If the word "bad" is present in the name of a German city or village, be aware: this is a resort. And not just a place where you can have a good rest: people come here to also improve their health. The word "bad" does not mean "dietary supplement." It can be compared with "SPA". Therefore, at such a resort must be present if not bathing, then at least pump-rooms with healing mineral water.
Many of these towns, in the name of which there is a prefix (or ending) "bad", have been known since the late Roman Empire. This article will focus on one of them. Baden-Baden is a resort in Germany, the most popular in Russia. Below we will explain why.
The French call this town with a population of fifty-four thousand people “Royal SPA” - the royal resort. And the Germans proudly declare that Baden-Baden is the "summer capital of all of Europe." As for the last statement, one can argue: the beaches of the Cote d'Azur in France are much more crowded with vacationers. But this is what Baden-Baden takes: the opportunity to leisurely spend time away from the bustling crowd.
Where is the resort located
Out of the very south-west of Germany, near the headwaters of the Rhine, is the Black Forest, translated from German as “Black Forest”. These are low, but extremely picturesque mountains. They are spurs of the Alps. Among these natural beauties lies the federal state of Baden-Württemberg. Its capital is Stuttgart, and the major cities are Mannheim, Karlsruhe and Freiburg. This land is frontier: it adjoins France from the west, and Switzerland from the south. This situation makes the stay in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg also excursion-rich. Indeed, an hour away is Strasbourg and the high Alps. The resort of Baden-Baden (Germany) is located on the western slopes of the Black Forest, on both banks of the Os river. Why does the town have such a double name? The thermal springs were discovered here by the ancient Romans. In the city you can see the ruins of ancient baths. And the fame of the local baths spread throughout the Roman Empire.
The settlement that arose in the third century was called Baden. When Germany came together, people began to specify in which land the resort was located. They said: "Baden in the state of Baden-Württemberg." In the end, in 1931 the city officially changed its name. Now it sounds like a tautology. But it immediately becomes clear which particular resort is in question.
How to get there
Since 2013, the resort's international airport began to take regular flights from Russia. The carrier company Ceman Airlines sends its planes from the capital's Domodedovo. There are other options. You can get to Frankfurt or Stuttgart. In Germany, you can travel by rail relatively cheaply if you know some secrets. So, a ticket “all federal state of Baden-Württemberg”, valid for two hours, will cost you cheaper than the fare “Stuttgart - Baden-Baden”. An excellent highway network connects the city with Karlsruhe and Freiburg. Resorts in Baden-Baden have long come out of the city limits. Indeed, in small villages nearby, thermal keys are also beaten. Clinics, pools, pump rooms are built on these sources. There is a bus service between the resorts.
History of Baden-Baden
We have already mentioned that the city owes its glory to the ancient Romans - great lovers to soak in the baths. At the dawn of our era, they built on the shores of Os a bath for wounded veterans. Later, a settlement grew up here, which became known as Civitas-Aurelia-Aquensis. The city became truly famous in 214, when it was visited by the emperor Caracalla. He really liked the local thermal waters. Imperial baths were built for Caracalla.
In the early Middle Ages, the baths were forgotten. But already from 1306, they were again put in order by the rulers of the burg of Badon (as the Roman Civitas-Aurelia-Aquensis began to be called in the local dialect). In the Renaissance, when doctors began to prescribe “sluggish" patients and women who could not conceive a child, treatment on the waters, the city became so popular that a resort fee was introduced here (by the way, the first in all of Germany). The presence of mountains attracted pulmonary patients. In the nineteenth century, the resorts of Baden-Baden became the "summer capital of Europe", where the whole high society flocks. A casino is being built here (the first in Germany) and other leisure infrastructure.
Russia and Baden-Baden
In the eighteenth century, the heir to the throne, Alexander Pavlovich, married a certain Louise. His wife, who went down in history under the name of Empress Elizabeth Alekseevna, among others, bore the title of Princess of Baden. Since the reign of Alexander the Great, the fashion for “waters” has also come to Russia. Empress Elizabeth loved to travel to their native places, to the resorts of Baden-Baden. And the whole Russian nobility followed her: the Grand Dukes Trubetskoys, Menshikovs, Volkonskys, etc. Dignitaries, middle-class nobles and merchants who could afford to luxuriate in this resort did not lag behind them.
Many entrepreneurial people bought real estate here - if not in the town itself, so in its vicinity. In the 19th century, Baden-Baden firmly entered Russian classical literature. He is mentioned in his works by Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Goncharov, Chekhov and Turgenev. Since the Russian community was large, the Orthodox Church of the Transfiguration appeared in the resort.
When to go to Baden-Baden
The climate on the slopes of the Black Forest is mild, with slight temperature fluctuations between the seasons. Summer is not hot here. In July, usually a thermometer column is at around 15-20 ° C. It is not in vain that the resorts of Baden-Baden are called the summer capital of Europe. The high tourist season lasts from May to the end of September. But thanks to the thermal springs you can come here all year round.
Baden-Baden: resort
Photos of this wonderful place primarily represent various baths and health centers. What kind of ailments are taken to heal in this amazing place, and with what diseases is it contraindicated to go there? As in the old days, they specialize in treating shattered nerves. All sorts of depression here will be completely removed. They also effectively cure diseases of the lungs and upper respiratory tract, arthritis and arthrosis, female infertility, metabolic disorders, cleanse the body of toxins, and fight obesity. Contraindications are few. These are cardiovascular diseases during the period of complications and the presence of open wounds. But patients with a stroke come here for treatment.
Where to get well
Baden-Baden - a resort within which twenty springs hit. The water temperature in some of them reaches + 68.8 ° C. Some keys contain radon in a concentration of 35.7-44.5 nK / l. In addition, sodium chloride waters come to the surface of the earth, which are diverted to drinking pump rooms. The resort has many resorts and clinics that provide their guests with accommodation, meals and treatment. But also there will be no problems to find a table and a shelter in some boarding house or hotel. Within the city, the most famous are the thermal treatment complexes “The Baths of Caracalla” and “Friedrichsbad”. The effect of various kinds of hydrotherapy there is supported by massages, mud wraps, inhalations and procedures. The Max Grundig Clinic specializes in the treatment of psychosomatic diseases. It is located on a hill, twelve kilometers from the city, among picturesque vineyards and forests. Forty kilometers from the resort is Bad Wildbad. It is also famous for its thermal springs and baths.
Baden-Baden (resort): reviews
Travelers from Russia claim that the prices here are quite high. But the service provided in the clinics is simply first-class. In summer, on the streets of this city you can meet many celebrities. It is not necessary to be a patient of clinics to attend baths and pump-rooms. But tourists still recommend consulting a doctor, because thermal waters can affect the functioning of the heart.