Moravske Toplice

Drilling for oil in Prekmurje in 1960 found hot water instead, coming up from more than a kilometre down at over seventy degrees and coloured almost black by the mineral and organic content of the beds it passes through. The spas that grew around it use the water cooled for bathing, and the colour is unlike anything else in the country. The resorts are large, with indoor and outdoor pools, slides and treatment centres, and Prekmurje's flat farmland lies around them.

What you actually see

• The black thermal water - dark mineral water from over a kilometre down at above seventy degrees.
• The pool complexes - indoor and outdoor pools, slides and thermal basins.
• The treatment centres - the medical side of the spa using the same water.
• The Prekmurje setting - flat farmland, storks and dispersed villages around the resorts.

When to go

Year round; winter is when the outdoor thermal pools are most enjoyable. Summer school holidays fill the water parks. Spring and autumn are quietest.

Honest expectations

These are large commercial resorts rather than quiet spas, and in summer they are loud with families. The water's colour puts some people off. The surrounding area has little else for visitors.

Nearby

Bogojina is east, and Murska Sobota is south.