Bolu: Turkey's winter paradise with natural springs

The northern province of Bolu, a big tourist attraction with its Lake Abant, Yedigöller (Seven Lakes) and Gölcük Nature Park, is also a leading thermal and health tourist magnet, according to the city's governor.

The Black Sea province of Bolu is a famous destination for nature lovers with lakes and forests that cover 65 percent of the city, and it has more to offer in thermal and health attractions.

There are 30 thermal springs in Bolu province's Seben, Göynük, Mudurnu, Karacasu and Taşkesti districts, and the heat of the spring water is between 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) and 90 degrees Celsius (194 degrees Fahrenheit).

In the Karacasu district, thermal spring water is used both for healing hospital patients and hotel tourists.

Also, in the Mudurnu, Taşkesti and Göynük districts, which are ancient Ottoman towns located on the Silk Road, a recently built thermal facility and time-share properties contribute to Bolu's thermal tourism. Ancient Ottoman bathhouses in the Mudurnu and Göynük districts also attract tourists.

The Silk Road is an ancient trade network through regions of Eurasia connecting the East and West, stretching from the Korean Peninsula and Japan to the Mediterranean Sea.

In the village of Kesenözü in the Seben district, the Pavlu Hot Springs offer healing to those suffering from various diseases, such as rheumatism, gynecological diseases and dermatological disorders. The hot water's heat ranges between 60 degrees Celsius and 90 degrees Celsius.

In 2016, facilities in the Karacasu, Seben and Mudurnu districts hosted 138,685 visitors, including 7,165 foreigners.

The city is rich in many areas, including tourism, Bolu's Governor Aydın Baruş told Anadolu Agency (AA).

"We have natural beauty sites in our province that are famous in our country and on an international scale. In just [Lake] Abant, Yedigöller and Gölcük, we have more than 1 million same-day visitors," he added.

Baruş also said they are trying to make the sites available for accommodation, increasing visitors' overnight stays.

"Bolu has important thermal springs [...] Bolu is making good progress in [building] facilities. There are currently two thermal springs operating. There are 878 beds in these facilities. On the other hand, there are around 4,500 beds in three time-share property facilities," he said, adding they aim for 20,000 beds in the next few years.

İzzet Baysal Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Education and Research Hospital's head physician, Dr. Erdal Dilekçi, also said Turkey is a very rich country in terms of hot spring waters.

"We have a serious richness in our geographical location, but we know that we don't use it to a certain degree. Bolu is a region that uses this [richness] to a good level and has a promising future," Dilekci told AA.