Ruta Patrimonial

Vichy Catalan Thermal Spa

19th – 20th centuries. Vichy Catalan Thermal Spa was developed by Doctor Modest Furest i Roca, who in 1880 bought the Las Ànimes Hill. The purpose of this purchase was to exploit the thermal water sources and consisted of building a bottling plant at the thermal baths. The water from the Gran, La Cantera, Xica and El Fetge hot spring sources was initially marketed under the name “Puig de les Ànimes Water,” then declared in the public interest.

In 1891, the water was marketed under the name “Vichy Catalan” to associate it with famous medicinal waters of the French thermal centre. That same year, Dr. Furest consolidated the project with the construction of a thermal spa, under the charge of Gaietà Buïgas i Monrabà.

The thermal spa was planned as a building of monumental size, Modernist in style and with a marked Arabic influence. It comprises two different parts which form a “T.” An inner courtyard with a fountain stands out, in front of which there is a chapel dedicated to St. Joseph and St. Stephen, constructed under the influence of the Modernist aesthetic.