Off the Beaten Path - Aachen Travel Guide

The Carolus Thermen Bad Aachen is a large spa facility. The pools at the spa are filled with the same, mineral-rich thermal water, heated by underground volcanoes, in which Charlemagne used to bathe. Fortunately for modern bathers, the Carolus Thermen Bad Aachen has retained the therapeutic benefits of the thermal water without the rotten egg odor that must have plagued Charlemagne and others in the past.

While not within the Aachen city center, the Carolus Thermen Bad Aachen is easily accessible from the city center by bus. On my second day in Aachen, I took the bus there and back without a problem. There is a bus stop near the entrance.

At the reception area, you receive a chip coin with which to pay for all services or other expenses at the spa. The chip coin has a band that goes around your wrist. When checking out of the spa at the end of your stay, the chip coin is read and the amount you have to pay is determined.

On the first floor, there are some big pools in which people are wearing bathing suits. After I swam around in the pools for a while, I asked one of the attendants where the sauna area was. He told me it was upstairs. In addition, he told me something like: "It sounds like you are not from Germany. Before you go to the sauna area, I just want to let you know that clothes are not worn there."

Before visiting Germany, I had heard that Germans were generally more comfortable with nudity than most people of the world. In the sauna area of the spa, I was soon to learn this fact firsthand. After entering the sauna area with my bathing suit, an attendant addressed me in German. When I replied in German that I only understood a little of the German language, he told me in English that I would have to take off my bathing suit. Yes, nudity is strictly enforced! Throughout the sauna area, both men and women are together and completely naked. If you want, you can cover up with a towel while walking. For the most part, though, everyone seemed very comfortable with being completely nude.

The entire sauna area is extremely clean and well-maintained. Outside the saunas themselves, there are showers -- including overhead buckets of cold water that you can pour over yourself by pulling a string. The sauna area also has its own pool and a sunbathing area with lawn chairs.

If you have time after sightseeing in Aachen, you may want to take time to relax at the Carolus Thermen Bad Aachen. More information can be found at the website link included with this tip.

Off the Beaten Path in Aachen

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Aachen Off the Beaten Path

Visiting Aachen?

Visiting Aachen?

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