The word 'spa' comes from the Belgian town of Spa which, with its hot, mineral springs became a resort as early as the 14th century. A spa is a health resort, a place where you can get treatments for your ailments with the help of hot baths. Nowadays, the label is also used for lots of hotels and other holiday establishments because the spa concept has become so popular. We have so much stress in our everyday lives, at work and in our homes - picking up children, housework and other commitments. We want to take it easy and enjoy ourselves when we have some free time. We don't need more stimulation, we need peace and quiet, relaxation and rest.

Imagine if you didn't have to leave your home to recharge your batteries. Now we can bring the beneficial waters right to us by setting up a wooden hot tub. A wooden hot tub is a large bathtub, usually round, with room for several people and with an integrated heat source, usually a wood-burning stove. Family, friends and acquaintances can sit in the tub with warm water up to their necks and watch the sun set or marvel at the starry sky. Maybe with something refreshing in their glasses, or simply the heat, the water and nature. It's beneficial for both body and soul - without a doubt!

But you don't have to settle for just the tub. You can set up an entire spa at home, with a sauna, massage table and maybe a relaxation area. The tub can be built in by lowering it into the terrace, or you can start with the tub and build up the area around it with wood, stone or some other material. Adding a few steps can work well too.

Only your imagination sets the limits for what you can achieve. Put some furniture next to the tub so that people who want a break from bathing don't have to leave the group just because they step out of the water. It will also mean you can invite more people than can fit in the tub and take turns. If you also have a sauna, you can rotate between the 'spa stations' all evening.

Just make sure that you don't become the manager of a local spa facility. The point is to give yourself an opportunity to unwind in a home environment, snug in a wooden hot tub with wonderfully warm water, listening to the wonderful sound of crackling wood and really enjoying life.