The historical development of the hot springs in Chongqing reaches nearly 1600 years. Legend has it that the Yellow Emperor once created a medicine with hot spring to treat and cure civilians. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties in 1004, an eminent buddhist monk named Ciying traveled to Jinyun Mountain in Beibei. Amazed by the warm and soft water of the North Hot Spring, he founded the Hot Spring Temple. It was the historical beginning of the hot spring development and utilization in Chongqing, 468 years earlier than Gero Onsen (one of the World Cultural Heritage Sites in Japan) and over 200 years earlier than Arima Onsen (the earlist hot spring resort in Japan) .

During the Wanli Period of the Ming Dynasty, the South Hot Spring was developed. According to the folk history, the South Hot Spring was a refuge for Emperor Jianwen of Ming Dynasty.

In 1927, Lu Zuofu founded the North Hot Spring Park, the first one of its kind in Chinese modern history. During the  Anti-Japanese War and 1945-1949 (Chongqing as the provisional Capital), the local hot springs became the favorite holiday resorts for the military, political and cultural celebrities. Chiang Kai-shek, Lin Sen and many senior generals of the National Government all stayed in major hot springs. 

Since the 1990s, Chongqing has made great efforts to develop the hot spring industry, thanks to the legacy of “four famous hot springs” and sound natural resources. In 2005, Chongqing Municipal People’s Government put forward a strategic decision to make Chongqing the “Global Capital of Hot Springs” and make hot springs another city card of Chongqing. In 2011, Chongqing was rated as the “Chinese Capital of Hot Springs”. In 2012, Chongqing was awarded the “Global Capital of Hot Springs” by FEMTEC (World Federation of Hydrotherapy and Climatotherapy).