Gems of Eastern Europe

The Czech Republic and Hungary are some of the premium balneology destinations in the New Europe

What is the first thing to come to your mind when we mention balneology? Undoubtedly, many people associate it with some of our most popular resorts like Velingrad, Devin, Hisarya, Banya, Sapareva Banya, Pomorie and many more.
However, the most famous spa resorts in Eastern Europe would be found in the Czech Republic and Hungary - Karlovy Vary and the Heviz Lake respectively. Both resorts boast medicinal waters and have a long history of thermal water treatments.
If we try to characterize the most popular feature of

Karlovy Vary,
we should mention two things about the resort: the annual film festival and the thermal waters. Quite different at first sight, these two characteristics have something in common, which is the great number of celebrities who have visited the resort for either the one or the other. While the prestigious awards are good enough reason for some of these people, others consider Karlovy Vary particularly attractive because of its nature, medicinal thermal waters and historical architecture.
Karlovy Vary is the largest spa city in the Czech Republic. Before World War І it was also known as one of the leading spa resorts in Europe frequently visited by artists, scientists and aristocrats.
The legend says a buck running from the hunters has lead Czech King and German Emperor Charles ІV to a thermal spring. Surprised the ruler summoned some of the best scientists to explore the thermal waters. After making sure of their beneficial qualities, the king ordered the place to be settled and thus houses were built all around the spring. The small village was called Vary, which means boiling.
There are 12 thermal springs in Karlovy Vary with similar chemical composition but different in temperature and contents of carbon dioxide, which provide different effects. The oldest and hottest thermal spring is located in the city center. This is a geyser called Vridlo, which spouts from a depth of 3,000 m at 12 m above ground and produces more than 2 million liters for 24 hours. The temperature of Vridlo is about 73 degrees Celsius while the temperature of the rest of the springs is about 40.
Karlovy Vary SPA center helps treat various locomotory system diseases, digestive tract and metabolic disorders. Some of the famous physicians who introduced balanced spa therapeutics are David Becher and Jean De Carro. They have successfully combined pleasant walks and special therapeutic drinking cures to a wide scope of spa treatments.

- The largest spa center in the Czech Republic can be found in Karlovy Vary and is called Elizabeth Spa. It features a number of thermal springs. - Drinking medicinal water from the 12 cold and hot thermal springs has become a sort of a pilgrimage. All the springs have been caught and the precious liquid spurts out from bespoke taps under special cupola-like Colonnades. - Some of the best known products of Karlovy Vary are Moser glassware, the Becherovka herbal liqueur, Matonni mineral water and Tunn porcelain. - There is an annual international spa festival in Karlovy Vary.

Heviz, Hungary
The Heviz Lake is the largest biologically active natural thermal warm-water lake in the world. The name Heviz means in Hungarian hot water. Almost 5 ha large, the lake is fed by its spring rushing up at depth of 38 m. The water contains sulphur, radium and minerals. Due to the high water output of the spring the water in the lake is completely changed within 48 hours. The waters are equally rich in dissolved substances and curative gases. The winter temperature of the lake is about 23-25 degrees Celsius and 33-36 in summer. The water composition has been carefully studied by scientists at the end of the 18th century but the exact analysis has not been discovered until the second half of the last century.
Heviz is a popular recreational destination since the 18th century and attracts people from around the country. In the 19th century it turns into a leading Hungarian spa center and spa houses have been built. However, the curative springs have a history dating back to the 8th century B.C.
The name Heviz appeared for the first time in a charter dating back to 1328 and later in mediaeval manuscripts. The curative waters have been used by the Turks who are famous for their passion for baths.
The spa center has been nationalized in 1948 and later a balneological hospital was built. Visitors arrived mainly from Hungary and Central and Eastern Europe but since the 1980s the resort has been open to tourists from all around Europe. Its renovation started in the beginning of the 1990s when private investors acquired it. Heviz is still the most important spa destination in Hungary and Central Europe.
The curative mud, which covers the bed of the lake is unique and contains both organic and inorganic substances. The radium salts and reduced sulphuric solutions have special medicinal effects. By means of combining the favorable effects of natural waters containing calcium, magnesium, hydrogen-carbonate and slightly radioactive elements the locals started to cure various disorders. The waters and mud together with physiotherapeutic treatments are suitable for healing all kinds of rheumatic and locomotory diseases, arthritis. The strong pressure that the water exercises on the skin is actually a treatment against cellulite, obesity and flaccidity as this procedure also eliminates accumulations of fat and makes the skin firm again. Inhaling the sulphur-hydrogen emitted into the air naturally keeps the vocal cords in good condition. Another advantage of the thermal water is considered the drinking-treatment which is suitable for curing stomach and digestive disorders.
Spa therapy at Heviz is conducted by means of thermal bathing, according to the medical experience and scientific research of several countries. The effects of the Heviz spa therapy is a complex mix of the effects of the water temperature, its composition, the mud, the air, the low radiation and the local climate.

Read more:
Balneology in Bulgaria: unused opportunities
Georgi Mitsov, Chief Project Manager of Petrol Holding: Balneology tourism is our most important trump-card
Dr. Silvia Paskaleva, expert in balneology: Quality of services is essential