Beautiful Baden-Baden
- Brooke
- May 24, 2022
- 8 min read
When I was visiting my German family during the summer of 2019, I opted to stay in the nearby city of Baden-Baden, the main city of Germany's Black Forest region. This is the area of the world where my grandmother spent a few years of her childhood, before finally settling down in the United States. It has therefore always held a special place in my imagination - to see the lands where your people come from yourself is a special treat. However, the city of Baden-Baden itself was not a place I could mentally picture well, as it was the surrounding countryside that I had heard more about over the years. Though I could have stayed closer to my family's property a few miles south, I choose to stay here in the city due to its 15-20 minutes drive from my family's property, but also for its city comforts, as well as beautiful architecture and charming vibe.
However, though my starting and ending point each day was Baden-Baden, most of my time here was not actually spent in the city, but around the region. Luckily, my friends and I did take a day to explore this exclusive spa city briefly, and below are some of the activities you could try out if you find yourself in this charming city.
Strolling
Though we spent only a little bit of time exploring the city due to family obligations, what we saw were some really adorable buildings, colorful hues, nicely planted beds of flowers, and people wandering the streets enjoying the sunshine. There were six of us, and we eventually divided into two groups, one group continuing on a Rick Steves walking tour, and my bestie and I going to the spa for some swimming. Even though Eileen and I had a lovely time in the spa and wouldn't change our decision, we both wish we had more time to do the walking tour, as our friends said it was really neat. Be sure to leave time to do both.
The Festspielhaus, Germany's largest opera and theater house, was a former train station, and is steps away from the Roomers Hotel. We passed it as we walked towards the center of town, beyond the area where cars were allowed.
The Radisson Blu is around the area where car traffic is no longer permitted. Beyond, is a pedestrian only area.
This was our first pedestrian only area that we had experienced in Germany, our second coming when we would visit Friedrichshafen in a few days time. Being able to walk freely without the threat of cars running you over is a really pleasant experience, and something quite unusual in the US.
Baden-Baden is a charming city, with well maintained buildings, and random side roads to take you on new adventures. The main pedestrian area is full of contemporary and high end shops. One thing that was nice was that it didn't feel too touristy, even though the city is a big tourist attraction due to its spas.
If you look closely at the various faces of buildings, you notice delicate and intricate touches, like the coats of arms or golden flourishes. The different gables are also intricately detailed - a sure sign that this town is a town of wealth and grandeur.
As we walked through the pedestrian area, our group was on a mission, to get to the Löwenbräu Beer Garden. However, it was easy to take in the pleasant atmosphere of the town as we ambled through the city center.
Right near the beer garden is a statue of Otto von Bismarck, Germany's (well, technically Prussia's) legendary statesman, known for unifying the German state. Not a man without controversy, he was a regular visitor to the town, eventually being honored with the title of an honorary citizen.
Above, Oskar Alexander Kiefer's statue of Bismarck from 1915.
Right beyond the statue, we came across the plaza that was incredibly cute and full of life. The various garden boxes were full of flowers in blooms, and all of the colors of the buildings made for a lovely scene. This plaza was our main destination - home of the Gasthaus Löwenbräu, which I will discuss in more detail below.
After the beer garden, our group split up, with my bestie and I heading to the spa, and the rest doing a more thorough walking tour of the city. Below are some scenes from my walk with my friend to and from the spa.
Above and below, The Friedrichsbad spa, one of Baden-Baden's most well known draws to the city. This spa is a no-clothing-required spa and was a little too daring for our American sensibilities, which is why we opted to go with the Caracalla Thermal Baths only steps away.
Enjoying the scenery around the Bäderviertel, Baden-Baden's thermal spa neighborhood.
Overall, a stroll through the streets of Baden-Baden made for a pleasant outing, and even if it's all you had time for, you would enjoy the relaxing and amiable atmosphere.
Gasthaus Löwenbräu (Beer Garden)
As mentioned above, our group decided to eat together at Gasthaus Löwenbräu, a well known beer brand served all over the world. We were excited to eat and drink at the adorable beer garden - the food was delicious, and while I can no longer drink beer, my friends and family loved it (and they know beer).
It's times like these, at a beer garden in Germany, where being unable to consume gluten becomes quite annoying. Not only can I not sample the beer (though I'm quite confident I have in my pre-gluten avoidance days), I can't even enjoy a nice warm Bavarian pretzel. Arg.
Still, the atmosphere is fun and even if all you can drink is wine or other alcoholic beverages besides beer (or non-alcoholic too), I'd still recommend the experience. The food was quite tasty, and there was a fun, warm atmosphere sitting under the trees. I imagine the place is even more fun in the evening with the string lights illuminating the patio, and people are a bit more lively. Maybe during our next trip to the region to visit family we can pull that off.
When in Germany, get the sausages! :)
This cheerful gentleman greets you at the entrance to the beer garden.
Overall, our group had a very enjoyable lunch with good food, good drinks, good atmosphere, and good friends.
Caracalla Spa
It was after lunch that our group diverged, with my friend and I headed to the Caracalla Spa. My friend and I are known for enjoying a pool or two, and this was what we were hoping to experience at the spa. Not really one for massages or treatments, but a nice soaking in some fun pools was what we sought.
Fortunately, Caracalla delivered exactly what we were looking for. The interior pool was lovely to look at, but the outdoor pool was where the fun was. We found ourselves enjoying multiple trips around the lazy river that used jets to push you through the short loop.
There are flaps at some of the windows that allow you to enter the pool on the inside of the building, and then continue to swim to the pool outdoors. There are a number of soaking options, from more relaxed settings, to (slightly) more exciting ones, to match whatever mood you were in. Overall, we spent about an hour or so enjoying the pools and enjoyed ourselves very much!
Roomers Baden-Baden
While in Baden-Baden, I opted to stay at the Roomers Baden-Baden. This hotel was very funky, cool, and interesting - I had never stayed in a Roomers before, and I have to say I really dug it. I won't go into too much detail about how I couldn't open my room door and had to go back down to the front desk to get assistance (after having tried Googling advice), but once you figure out the not-so-complicated entrance, the hotel was well situated to getting in and out of the city, with a wonderful wine store right across the street and many of the major sites within an easy walking distance. In the future when I come back to Baden-Baden and have more time to explore the actual city, I would happily stay at this hotel again.
Though Roomers is a brand within the Marriott portfolio, it is one I had never stayed in before, but enjoyed its quirkiness and upscale setting. Above is the hotel exterior from the adorable and well stocked wine shop across the street (Wein Helden).
One of the joys for me on this trip too place right at the valet stand and then again at the lobby (on the left, the "front desk"). When I first exited my car, I was asked to give my last name to the valet driver, and I proceeded to spell it. I have a very German last name, one that sounds like you might know how to spell it, but wouldn't actually know if you are not German. It has been a lifetime habit of mine to spell it immediately after saying it, but the valet attendant looked at me knowingly, like, duh, of course I know how to spell this. I was amused.
Then, at check in, the lady immediately said, "Ahh, you know you have a very German last name, right?" I laughed. Of course I did, and I explained how I was incidentally visiting family in the region (though not with the same last name). It was the first time in my life that I felt like I was amongst my real people - they could pronounce it correctly and spell it easily - what a treat!
But as you can see from the picture above and the ones below, the lobby is not exactly like a typical hotel lobby - the front desk is a little more of an idea than a tangible thing, but it was well appointed and comfortable
The lobby and main public space also featured a pool table and various cuckoo clocks, apropos considering the hotel's location here in the Black Forest Region.
The hotel also offered a candy bar for guests to help themselves, though I never got around to grabbing anything.
The hotel also had a nice patio area that was peaceful, considering it's location in the middle of a city. I loved the little floating fake flamingo tubes in the water features.
Once I had finally figured out how to open my room (embarrassingly after I had go to down to the front desk and ask for advice), I found the room really quite pleasant. The bed was big and comfortable, and there were nice touches throughout.
Looking back towards the front door, you can see on the left into the shower area. However, whereas some hotels like to leave this window to the bathroom wide open, this hotel provided a swinging door, should you happen to be sharing the space with someone you don't want witnessing all of your bathroom activities.
The sink area leads to the shower.
The aforementioned private/not so private shower area.
The view of the room from the shower.
The entire main bedroom area could be closed off by the mirrored doors.
Lastly, my room had a charming view of the patio area below.
The hotel is also known for it's beautiful views of the city from the pool area, but weirdly, I never made it up there. I think I always assumed my friends would have time to spend at the hotel, or I'd have a moment to just run up there, but truly due to our packed schedule, and my attempts to manage my energy after an already busy trip prior to arriving in Germany, I just never found the time. Do I regret it now? Kinda! Did I regret it then, living in the moment? Not at all.
I suppose it leaves one more thing to do next time I'm in Baden-Baden. Until then!
Baden-Baden Details
Baden-Baden is located a short drive away from the border of France, in the state of Baden-Württemburg, and is at the northwest border of the Black Forest region. Known for being a popular and exclusive spa town, don't be surprised to see some of the fanciest cars you've ever seen cruising around. (It's name is even synonymous with bathing).
I stayed at Roomers, a charming and modern boutique hotel right at the outskirts of the downtown area. However, everything is within easy walking distance, or, if you were like me and had a car, it was easy to get in and out of the city due to its location relatively near the highway. I enjoyed my stay here quite a lot, and the staff was very friendly. I would highly recommend it to others.
Alas, due to my schedule of sightseeing and visiting family, we did not see and do enough in Baden-Baden town itself. However, Baden-Baden does make a great centralized location for trips up and down the Black Forest area, including trips into neighboring France and the Alsace region. If you go, be sure to say hallo to my family nearby!
Day of trip: July 8, 2019
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