Located about an hour west of Fort Worth, Mineral Wells is a Texas town in the Palo Pinto and Parker Counties with a population of around 15,000 residents. The town is home to typical small town staples ranging from historic hotels, art galleries, and boutique shops to its famed Lake Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway.
Far and away the town’s biggest claim to fame, however, is its extensive wellness amenities such that the town has earned the title of the “Wellness Capital of Texas“. Furthermore, its numerous health and wellness facilities, coupled with its small-town charm, earned the Texas town’s place on Travel and Leisure‘s list of “The Best Small Towns in America 2025”.
The source of Mineral Well’s wellness reputation, comes from its healing mineral waters. Tracing back to 1880, the town’s considered founder, James Alvis Lynch, discovered the mineral water through a well on his property.
Lynch and his family found that the water had an odd smell and peculiar taste and so were originally hesitant to drink it. However, the family would, after consuming it, find the water to be “curative”, as it would alleviate Lynch and his wife’s rheumatism.
It’s said that the water contains a high concentration of minerals as well as trace amounts of lithium, which lends itself to the town’s Crazy Well lore.
Today, Mineral Wells features numerous spas and wellness facilities that utilize its restorative waters. The Crazy Water Bath House & Spa is the wellness facility most directly associated with the town’s wellness reputation. A modern recreation of the historic bathhouses in the early years, the venue’s signature service is it the Microbubble Mineral Water Bath, in which guests can soak in the mineral water.
Other popular facilities include The Spa at The Wells inside The Crazy Water Hotel, BWell Spa, and Four Points Wellness.
Here’s what Travel and Leisure had to say in its write up of Mineral Wells as one of the best small towns in America:
“A century later, Mineral Wells—now the official Wellness Capital of Texas—is seeing a resurgence as locals rally together to revitalize historic properties and honor its wellness theme,” the article reads.
“Stop into town and you’ll feel the slower pace of life and small-town charm coupled with that buzzy aura of rebirth and opportunity. Here, you’ll realize there really is just something in the water.”