Druskininkai is the largest and most important health resort in Lithuania. There are deposits of mineral and therapeutic peat waters, which are used in numerous sanatoriums and a modern Aquapark.
The healing properties of Druskininkai waters were described for the first time in the second half of the 18th century. It was then that King Stanisław August Poniatowski granted the town the status of a health resort by a special decree. However, the official beginning of the resort is considered to be 1837, when Tsar Nicholas I issued a decision on the recognition of the health resort.
The city developed into a significant resort after World War I, and this was due to the multiple stays of Marshal Józef Piłsudski. From the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, numerous wooden and brick villas have been preserved in Druskininkai, such as the Villa Imperial, Omega, Maur and the Kiersnowski villa, which now houses the City Museum. When visiting Druskininkai, you can also visit the picturesque Orthodox Church of the Icon of the Mother of God and the neo-Gothic church of Our Lady of the Scapular.
The biggest attraction of Druskininkai are the local thermal waters. There is the largest Aquapark in Lithuania and numerous sanatoriums. In the spa park, you can watch multimedia fountain shows, and for longer walks, the Vijūnėlė Park with a large lake and a fountain operating on it is a perfect place. In the suburbs of Druskininkai you can take advantage of the year-round Snow Arena, where in a huge hall there are artificially snowed trails for downhill skiing and snowboarding.
