- El Safareig, the municipal thermal bath in a former washhouse. One-hour sessions, €8, for 15 people, with compulsory booking. From age 13; children from 3 to 12, only in the Xip-Xap sessions. Swimsuit, cap and towel, which you bring yourself.
- The Espai CEL at the Hotel Balneari Termes Victòria: seven pools under Catalan vaults for two hours, for over-16s. Its website sells the two-hour gift box for €59. It closes every day from 14:00 to 16:00 and on Wednesday afternoons.
- The thermal experiences at Broquetas, the spa in the square: pool with jets, steam and massages, from €40 for two thermal water techniques in 45 minutes and €80 with a massage.
In all three cases, book before leaving home. At weekends they fill up.
What to see out of the water
The Font del Lleó is the first stop: a stone lion of 1927 on a 16th-century fountain, with the spouts giving off steam. Next to it, the Roman baths of Aquae Calidae, with a vaulted pool of 13.5 by 6.9 metres, among the best preserved on the peninsula. The Thermalia museum, which is also the tourist office, tells the history of the water and organises the guided visit on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays at 12:00, and on Saturday afternoons in Spanish.
Afterwards, a walk past the washhouses: at La Portalera and La Canaleta the thermal water still flows into the basin, and you can put your hands in. Continue to the Romanesque two-arch bridge and the church of Santa Maria, with a nave of 51 metres and a Baroque doorway of 1701.
How much time you need
Half a day for the village and a bath. A whole day if you add the guided visit, an unhurried lunch and a second bath in the afternoon. For sleeping, the three hotels are in the centre and have their own waters: Broquetas, Termes Victòria and the Vila de Caldes, the last adults only.
Where to eat
Robert de Nola, on the Passeig del Remei, serves seasonal Catalan cooking with three menus from €35 to €50 and is open on Sunday lunchtime. La Rectoria, ten minutes away by car, in Sant Sebastià de Montmajor, is open at weekends beside a Romanesque church. During the week, El Remei has a set lunch menu from Tuesday to Friday.
When to go
Hot water is most enjoyable from October to April. On a cold morning the square steams and the contrast with the bath is the charm. Saturday is the best day if you want to see everything: the museum, the washhouses in the morning, the guided visit in Spanish and the three baths are all open. On Monday the museum is closed and El Safareig is closed Monday and Tuesday. From 27 January to 7 February El Safareig closes for maintenance.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Is there free thermal water in Caldes de Montbui?
For bathing, no: the water comes out at 74 °C and is used in facilities. For free you can see the Font del Lleó and put your hands in the washhouses of La Portalera and La Canaleta, open Monday to Saturday mornings.
Which is the cheapest thermal bath?
El Safareig, the municipal bath: €8 an hour, €5.25 reduced, with booking.
Can children bathe?
At El Safareig, from age 13, and from 3 to 12 in the Xip-Xap sessions. The Espai CEL is from age 16 and the Hotel Vila de Caldes is adults only.
How do you get there from Barcelona without a car?
By Sagalés buses: line e9 by motorway, or the 202 and 203 by road.
How long does it take from Barcelona by car?
About 35 minutes along the C-59, without traffic. It is about 30 km.
What is there to see in Caldes de Montbui in a day?
The Font del Lleó, the Roman baths with the guided visit, the Thermalia museum, the washhouses, the Romanesque bridge and the church of Santa Maria, and a thermal bath.