Thermae

The terms balnea or thermae were the words the ancient Romans used for the buildings housing their public baths.

Most Roman cities had at least one, if not many, such buildings, which were centers of public bathing and socialization. Baths were extremely important for Romans. They stayed there for several hours and went daily. Wealthier Romans were accompanied by one or more slaves. After paying a fee, they would strip naked and wear sandals to protect their feet from heated floors. Slaves carried their masters' towels and got them drinks. Before bathing, patrons exercised. They did things such as running, mild weight-lifting, wrestling, and swimming. After exercising, servants covered their masters in oil and scraped it off with a strigil
Roman bath-houses were also provided for private villas, town houses and forts; these were also called thermae. They were supplied with water from an adjacent river or stream, or more normally, by an aqueduct.