For most Americans, getting soaked means being alone in a bath with just a rubber ducky for company. But around the world, a good hot (or cold) soak is a social, communal experience that soothes your soul while strengthening community bonds. Now WorldSprings aims to bring that to North Texas with a new “social wellness destination” at Grandscape in The Colony, north of Dallas.
Slated to open as soon as this spring, WorldSprings will offer over 40 unique pools dotted around a nine-acre landscape, each offering a “relaxing social atmosphere” inspired by famous hot springs from around the world.
Said to be the first outdoor mineral pool experience of its kind in the U.S., WorldSprings aims to combine the restorative health benefits of mineral springs and “the positive power of social connection,” delivering “an experiential water retreat for everyone.”
The destination will join a wide range of experiential offerings at Grandscape, a 433-acre mixed-use development featuring shopping, restaurants, and immersive entertainment venues—from Puttery to Fireside Surf to the coming Cosm “shared reality” experience to Sixes Social Cricket to the soon-to-open PopStroke and much more.
Rendering of WorldSprings at Grandscape [Image: WorldSprings]
Soaking pools, cold plunges, Finnish saunas, and a spa
The destination is inspired by nature’s spas and the curative effects of mineral-rich hot springs, the company says—and it will be open year-round, even on cold winter days. Soaking pools, cold-plunge pools, Finnish saunas, a spa, and wellness therapies are all part of the attraction.
Different parts of WorldSprings are themed by world region—hence one of the company’s slogans, “Experience the world, one soak at a time.” From Iceland’s Blue Lagoon to the temples of Banjar in Bali to the thermal waters of Australia’s Yarrangobilly forest, WorldSprings is globally inspired by famous spas and natural springs from around the world.
Rendering of WorldSprings at Grandscape [Image: WorldSprings]
Some areas are for all ages; some for 18 and up only
Parts of the attraction will aim to keep kids’ shrieks away from your zen soaking experience. The Family Pool, the Dead Sea Float Pool, and the South Pacific region mineral pools will be open for all ages. Adults who want a more chill experience can try the age-18-and-up Asiatic, European, and Americas region mineral pools.
If you want a tailored experience, a “wellness circuit” can be designed for you by a “balneologist”—an expert in a traditional medicine technique of treating diseases via the therapeutic effects of hot springs, public baths, and thermal medicine.
Map of WorldSprings’ venue at Grandscape in The Colony [Image: WorldSprings]
To cure what ails you, WorldSprings will offer “fire and Ice circuits,” wellness circuits, and treatments for weight loss, inflammation, stress reduction, athletic recovery, and overall well-being. The company says these services are “carefully curated to deliver results to bring your mind and body back to balance.”
Curated by Dr. Sara Gottfried, WorldSpring’s in-house medical practitioner, wellness offerings include massages and body treatments at The Spa; “sound baths, yoga, breathwork, and meditation classes at The Sanctuary; and more advanced techniques like cryotherapy chambers, an mHBOT (hyperbaric oxygen) chamber, and Normateck Boots, which deliver compression for leg recovery.
Lots of aqua classes will be on tap, too.
Once it opens, you can explore WorldSprings via either a day pass or an annual membership, the company says.
Rendering of WorldSprings at Grandscape [Image: WorldSprings]
A partnership of Off Road Capital and Iron Mountain Hot Springs’ founder
WorldSprings is the result of a February 2021 partnership between New York-based Off Road Capital Partners and Steve Beckley, the founder of Iron Mountain Hot Springs, an outdoor mineral spa on the banks of the Colorado River in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. The Iron Mountain spa features 16 geothermal pools amid a highly scenic setting—with nearby sunsets coloring the spaces between high, rolling vistas.
The partners can’t haul that mountainous Colorado view to North Texas. But they aim to bring the heart of the experience to their first-ever WorldSprings venue.
And they hope the Grandscape location will lead to many more.
WorldSprings and Off Road aim to create “a new social and wellness experience that brings the hot spring experience to cities across the U.S.,” according to Off Road’s website.
Rendering of WorldSprings at Grandscape [Image: WorldSprings]
Water at WorldSprings is treated with different minerals to replicate global hot springs hotspots
The partners say they’re creating “inspired” mineral pool facilities at Grandscape “whereby we take traditional water that is heated and combined with different minerals to replicate the famous hot springs around the world.”
The partners broke ground on the Grandscape location in November 2022, and say they’re searching for sites in “20-plus cities and establishing a pipeline of locations to prepare for a rapid rollout.”
Leveraging best practices and guest experiences from Iron Mountain Hot Springs as well as Beckley’s experience at owning the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, also in Glenwood Springs, the partners want Grandscape to be just the start of things for WorldSprings. The biggest barrier to entry is capital, Off Road says on its website, since each WorldSprings venue can cost over $50 million.
Rendering of WorldSprings at Grandscape [Image: WorldSprings]
Note: This article was updated on March 7, 2024, to note that WorldSprings will feature “over 40” unique pools, per updated info from the company.
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