Baden-Baden

Hot springs at around sixty-eight degrees rise here and were used by the Romans, whose bath ruins survive under Roman Square and can be visited. The town became one of Europe's leading resorts in the nineteenth century, with a Kurhaus, a colonnaded drinking hall and a casino in rooms decorated in French style; Dostoevsky gambled here and drew on the experience for The Gambler. Two bath houses operate: the Friedrichsbad of 1877, run on a fixed sequence of rooms and largely without swimwear, and the modern Caracalla. UNESCO listed Baden-Baden in 2021 among the Great Spa Towns of Europe.

What you actually see

• The Roman baths - excavated bath ruins beneath the modern square.
• The Friedrichsbad - an 1877 bath run on a fixed sequence of rooms.
• The casino - nineteenth-century gaming rooms in French decoration.
• The Lichtentaler Allee - a long landscaped park along the Oos.

When to go

April to October for the park and walks; the baths run year-round and are pleasant in winter. The casino has a dress code and requires identification.

Honest expectations

The Friedrichsbad is largely textile-free with mixed days, which not everyone wants. The town is expensive. The casino enforces dress and age rules.

Nearby

The Black Forest High Road starts here; Karlsruhe lies north.