HISTORY AND THE PRESENT
FRANTIŠKOVY LÁZNĚ – HEALTH IS AT HOME HERE
We are an inimitable spa town where everything has been focused on improving health for over 200 years. Františkovy Lázně is literally a spa oasis.The spa atmosphere is felt in every step you take here, and compared to any other spa, is unmistakable. Thus, Františkovy Lázně has treasured its spa industry for centuries up to the present as its greatest gem, and so it never became a busy town or entertaining wellness centre. All is focused on the high-quality spa treatments and the improvement of the health of everyone who arrives to Františkovy Lázně for this purpose.
UNIQUE WORLD-WIDE
Today, Františkovy Lázně is one of the most beautiful spa towns, which has retained its historical facades and architecture to a unique degree. It is no wonder that in 2005, it was awarded the prize “Most Beautiful Historical Town of the Czech Republic”. At the same time, it belongs to the group of 11 exceptional spa towns that is nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the common name Great Spas of Europe, along with the likes of Baden-Baden, Bath, or Vichy.A TOWN BUILT OUT OF WATER
Without a doubt, Františkovy Lázně gained popularity thanks to its renowned therapeutic springs, especially thanks to its oldest, the František Spring. Rumours about the miraculous effects of the local water rapidly spread throughout the empire, just as the clay bottles in which the water was originally sold in and distributed wide and far did. Thus, beginning at the end of the 18th century under the lead of Dr Adler, the town gradually grew into a renowned global spa. The year 1793 is fundamental, as it is considered as the year the town was established. Many academic sources mistake in saying that the town was originally known as the Village of Emperor Franz (Kaiser Franzensdorf) or Franzensbrunn. In reality, however, it was given today’s name, Františkovy Lázně, already by court decree on 27 April 1793.THE FIRST PEAT BOG SPA IN THE WORLD
Yes, it was actually in Františkovy Lázně that the therapeutic effects of peat baths were discovered for the good of mankind. And still today, the historical building of the Imperial Spa, which is a part of the Spa Resort PAWLIK–AQUAFORUM****, is the only place in the world where you can enjoy the beneficial effects of peat baths according to the original Františkovy Lázně recipe. For each separate bath, 80 kg of specially treated local peat is usually used.MIRACULOUS SALTS
Along with the peat, therapeutic springs were also discovered in Františkovy Lázně more than 200 years ago. The most interesting spring, but far from being the only one, is surely the Glauber IV Spring, which contains the most decahydrate sodium sulphate in the world. Since the 17th century, it has been known as mirabilite, as well as Glauber Salts.HISTORICAL MILESTONES
- 1502 – the first written mention of the mineral waters in the area around Františkovy Lázně
- 1793 – Foundation of the colony
- 1793 – Construction of the first spa hotel, Loimann-Badehaus (The Three Lilies)
- 1865 – Františkovy Lázně is promoted to a town
- 1992 – the town is declared a Municipal Heritage Reservation
- 1992 – the company Lázně Františkovy Lázně a.s. is established
- 1993 – the extensive reconstruction of the spa buildings commences
- 2005 – Aquaforum – The World of Water and Relaxation - is opened
- 2017 - opening of the Spa Clinic
SIGNIFICANT VISITORS
- J. W. Goethe
- Franz I, Austrian Emperor
- Peer Metternich
- Ludwig van Beethoven
- Johann Strauss
- Božena Němcová
- Vítězslav Nezval
- Franz Kafka
- Václav Havel
- Václav Klaus