The History of the Hot Tub

Bathing in warm water has been a standard medical practice since ancient times. Many of us have heard of the elaborate baths of the ancient Romans, a daily ritual that was part cleansing, part relaxation and part social event. This custom they obtained from the ancient Greeks, who enjoyed thermal water baths as early as 500 B.C. The Romans took the Greek concept and turned it into an elaborate ritual in large bath houses with water brought by aqueduct. This ritual included oil massage, saunas, and dips into pools of varying warmth. Spas and bathhouses also have long traditions in Europe, Egypt and Japan.

The Japanese are generally credited with creating the first at-home hot tubs. In fact they have a saying, which translates to “Mind Like Water”, a state of having harmony with all things, achieved through bathing in a hot tub.

In Britain the city of Bath was a popular spot from about 800 B.C. This area eventually became home to five baths and was popular with British royalty well into the 20th century.

In the United States warm baths had been popular since before the Revolutionary War, but after WWII the trend of in-home hot tubs began to really take off. Occupational forces brought back knowledge of the Japanese hot tubs (or ofuro) and by the 1960s these had become quite popular in California.

The modern Jacuzzi, which today is the most popular form of hot tub, was invented in 1954 by an Italian family of the same name. This system used a pump coupled with jets to produce a froth of bubbles. Today nearly all forms of hot tubs come with some form air-powered massage.