A staple of Korean life has long been the jjimjilbang, or bathhouse. And perhaps the biggest and most extravagant of them all is the seven-story Dragon Hill Spa & Resort. Something like an amusement park with a touch of ’80s Vegas, complete with pyramids and a Native American-themed pub, this family-friendly spot comes with sex-segregated spa areas, shared saunas, outdoor pools, Jacuzzis and more: picture nail salons, video arcades, an Internet cafe, even a cinema and putting green.

This is a part of the New York Times article titled “36 Hours in Seoul” which ran on November 15, 2010. Written after a reporter explored major tourist attractions in Seoul for 36 hours, the article introduced the capital’s outstanding cultural venues, delicious eateries, and chic shopping malls. But the reporter chose the uniquely Korean institution of jjimjilbang or public sauna as the most interesting aspect of Korean life. It is undeniable that the prevalence of jjimjilbangs or spas demonstrates Korean people’s penchant for family experience and their affinity for steamy relaxation. Nowadays these establishments have become number one attraction for foreign tourists. Today we take you to one of the largest and most luxurious jjimjilbangs in Seoul to wash away your winter blues.

- It’s great. It helps with my blood circulation. Older people sleep better when their backs and stomachs are warm. I’m glad I came here. When I come here I want nothing more and become so happy. I get to go to the sauna and have delicious food. It can’t get any better than this.

Korea’s jjimjilbang is not just a place for respite. It brings out the best of Korea’s ondol heating system and demonstrates its various benefits. Also, going to jjimjilbang is a family experience for Koreans. Today we go to Dragon Hill Spa and Resort covered in the New York Times article. The spa is located in Yongsan in the heart of Seoul. It is only 10 meters from Yongsan Station of subway line 1 and KTX line. This is one of foreign tourists’ favorite spot for it offers both jjimjilbang and spa facilities for all-around pampering.

I came here on the recommendation of a Korean friend. I love the outdoor pool and I look forward to using the jjimjilbang, the swimming pool, and the aesthetics shop.

Living up to its concept of an “urban healing paradise,” Dragon Hill Spa and Resort welcomes guests with its exotic-themed décor. Its entrance is lined up with green bamboo trees and the pathway paved with wood and pebbles accentuates the natural atmosphere. But this is only the beginning. Exotic landscape continues indoors as well. Here’s Mr. Sang Hyun-gyu of Dragon Hill Spa and Resort.

The chambers are decorated in the imperial palace and Egyptian pyramid styles to make our guests feel like emperors and empresses. The spa with one underground floor and seven aboveground floors is built on the 13,200 square-meter land and measures nearly 56 thousand square meters in area. The first floor houses the main hall and snack shops. There’s a public sauna for women on the second and third floors and the fourth floor has a fitness center and a yoga classroom. Men can take baths on the fifth and six floors and the top floor is a rooftop garden where people can enjoy barbecues and garden parties.

The spa has eight sauna courses in addition to public saunas, an outdoor hot tub, a hot spring pool, and an aesthetic shop. It takes all day to enjoy all these facilities. So tourists are advised to set aside the last day of their trip for Dragon Hill Spa and Resort.

If you are going to spend three nights in Seoul, stay at a hotel for two nights and come to our spa for affordable accommodations on the third night. It is much more reasonable to stay here and get a massage and have delicious meals. It’s become commonplace for foreign tourists to stop by here to get pampered before their return trip home. Unlike Japan’s hot spring culture built on small inns and saunas, our spa is huge. It’s not easy to find such spacious and luxurious spa facility. We also have several kinds of maks or steam chambers catering to different customer preferences.

Before entering eight different steam chambers guests must wash up in the bathhouse.

In the healing zone there are eight different chambers - a steam chamber heated with traditional coal, one heated with pine logs, an extra hot chamber made with red clay and pine trees, a salt crystal room, a cedar-paneled room, a meditation room in the shape of a pyramid, a jade chamber, and an ice chamber. The most popular chamber is the one heated with traditional coal. The thermal energy emitting from the super hot coal oven rids the body of all impurities and rejuvenates both the body and mind.

There are four traditional coal chambers. First, the chamber is filled with oak tree logs, which are lit to heat up the red clay walls of the chamber. When the logs turn into coal, the coal is taken out to allow people to sweat out impurities in the heat. When one chamber is being heated up, other chambers open for guests. The heat emanating from the red clay wall is supposedly good for the skin and respiratory system. Foreign guests find our traditional heating system very interesting.

The next favorite chamber is the super hot sauna heated by pine logs. The sweet scent of green pine trees refreshes the body and the natural clay wall seems to have great de-toxing properties.

The pine tree chamber is actually composed of two rooms measuring 12 meters in height, six meters in diameter, and 1.5 meters in wall thickness. These huge rooms store and emit heat, bringing the room temperature to almost 100 degrees Celsius. Older people and Japanese tourists particularly like this chamber.

-I love the pine chamber. Pine trees are good for you. It makes me sweat a lot. It’s so hot that I feel like I’m melting away.
- It’s really refreshing and hot, making my body totally relax.

If you want to have smooth baby skin, the crystal salt chamber is the destination for you. Just staying inside a room surrounded by salt crystals from floor to ceiling seems to stimulate blood circulation, eliminate impurities and improve your skin tone.

- I’ve never seen a room made entirely of salt. Salt supposedly cleanses the body. I’m now more relaxed and my skin feels really smooth. It’s great! I feel like I’m back in my 20s.
- My friend had a skin allergy but it’s gone after coming here for a year. There is no place more refreshing than this.

This is the red clay pyramid chamber. The entire room is plastered in red clay and formed like a pyramid. It’s to recreate the Egyptian surroundings and people can meditate under the pyramid. This small chamber contains medicinal herbs. It’s big enough for only one person at a time so our guests can enjoy the herbal scent in privacy.

The red clay pyramid room is a perfect place to heal your mind and body through meditation. You can even feel the flow of healthy energy in the pyramid room plastered with clean red clay.

All the fatigue and stress seem to have gone out of your body along with the perspiration in the healing zone. A round of heat treatment can make you feel drowsy. In that case the best remedy is to take a little nap on the warm floor of the main zone. But before you doze off, be sure to try out Yonghwajeon in the main zone. Yonghwajeon is a recreation of a Chinese imperial chamber, perfect as the backdrop for a photo opportunity.

What comes after a refreshing nap? How about a rousing session of exercise? An outdoor pool of Dragon Hill Spa and Resort is open all year round.

The 1.2-meter-deep outdoor pool is flanked by a waterfall. The water temperature is kept constant at 34 degrees Celsius by an automatic temperature control device.

- I like it that it’s an outdoor pool. Even though it’s outside the water is always warm so we can all play in it.
- I can see the sky when I’m swimming and it’s nice to have warm water. It’s great to have an outdoor pool. I feel wonderful.

Nighttime at Dragon Hill Spa and Resort is even more beautiful. Colorful lights illuminate the pool and while the moon and the stars sparkle in the sky. Swimming under the starlight is certain to be one of the most memorable parts of the day.

-I came from Singapore. We had such fun touring Korea that we stayed behind to enjoy the spa. We relaxed for about 15 minutes at the outdoor hot tub and then got hungry so we ate ramen from the snack shop. It’s really nice here because the water is warm despite the cold outside. People can use the pool anytime, whether it’s summer or winter. There is no spa like this in Singapore so it was nice to experience this.
- I like this kind of Korean culture. I had no such opportunity in my country, but here it’s really comfortable and pleasant. There are so many different facilities and the prices are really affordable.

A Finnish sauna stands on one side of the pool, inviting guests to wind down after several laps around the pool. With all the amenities, it is not surprising that foreign tourists to Dragon Hill Spa and Resort leave the place fully satisfied.

- My friend and I are Russian. We love the sauna here. My skin feels very soft.
- I come from Taiwan. I really like this place.

Royal Orchid Spa providing aesthetic programs is a good place for those who wish to get professional skin care and massage. Guests can receive full-range services for their skin, scalp, and body. The mystical atmosphere of Royal Orchid Spa makes the patrons feel very special.

- I found out about this place from a Japanese tour guide book. I was tired from sightseeing, but now I feel much better after getting a massage here.

The last stop at Dragon Hill Spa and Resort should be the public bathhouse.

The public bathhouse is divided into two parts – one for women and the other for men. The men’s bathhouse has several interesting features, such as a tub for boosting virile energy, an aromatic tub, a far-infrared radiation chamber, jade beds, and an open-air hot tub. The women’s bathhouse also has such special facilities as a water massage tub, a ginseng pool, a dry air sauna, and an imperial sitz bath. The women’s outdoor hot tub is particular pretty and you will feel great after enjoying sauna under the open sky.

Korea’s capital city has a wide variety of jjimjilbangs and spas. It is recommended that visitors first find out what kind of services and facilities are offered at a particular spa. Enjoying relaxation and spa treatment at affordable prices is one way to have a uniquely Korean experience.