It seems this year, instead of putting flower garlands in her hair and emerging from the underworld, Persephone, Greek goddess of Spring, has donned a pair of galoshes and a heavy rain coat in the Western Cape.

No need to despair! Now, before the withering heat sets in, there are a last few opportunities to indulge in the gifts of another goddess - Sulis, the Roman goddess of the spring - the hot spring!

For thousands of years intuitive wisdom has attracted people to hot springs and their healing qualities. The Western Cape has several ‘eyes', from which subterranean waters pour. Our family favourites are The Baths 18km outside Citrusdal, the Calitzdorp Spa in the Klein Karoo and Goudini Spa, an ATKV resort near Rawsonville.

The Baths

Long before any Europeans arrived, at a time when a herd of 300 elephant lived along the big river into which the waters of the hot spring still feed, the Bushmen frequented the hot springs known today as The Baths. In 1739 the VOC set up a military post in the secluded, sub-tropical kloof, and then followed a chequered history of renovation and decline, faint remnants of which can be seen today.

The Baths of 2008 is not a gleaming entertainment resort. It has an old-world, rustic charm, with a magnificent Victorian building serving as the centre piece. Management approach is deliberately non-commercial: only 150 people are allowed in the resort at any time, there is no cellphone reception and there are no TVs.

Taking the waters from this artesian well is an amazing experience. Water from the Koue Bokkeveld Mountains percolates down through the sandstone into the blistering depths of the earth where pressure forces it under the Olifants River and up the other side. 105 000 litres of pure, crystal clear water emerges at 43 °C every hour. This water flows through baths and two open-air swimming pools before rushing down to the Olifants River.

In 1768 Deputy Governer Cloppenburg commented, "After perspiring one feels weak at first and then much improved." This is exactly my experience - relaxation to the point of enervation, followed by tremendous energy. For centuries visitors to the spring swore by its healing power. The Baths were renowned for curing skin disease, chest infections and even "women's complaints".

Anything is possible when you having fun at one of these amazing resorts. Why not check them out for yourself?

Calitzdorp Spa

Equally renowned for its healing properties are the waters of the Calitzdorp Spa. Water emerging from the eye is 50 °C, but by the time it reaches the Roman bath it has cooled down to 30°C. This water, rich in iron and manganese, is believed to have offered "extraordinary relief to people suffering from sprains, high blood pressure and rheumatic complaints" since the source was first discovered.

My most memorable experience at the resort, which offers simple, comfortable accommodation in pool and mountain chalets, was a winter's evening spent drifting under a starry sky in the hot, open-air swimming pool. Arms wide-spread, hair adrift like willow twigs in the brown water, I felt like Hamlet's Ophelia. The darkness was like a womb; the water like amniotic fluid.

Goudini Spa

Goudini Spa is much more glamorous and commercial than the Baths or Calitzdorp Spa, and under management of the ATKV it has grown onto a Resort with a capital R over the years.

I have fond memories of childhood winters when club swimming happened here, before heated gym pools became the norm. Twenty years ago my wedding reception was held in this fabulous, rugged mountain setting because it had the only hall in the region big enough to accommodate 350 guests.

Today, the resort is still a great children's and family playground and the conference facilities are modern and spacious. Accommodation ranges from rustic rondavels to luxurious mountain villas with fabulous views. My kids love the thrills of sliding down the supertube and I love lounging in the same waters that welcomed my ten-year-old body more than three decades ago.

Take a family break with these packages to suit all your needs.

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