Alicante Hot Springs

Alicante Hot Springs is a natural geothermal site in El Salvador, one of the numerous thermal manifestations of the country's position on the Pacific Ring of Fire volcanic arc, where bicarbonate-rich hot water surfaces from the volcanic basement in a setting typical of El Salvador's densely populated and intensely cultivated western highlands. The springs serve local communities for bathing and as a modest tourism attraction, embedded in the remarkable cultural landscape of western El Salvador with its Maya Pipil heritage, traditional indigo dyeing, and the vibrant folk arts of the Nahuizalco and Izalco communities. El Salvador's compact size — the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America — means that geothermal sites are rarely far from rich cultural and natural attractions.