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(CNN) — For many people visiting Iceland, a trip to the steamy waters of the Blue Lagoon is the highlight. Now that highlight could be about to get even better.
Because of the lagoon's growing popularity, a new luxury hotel has opened next to the deep blue mineral-rich waters, allowing visitors to upgrade their stay to something a little more private.
Opened in the fall of 2017, the 62-room Moss Hotel gives guests exclusive access to the attraction's reviving facilities. The Blue Lagoon expansion will also see the opening of a new dining room, the Moss Restaurant, and spa, known as Lava Cove.
The venue, according to the Blue Lagoon, was created in order to "erase the boundary between nature, wellness, hospitality, and affluence" through the "extraordinary powers of the geothermal seawater, the beauty of Blue Lagoon's volcanic surroundings, and the luxuries of world-class service."
Perfect stopover
Thought to be bubbling with health benefits, this nutrient-rich water in Iceland's Blue lagoon draws people from all over the world.
Not bad for somewhere that makes use of waste seawater from a geothermal power station.
Hundreds of thousands of visitors make the trip to the Blue Lagoon every year to wallow in the soupy lakes created in an 800-year-old lava field.
The attraction's location, at Grindavik on the Reykjanes Peninsula, is close to the country's international airport, meaning that even travelers with a few hours' stopover can take a dip.
In 2016, the destination completed the first phase of its expansion, increasing the size of the lagoon by half.
"The opening of Lava Cove and Moss Hotel next autumn will be an important milestone for the Blue Lagoon," says Dagný Pétursdóttir, Blue Lagoon managing director. "We are evolving and expanding our horizons."
Even if those horizons are hidden in a cloud of geothermal steam.
