For more than 650 years, the Karlovy Vary Region has been inseparably linked with spa treatment based on the use of natural resources such as thermal and cold mineral springs, mud, peat and gases.
The region is home to five renowned spa towns – Karlovy Vary, Mariánské Lázně, Františkovy Lázně, Jáchymov and Lázně Kynžvart. Local spas have gained exceptional renown far beyond the country’s borders. Karlovy Vary, Mariánské Lázně and Františkovy Lázně are part of the Great Spa Towns of Europe, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The Legend of Charles IV and the Birth of the Spa Towns
The Czech King Charles IV often set out hunting from his Loket Castle into the forests in the heart of Europe, in western Bohemia between the Ore Mountains and Slavkov Forest. According to legend, his entourage came across a hot spring one day, and the emperor soon attributed healing powers to it. He himself experienced these effects when local water healed his injured leg. He ordered the area around the spring to be settled, and so it happened. Although Karlovy Vary faced wars and natural disasters several times over the centuries, it never ceased to develop as a spa, architectural and cultural centre, becoming one of the world’s most popular spa towns.
The founding of Františkovy Lázně is associated with an equally distinguished figure. In 1793, Austrian Emperor Francis I founded the world’s first peat spa near healing springs close to Cheb. The town named in his honour grew up in less than 200 years. Mariánské Lázně, Lázně Kynžvart and Jáchymov were established somewhat later.
Famous Figures Who Visited the Karlovy Vary Region
The healing power of the springs, high-quality spa care and the beauty of the towns and surrounding nature all contributed to the fame of the local spas – as did good publicity. Wealthy aristocrats and leading scientific, political and artistic figures from around the world came here for treatment. The most notable spa guests undoubtedly include Russian Tsar Peter the Great, composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Emperor Franz Joseph I, poet Johann Wolfgang Goethe, piano virtuoso Fryderyk Chopin, the first Czechoslovak president Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, psychologist Sigmund Freud and many others. Some appeared in the region only briefly, while others became so attached to the raw beauty of this western corner of Bohemia that they gladly returned or even stayed for several years.
Almost every important guest has something named after them. Some have monuments, while forest trails bear the names of others. Karlovy Vary is also popular with modern-day VIPs, largely thanks to the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, held regularly since 1946. Stars such as Jude Law, Antonio Banderas, John Malkovich, Robert De Niro and Renée Zellweger frequently appear here.
In addition to the famous figures who visited the Karlovy Vary Region, we should not forget local natives who helped make western Bohemia known beyond the country’s borders. They include physics professor Heinz Kurt Henisch, whose work helped make the University of Pennsylvania a centre for the study of photographic history in the USA; Franz Gruss, a native of Kraslice renowned in the Czech Republic and abroad for his landscape paintings; and Josef Labitzký, the “Czech King of Waltzes”.
The Karlovy Vary Region Has Hidden Another Treasure Since Ancient Times
Did you know that the Ore Mountains Mining Landscape is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List? We believe it fully deserves this recognition, as the Ore Mountains rank among the world’s most unique mining areas thanks to the diversity of their raw materials. Since the Middle Ages, small settlements emerged here, with silver and later other ores being mined nearby. The Jáchymov ore district held the greatest economic importance, where silver coins were minted in addition to mining.
The Jáchymov thaler, bearing the Czech royal lion, gave rise to a monetary system that lasted more than 350 years and spread throughout Europe and overseas. What is more, it gave its name to the world’s best-known currency – the dollar. In 1716, the world’s first mining school was established here. At the end of the 19th century, mining around Jáchymov came to worldwide attention after the French scientist Marie Curie-Skłodowska discovered the radioactive element radium in local pitchblende.
From a global perspective, the whole Ore Mountains area is important as a technological and scientific centre from which mining inventions and innovations spread to other mining regions around the world. These included techniques for pumping mine water and smelting ores; the first geological maps were produced here, as were the first important mining and metallurgy manuals and textbooks. All of this is documented by the museum in the former Royal Mint in Jáchymov. If you are interested in this topic, it is certainly worth a visit.
What Else Has Made the Karlovy Vary Region Famous?
Every region has its traditional products. But not every region can boast so many products that have made the Czech Republic famous around the world. Products made predominantly from local resources, using original recipes and technologies, are the living heritage of the Karlovy Vary Region.
Karlovy Vary Porcelain
The term “Karlovy Vary porcelain” represents not only a long tradition lasting almost 220 years, but also quality and international renown. Since kaolin – the basic raw material – is among the finest in the world in the Karlovy Vary Region, and its processing is of such a high standard, local porcelain is highly sought after. Porcelain drinking cups in many colours and shapes, with colourful decoration, belong to Karlovy Vary just as inseparably as its healing springs.
Moser Glassworks Products
The history of Moser Glassworks is linked with Ludwig Moser, one of the most significant figures in the history of glassmaking, who earned a reputation as the most prestigious crystal producer in the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. Over the course of its existence, the family glassworks became a supplier to royal courts and continues to uphold its rich tradition of producing luxury drinking and artistic glass. The success of local products lies in their perfect craftsmanship, top quality and the extraordinary talent of master glassmakers.
Becherovka
The world-famous herbal liqueur with its characteristic bittersweet flavour and golden colour was founded by the experienced merchant Josef Vitus Becher. His son Jan took over the trade and is considered the true “father” of Becherovka. He devoted all his diligence and passion to it and developed it for almost 40 years. Thanks to its strictly secret recipe, Becherovka tastes the same today as it did 200 years ago, and its flavour is inimitable because among the herbs from exotic lands are some that grow only in the Karlovy Vary Region.
Karlovy Vary Spa Wafers
Spa wafers have been among the most popular traditional products for more than 130 years. The first mentions of Karlovy Vary wafer production date back to the mid-18th century. They soon gained worldwide fame and received a gold medal at the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris. In modern history, as a typical Czech product, they were declared one of the best-selling products at the Czech pavilion during the EXPO World Fair in Hanover. Thanks to their traditional recipe and the use of Karlovy Vary Hot Spring water in production, they retain their distinctive character.
Amati Musical Instruments
Musical instrument production has a long tradition in the foothills of the Ore Mountains. One example is the Czech company Amati, which had been producing transverse flutes, brass, valve and other musical instruments by hand since the mid-18th century and exported its products worldwide throughout its history.
Mattoni
The famous local mineral water also belongs inseparably to the Karlovy Vary Region. Mattoni was born in 1873 in the spa village of Kyselka. Pristine nature and its unique location on the border between the Ore Mountains and Doupov Mountains gave Mattoni mineral water its unmistakable taste and made it popular both at home and abroad.
