Hotel Balneario El Raposo

A mud spa in the countryside

Hotel El Raposo has four stars and is physically attached to the spa, in the hamlet of El Raposo, in the municipality of Puebla de Sancho Pérez, a quarter of an hour from Zafra. The complex is surrounded by some 30,000 m² of gardens. Its speciality is the natural mud that forms in the nearby stream: it is decanted into maturation tanks, covered with medicinal mineral water and exposed to the sun for five to eight months. The spa claims to be the only one in Extremadura with natural mud of this kind.

The story begins in 1860, when, as the house tells it, a sow with sore joints recovered after spending a day lying in the mud of a pool in the stream. The news spread through the district, first animals bathed and then people, and in 1886 the first bathhouse was built. In 1925 a twenty-room hotel was built and in 1926 the spa was declared of public utility.

The rooms

Today the hotel has 100 rooms and 187 beds: 87 doubles, three of them adapted, and 13 singles. All have a full bathroom, heating and air conditioning, telephone, television, free wifi, a free safe, minibar and a pillow menu. There is room service from 11:00 to 22:30.

What it offers

The active heated pool, at 32.8 °C, and the thermal circuit with saunas, ice area, aromatic shower and heated loungers are the heart of the stay, along with the mud treatments, massages and hydromassages. There is also an outdoor and an indoor pool, by reservation, a medical service, a hairdresser, a reading and games room, a shop, event rooms and bicycle hire. Parking is free.

For eating, the Matanegra restaurant has a set menu of the day with home-style dishes, a buffet and an à la carte menu, with a wine list focused on the DO Ribera del Guadiana. The café La Zaranda serves raciones and breakfasts, and in spring and summer its terrace opens in the pool gardens. To book a table: 924 570 410.

Prices and breaks

In its gift vouchers, the thermal circuit on its own costs €55, one night with circuit €125, and the one-night break with half board, circuit and massage, €309. There are also longer thermal-cure stays, with full board and spa treatments for five or ten days. Prices change according to the season: check them on its website before booking.

Who it is for and what is nearby

For a restful night at the end of a day in Zafra, for couples seeking a spa break and for those coming for a cure of several days. If you only want the circuit without staying overnight, see the thermal circuit at the El Raposo Spa listing. In Zafra, a quarter of an hour away, are the Plaza Grande and the Plaza Chica and the alcázar of the Dukes of Feria. Telephone: 924 570 410.