Suffering from stress, apathy, depression, a lack of concentration, bad digestion, excess weight gain? …Then you may be lacking in magnesium and you should down a litre or two of the Styria or Donat Mg mineral water. And what better place to imbibe them than at the source in Rogaška Slatina, the health resort that offers much more than just a cure. It offers beauty, history and art and all the facilities you could want from a modern leisure centre and holiday resort. The nearby crystal factory also provides an excellent opportunity for a bit of retail therapy.

Rogaška is steeped in history, the area has been inhabited since Roman times. The first written mention of the spring is in a manuscript dated 1141 and we know the water has been used for curative purposes since medieval times. Real fame came in c.1665 when a feudal lord, the Croat Peter Zrinjski announced his miraculous healing. The commercialisation of the water followed and at the turn of the 18^th century 20,000 bottles were being sold in Vienna.

In 1803 the regional governor, Count Attem, turned Rogaška into a proper health resort which was soon to become one of the most fashionable and popular in Europe. A period of rapid growth between 1840 and 1860, helped on by the new Vienna-Trieste rail link (1857), necessitated the building of several hotels. People came from England, Italy, Russia, Poland, Germany, Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia and the United States. The resort boasted many illustrious visitors, including the Hapsburgs. They were not the only royals to visit, many others came, including the French Bonapartes. Several celebrities put in regular appearances too, such as the composer Franz Liszt who entertained the guests. Moreover Styria had become the third biggest international seller after France’s Vichy and Germany’s Selter and it won a prize at the World Exhibition in Chicago in 1893.

Rogaška experienced another growth spurt at the turn of the 20^th century with the introduction of a new local railway. Between the First and Second World Wars the resort was the most important and modern spa and tourist centre in the whole of the former Yugoslavia. Its visitors reflected the ‘new elite’ - government and military dignitaries, industrial magnates and members of the professions.

After 1945, with the austerity of the new regime, the resort ceased to be a fashionable spa but continued to be developed as a health spa and visitors continued to come from distant parts. However the fighting in former Yugoslavia in the ‘90s put pay to that and the resort went into decline. The painful process of privatisation exacerbated the situation and some cafés, shops and hotels, such as the beautiful Hotel Soča on the hill opposite Hotel Styria, were closed. However the visitors have recently started to return and last year some of the hotels were enjoying full occupancy.

The architectural beauty of the resort largely reflects its boom periods. The overall sense of elegance and grandeur comes from the many 19^th century buildings which line the central promenade, Zdraviliška trg (designed like an ‘English park’). The Tempel, the oval pavilion once above the main spring, the Hotel Styria with its grand proportions and portico, and the grandiose palaces were products of Rogaška’s golden era. Historians agree that these are among the most important classicist buildings in the whole of Slovenia. Secessionist (Art Nouveau) style buildings began to spring up at the beginning of the 20^th century, including the elegant Kaiserbad hydrotherapy (1904) which has recently been restored to house the Tempel Café. The Art Deco period of the ‘20s and ‘30s, exemplified by the arcade of shops in the southern end of the resort, is less well represented. Unfortunately, the architecture of the ‘60s and ‘70s is also represented - by the 12-storey glass tower at the northern end of the promenade.

This glass eyesore paradoxically houses the ‘Terapija’ (Therapy Centre) which offers everything from preventative to curative and rehabilitation programmes, covering a whole range of treatments and services: such as gastro-enterology, cardiology, dermatology, gynaecology, … not to mention, physiotherapy, kinesiotherapy, pschycotherapy, balneotherapy, aromatherapy… and, last but not least, arterial surgery, cosmetic surgery and plastic surgery. It is, as the Lonely Planet says, ‘a cure factory’.

For all that, the resort does not feel like a hospital complex as some spas do, and you can simply opt for a relaxing massage or just partake of the waters. You can do the latter ‘orally’ in the ‘Pivnica’, a single-storey circular glass building attached to the Hotel Donat which houses 11 drinking fountains containing hot and cold Styria and Donat Mg water. Both are rich in minerals, particularly magnesium. You ‘hire’ a glass and drink as much as you like. For me the water was a little too medicine-like so I’ll stick to tasting wine and bathing in the water in future.

The Rogaška Riviera thermal pool complex offers outside and indoor mineral pools (30°C), complete with water jets, whirlpools (36°C). There is also a steam room and a sauna (beware - birthday suits only). The Hotel Donat has a similar complex but on a smaller scale and with an indoor pool.

There are a myriad of other leisure activities available. Sports facilities include a running track, a nine-hole pitch and putt, a bowls lawn and an archery ground. There are also solariums and fitness centres as well as six open-air and four covered tennis courts and a squash court. Surprisingly there are 3km of ski runs and a drag lift on Janina Hill. You can hire a bike or go walking on one of the many well-marked trails which fan out into the surrounding countryside. You can also gain access to Donačka Gora (883m) although there is easier access via Rogatec.

For the culture vultures there is a Museum of Graphic Art which houses the collection of 16^th –19^th century etchings and drawings donated by Kurt Műller (a satisfied Swiss patient). Concerts take place in the park, ‘Tempel’, ‘Pivnica’ and Crystal Ballroom from July to September, and there is an annual song festival.

The name Rogaška Slatina has become synonymous with crystal so no visit is complete without a visit to the crystal factory and shop. Group visits can be made to the factory to see the workers coolly producing some of the world’s finest crystal in searing temperatures. The factory was established in 1927 with 50 employees, it now has 1600. The crystal contains 25% lead and much is produced under licence for companies like Waterford Crystal. The majority of the crystal is exported, mainly to the States. Crystal and glassware, from the very plain to the extremely ornate, can be purchased at very reasonable prices in the factory shop - a great opportunity to stock up on all those engagement / wedding / anniversary presents.

It is well worth exploring the area around Rogaška Slatina. You could go on an organised tour, or alone, to the Carthusian Monastery of Pleterje, Kajfež Castle, or Atomske Toplice, another thermal spa. You could also have a round of golf at the nine-hole golf course in Podčetrtek. An easier excursion would be a trip to Rogatec, just 7 km to the east of Rogaška. The town dates back to Roman times and past glories are witnessed by two beautiful Baroque churches and the remains of two castles. However, the centuries have not been altogether kind to the town – it was threatened by Turks several times, burnt down twice and stricken by the plague in the 18^th century.

Nevertheless, the town has embraced the past by opening a charming open-air folk museum showing how people lived in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries. One of the oldest structures is the traditional Pannonian farmhouse. It offers some interesting little insights: the girls room (the boys slept in the barn) had barred windows and a squeaky door to prevent any intrusion or escape; in the children’s and old folks’ room several of the younger children slept in an ingenious bed that doubled as a table; the parents slept in the living room; smoke from the chimneyless stoves served to cure the meat.

A barn displays farm implements and machinery including a wine press and there is a ‘luxury’ pigsty, a ‘toplar’ (a double ‘kozolec’ or drying rack), a forge and a colourful beehive. A typical Rogatec inter-war period shop which provided everything from matches to material is also represented. Nowadays the shop sells some very tasteful souvenirs proving that such a thing is not always a contradiction in terms. The wine maker’s cottage houses modern restaurant facilities in the former upstairs living quarters. Meals can be provided for groups on request. If you are lucky you may get to taste some of the excellent Rhine Reisling in the atmospheric cellar.

In the centre of the whole complex is a well with an interesting lifting structure incorporating a heavy stone. The museum becomes a living museum for school groups with demonstrations of activities such as bread making and courses are run for adults on some of the old crafts or on more esoteric topics such as developing a business.

Back in Rogaška Slatina you will need sustenance. There are a number of restaurants and cafés, the most trendy of which is the Tempel Caffe. If you fancy making a night of it, Tempel Caffe is open until 3am on Friday and Saturday nights. There is also a casino in Hotel Donat and a nightclub in the Hotel Trst. If you’d prefer something a little more sedate, ballroom dancing is sometimes organised in the Kaverna Zagreb or the Crystal ballroom.

Plenty of accommodation is available in the resort also with its 14 hotels - from 4-star to no-star. We stayed in the Aparthotel Slatina which successfully provides for all your self-catering needs while offering hotel comfort. If you fancy spoiling yourself try their penthouse style presidential suite. Last year you could stay in the historic Hotel Styria for a mere SIT 6900 per night (double) - the hotel is currently a little down at heel but remains, like Venice, beautiful in its ‘decay’.

Although in the far east of the country Rogaška Slatina is easily accessible from Ljubljana by public transport (bus or train via Celje) as well as by car. The bus station is conveniently situated near the shops in the southern end of the resort and the train station is about 300 metres further south.

This ‘Vichy of Slovenia’ is a car and care-free oasis which is easy on the eye and on the pocket book. All in all it’s an excellent resort for those seeking a relaxing and healthy break - you may actually come back feeling like you’ve had a holiday rather than being in need of another one.

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