Harghita-Băi: a 99% CO2 mofette and springs in the Harghita Mountains

Harghita-Băi (Hungarian Hargitafürdő) is a mountain spa village in Harghita County. It belongs administratively to the town of Miercurea Ciuc and lies about 13 km west of it. Its houses are scattered among spruce forests on the south-eastern slope of the Harghita massif at 1,250–1,400 m; at the 2021 census it had 168 permanent residents. The village became known for kaolin mining, which ended in 2005, and above all for its mofettes and mineral springs. A warm mineral-water bath opened here in 1920 but was closed down in 1950 – only the mofette survived, and it still receives visitors today. In winter Harghita-Băi is a popular skiing spot, in summer a base for walks in the Harghita Mountains.

Natural healing factors

• Mofette – a dry gas of post-volcanic origin. According to the county tourism portal Visit Harghita, the gas of the Harghita-Băi mofette consists of 99% carbon dioxide, 0.9% hydrogen sulphide and 0.1% radioactive elements; Romanian balneologists writing in the journal In Vivo (2019) put the CO2 content of the Harghita source at 95–98%.
• Mineral springs – Csipike, Vallató, Piricske, Szemvíz and Lobogó; they are recommended for heart and vascular diseases and chronic inflammation. Vallató and Lobogó are also small bathing pools; the water at Vallató is only 6–7 °C in winter and summer alike.
• Climate – cool mountain climate with clean conifer-forest air at over 1,200 m.

What is treated

According to the Visit Harghita portal, the indications for treatment in the mofette are rheumatoid arthritis, arterial hypertension, arteriosclerosis, venous circulation disorders, scleroderma, nerve root compression and intervertebral disc problems. Contraindications: pregnancy, malignant tumours, acute inflammation and fever, infectious diseases, epilepsy, psychiatric disorders, chronic respiratory failure and certain lung diseases. The portal advises always consulting a doctor before starting a course. This information is for reference only and is not medical advice: the course and the procedures are prescribed by a doctor after a consultation.

Procedures and springs

The Harghita-Băi mofette is a simple public gas bath without a medical centre next to it. The rules published by the county portal:

• the first session lasts 15 minutes and is gradually extended to 30 minutes, twice a day, for a course of 10 to 28 days;
• the procedure should be taken under medical supervision and only after the gas level has been checked;
• during the gas bath you must not move or talk, as this makes the heavy gas rise higher;
• without a medical certificate visitors use the mofette at their own risk and on condition that they follow the local rules.

Your head must always stay above the gas level. Sparkling springs flow around the village, where locals and visitors fill their bottles, and in the cold Vallató and Lobogó pools you can take a quick dip – this is hardening, not a long swim.

Practical information

The mofette is at Strada Kányádi Sándor 275 and is run by Csíki Sportcentrum. As of November 2026 the Visit Harghita portal gives the opening hours as daily 8:00–18:00 and the prices as: one session 10 lei, a six-day pass (two sessions a day) 60 lei, a ten-day pass 100 lei. According to the Hungarian Wikipedia, the mofette operates only in the warm season – from May to November, depending on the weather – so call ahead before an autumn trip. In autumn and winter the village lives for the ski season: there are several slopes, and the Balu Park adventure park is nearby. Above the village, on the Tolvajos summit, stand three large crosses.

Getting there from Ukraine

The shortest route from Chernivtsi is via the Porubne – Siret border crossing: 296 km, about 5 h 52 min. From Rakhiv via Solotvyno – Sighetu Marmației it is 355 km, about 6 h 33 min; from Uzhhorod via Diakove – Halmeu 473 km, about 8 h 06 min. Times are without border queues. Romanian roads require the electronic vignette (rovinieta). The last kilometres from Miercurea Ciuc climb a mountain road.

Nearby

The highest summit of the massif, Harghita-Mădăraș (1,801 m), lies about 8 km to the north and is reached by marked trails. Below, in the Ciuc Depression, lies the town of Miercurea Ciuc. On the other side of the mountains, in the Homorodul Mare valley, is the resort of Băile Homorod with ferruginous springs, and to the south in the Olt gorge lies Băile Tușnad with a mofette and treatment bases.

Mountain rescue Salvamont: 0SALVAMONT (0725 826 668) or 112.

Official website: visitharghita.com

Photos: Kalinka Tamás, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Katalin, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Einstein2, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Albertistvan, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.