Exploring the Healing Waters of WorldSprings Dallas, a Social Wellness Wonderland

In 2012, National Geographic named Iceland one of the year’s best international trips. Soon, social media feeds were flooded with images of the Nordic country’s Blue Lagoon, a man-made wonder that lured the likes of Beyoncé, Kim Kardashian, and Kacey Musgraves to its mineral-rich waters. That particular geothermal gem and its incredible skin benefits represent just one of several global influences evident at WorldSprings Dallas, the largest outdoor mineral springs resort in America, opening this Friday, June 28 in The Colony’s Grandscape.

In addition to the Blue Lagoon, the internationally-inspired water world recreates the famous mineral-rich springs of Guatemala (Fuentes Georginas), Italy (Chianciano Terme), Japan (Kinosaki Onsen), Mexico (Grutas Tolantongo), South Korea (Osaek), Australia (Yarrangobilly), and Bali (Banjar). The soaking pools are carefully laid out throughout WorldSprings Dallas’ 10-acre spread and feature a unique mineral combination that can help improve sleep, circulation, and brain function or reduce stress, soreness, and inflammation. Cold plunge pools, cabanas for rent, and Finnish dry sauna pods are also scattered throughout the thoughtful landscape, designed by Bentonville, Arkansas-based architectural and engineering solutions firm HFA,

Each hot soak is accompanied by signage explaining its geographic inspiration and primary minerals, but well-traveled soakers may be able to tell the difference by color alone. Like the Icelandic destination, the six “Blue Lagoon” pools are an otherworldly milky blue hue, while the Italian-inspired Chianciano Terme pools feature a combination of iron, lithium, and magnesium that create a striking amber.

If there’s a centerpiece of the sprawling WorldSprings, it’s the Dead Sea Pool, an adults-only attraction that features the exact mineral formula you’d find in the original salt-forward attraction between Israel and Jordan. “You’re literally weightless,” Jackie Stauffer, CMO for WorldSprings Dallas, tells PaperCity. “It’s a fan favorite.”

In fact, the majority of WorldSprings is 18 and up, apart from the freshwater “Globe Pool.” After getting a wristband (your key to everything) and slipping into swimwear, visitors are invited to pool hop, lounge, have a cocktail, or sign up for a service at The Spa, which offers cryotherapy and a hyperbaric chamber in addition to facials and massages. It’s the kind of place you could picture spending the day among friends or totally solo, dipping in and out of healing waters from around the world. And unlike most spas, WorldSprings is open until 11 pm or — on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays — midnight. Even wilder: the team at WorldSprings found a site in the Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs with sweeping, hilly views that could rival Austin’s. (A bold statement, but I will stand by it.)

We only had a few hours to beta-test the many pools of WorldSprings Dallas, so we soaked up as much as we could. (Pun intended.) The Dead Sea was, in fact, the favorite. The salty water felt almost thick when not floating atop its surface — a bizarre, beautiful experience. After our many dips, my hair and skin never felt dried out — quite the opposite. It might have just been the salt, but my legs were practically sparkling by the time I went in for a deep tissue massage (absolutely killer).

And yet, what impressed me most was WorldSprings’ accessibility. I was shocked to hear the price for a day pass was only $55. “One of the things our investors are passionate about is that this is accessible,” shares Stauffer. “WorldSprings is a premium offering, but we don’t want the pricing to feel elite.”