Karlovy Vary

Tradition credits Emperor Charles IV with discovering the springs around the mid-14th century, and the town takes its name from him: Karlovy Vary means Charles' Baths, Karlsbad in German. It received town privileges in 1370 and grew slowly as a place for healing baths and, later, drinking cures.

The great boom came in the 18th and 19th centuries, when the arrival of aristocrats, writers and composers turned Karlsbad into a fashionable resort; the railway link to Prague opened in 1870 and visitor numbers peaked just before the First World War. Much of today's townscape, with its colonnades and ornate hotels, dates from that era. In 2021 Karlovy Vary was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List together with Mariánské Lázně, Františkovy Lázně and eight other European spa towns as The Great Spa Towns of Europe.

Spa culture here is a genuine medical tradition, not just a pastime: many guests come for prescribed stays that combine drinking cures, baths and rest. Local specialities reflect that heritage, from the thin round spa wafers (Karlovarské oplatky), first made here in 1867, to Becherovka and fine glass. Life moves at a gentle pace along the promenades, especially in the early morning when regulars do their first round of the springs.