Niška Banja (or Niš Spa) is located 10 km away from Niš on the road to Sofia. It is situated in the southern part of Niš Valley, under the nearly 1000m high forest covered slopes of Mt Suva Planina. Surrounded by the Svrljig Mountains and Svrljig Gorge in the north, and open air in the east and the west, the location offers breathtaking views of southern Serbia's natural wonders. While studying the density of the area's sinter deposits, which originally created the terraces in the spa, researchers discovered that the wellspring of Niška Banja has been active for over 26,000 years. During the construction of new baths, metal coins were found from the period of Hadrian, the Roman emperor who reigned from AD 117 to 138, which confirms that the first baths at Niška Banja were built in the 2nd century. After a long period of stagnation, the spa was mentioned again during the period of Turkish rule. According to legend, a horse owned by a pasha from Niš got sick, so the pasha gave it to a Tatar from near Banja to take care of. The horse drank water from the spring, lay in the mud and was healed. And so, the Turks realized the benefits of Niška Banja and its water. King Aleksandar I Karađorđević also had his villa here, and excited about the healing properties of the water, the king issued a special decree: every two days, his subjects filled pitchers with the thermal water and took them to Belgrade to the king. Medically, Niška Banja has a mild, sedative climate, very good for convalescents. This is partly due to the mild vegetation on Koritnik. Nowadays the spa is one of the main attractions of Niš and home to many accommodation options for all budgets - see Where to Stay for more details.