Karlovy Vary is a large spa resort, the most famous and popular in the Czech Republic. It is located in the west of Bohemia, in a picturesque mountainous area where the rivers Tepla, Ohře and Rolava converge. In the resort of Karlovy Vary, the treatment is based on the waters of mineral springs, of which there are about a hundred around the city, and only 12 are used in medicine. A spa clinic and balneotherapy centers operate on the territory of the city, separate spring pump-rooms and a whole drinking gallery are open for walks, more than 100 are laid. km of tracks in a beautiful area.
What diseases go to treat in Karlovy Vary
Water in spa thermal mineral springs treats diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and metabolic disorders in the body very well.
Among the diseases that most often go to treat in Karlovy Vary:
- stomach ulcer and duodenal ulcer;
- inflammation and functional disorders of the intestine;
- acute and chronic gastritis, chronic catarrh of the stomach;
- cholecystitis, other pathologies of the gallbladder and biliary tract;
- hepatitis, obesity and other liver diseases;
- pathology of the pancreas;
- postoperative condition of the gastrointestinal tract;
- gout;
- diabetes.
Although in Karlovy Vary they do not specialize in the treatment of the spine and joints, they can help to some extent with arthritis, arthrosis, scoliosis, osteochondrosis, steoarthrosis, and degenerative joint changes.
There are contraindications for treatment with water from sources, for example:
- pathologies and infections of the biliary tract;
- stones in the internal organs;
- acute pancreatitis;
- tuberculosis;
- bacterial and parasitic diseases;
- oncological diseases;
- epilepsy;
- pregnancy.
How is the treatment organized?
A patient who arrives in Karlovy Vary for treatment must definitely see an appointment with a balneologist. Guided by the results of the examinations, the doctor selects a course of individual treatment. By the way, in order not to waste time and money on additional examinations, it is advisable to carry the results of laboratory tests with a limitation period of no more than 6 months.
The resort specializes in gastrointestinal tract diseases, and the main treatment method is a drinking course of healing thermal water and diet therapy. Depending on the specific disease, the doctor will prescribe from which particular source, how many times and in what portions to consume water. In addition to the drinking course, the specialist recommends a number of auxiliary procedures: a variety of massages, and light and electrotherapy, physiotherapy exercises, heat therapy (paraffin wrap, mud compresses and baths), subcutaneous carbon dioxide injections.
The treatment takes a course that lasts 7 – 28 days, the average duration is 21 days. During the course, the doctor monitors the patient, and if necessary, adjusts the appointment.
But not everyone comes to Karlovy Vary for treatment. There are also those guests who buy a short course of wellness treatments at the resort: massages, baths, several sessions of electrotherapy and heat treatment, spa treatments with mineral water from local sources. This is not a treatment, but rest in Karlovy Vary – just a relaxation that has a positive effect on the central nervous system, immune system, skin condition and general well-being. Drinking mineral water may also be included in such courses, but, again, the specialist should recommend the dose.
How to drink healing water
The water in all Carlo-Barbarian springs is similar in chemical composition, but contains a different volume of carbon dioxide and has a different temperature (from 30 ° C to 72 ° C). All water has a beneficial effect on the digestive tract, therefore it is used mainly for drinking. But this is not an ordinary “mineral water”, which is drunk in any quantity and whenever you want – it is intended solely for treatment, and if it is taken unregulated, diseases can worsen. From what source, and in what dosages to consume water, a balneologist decides, taking into account the specific disease and the general health of the patient. Indeed, due to the different temperatures and different volumes of carbon dioxide in the water, its effect on the body is different: cold springs have a mild laxative property, and warm ones have a softening effect and slow down the secretion of gastric juice and bile.
There are certain rules on the observance of which the effectiveness of treatment depends:
- you need to drink water from ceramic or glass mugs, and in no case from plastic ones – in contact with plastic, all useful substances are neutralized;
- water should be drunk in small sips, delayed for a short time in the oral cavity – this allows minerals to be better absorbed;
- movement contributes to the faster and more complete assimilation of minerals by the body, therefore, it is recommended to walk slowly in the process of taking healing water;
- during the treatment course it is forbidden to take alcohol and smoke, as this greatly reduces the beneficial effect of water on the body;
- When collecting water from a source, you should not touch the column or outlet tubes with your hands and dishes – this is dictated by elementary hygiene rules.
Indicative prices
Holidays in Karlovy Vary and treatment with natural waters of the spa are attractive not only due to their excellent efficiency, but also at relatively low prices.
The best way to improve your health is to combine useful procedures with living in sanatoriums or hotels where quality food is organized for guests.
Approximate price of a trip from Kiev for two, for 14 nights:
- 3 * hotels – 1 800 €;
- 4 * hotels – from 1 900 € to 3 050 €, the average amount is about 2,500 €;
- 5 * hotels – 3 330 – 5 730 €.
The price includes air travel “Kiev-Prague-Kiev” in economy class, accommodation in standard rooms, breakfast and dinner, treatment in a sanatorium, group transfer to the hotel.
Approximate prices for trips from Moscow for two people, for 6 nights:
- 3 * hotels – from 735 €, the average amount is about 1,000 €;
- 4 * hotels – from 1,180 € to 1,520 €;
- 5 * hotels – from 1550 €.
The price includes air travel, accommodation in standard rooms, two meals a day, treatment in a sanatorium, group transfer to the hotel.
You can also settle on your own in any institution you like, and undergo treatment in a specialized medical center. Prices for treatment at the Karlovy Vary spa are largely determined by the level of the institution, so you can always choose the desired option. Below are prices for the wellness programs available at the Imperial Hotel & Spa:
- consultation with a doctor upon arrival at the resort – 50 €;
- mineral herbal bath – 30 €;
- mineral pearl bath – 25 €;
- mineral coal bath – 27 €;
- mineral bath – 16 €;
- peat extract bath – 43 €;
- water aerobics – 8 €;
- hydrotherapy + mineral pool – 30 €;
- underwater massage – 28 €;
- hardware lymphatic drainage massage – 24 €;
- anti-cellulite massage – 83 €;
- electrotherapy – 14 €;
- magnetotherapy – 16 €.
Hotels with the best combination of “price-quality”
The famous Czech resort offers tourists a wide selection of accommodation with various levels of comfort and prices: from budget to luxury. All Karlovy Vary hotels are usually divided into:
- “Ordinary Hotels” 3 *, 4 * and 5 *. Such settlement options will be ideal for tourists who come to relax and undergo relaxation procedures.
- Spa houses with their own medical base.
- Sanatoriums. They offer a full range of medical procedures with a drinking course of mineral water and baths from it, using mineral mud and carbon dioxide.
When choosing a particular option, it all depends on what exactly you want to receive from this resort: rest, treatment, both together. To consider all accommodation options for recreation and treatment in Karlovy Vary, compare prices and book your favorite room most conveniently through the Booking.com service.
Rating 8.8 – “Excellent” – Parkhotel Richmond 4 * won on Booking.com.
Richmond is somewhat removed from the main resort area, the distance to the healing thermal springs is 1400 meters. The hotel is located in a quiet and stylish English park, on the banks of the Tepla River. The park has picturesque corners for a relaxing holiday and meditation in nature, for example, the Japanese rock garden. Next to the garden is the Stepanka cold water pavilion (16 ° C), and you can drink water from it.
The room fund of the Hotel Richmond in Karlovy Vary is 122 comfortable, well-equipped rooms. There is an excellent restaurant, a cafe with a summer terrace is suitable for outdoor recreation.
In the park-hotel, guests are provided with a high level of not only relaxation, but also spa treatment. All procedures are provided directly in the hotel building. There is an excellent pool center, where undiluted thermal water is supplied, a wellness center operates. At Richmond, patients are received by a qualified balneologist Yana Karaskova with over 15 years of experience.
The price for a single standard room per day is from 105 €. Access to the pool, sauna, hot tub, and breakfast are already included in this amount.
Detailed information about the conditions of accommodation, rest and treatment at the hotel, as well as tourist reviews can be found here .
“Excellent” – 8.7 – this is the rating of Spa Hotel Imperial 5 * on Booking.com.
In Karlovy Vary, the Hotel Imperial occupies a very picturesque place on a hill and looks like a kind of dominant of the city.
The hotel has a restaurant “Prague”, offering its guests dishes of national cuisine. Vienna Cafe is known for its traditional desserts and signature coffee. In the evenings, the Imperial Club organizes pleasant conditions for relaxation: playing live music, preparing delicious cocktails.
As for treatment, this Karlovy Vary hotel has one of the best health centers in the resort. There is a balneocenter with an extensive list of services offered, there is an indoor pool, a sports center with tennis courts and a fitness room.
Hotel Imperial offers comfortable single and double rooms. Prices for a double room start from 120 € per day. This amount includes breakfast, you can use the pool and sauna, engage in a sports center.
A detailed description of the hotel with photos and reviews of tourists living in it during a holiday at the resort can be found here .
Spa Resort Sanssouci 4 * on the website Booking.com has a rating of 8.2 – “very good.”
The hotel is located in a forested area, at a distance of two kilometers from the city center. It takes only 5-7 minutes to reach sources with medicinal water by bus (runs every 20 minutes, the fare is included in the price).
The hotel has 2 restaurants specializing in Czech cuisine: Charleston and Melody. There is also a Blues cafe with a summer terrace and a lobby bar where conditions for a comfortable stay are created.
The hotel has a spa and wellness center, where visitors are offered a fairly wide range of treatments. It is convenient that absolutely all procedures can be done almost without leaving the hotel: all objects are connected by an underground corridor.
Price for a standard double room per day from 100 €. This amount also includes breakfast, access to the pool, hot tub, sauna.
More information about the hotel and the conditions of rest in it can be found on this page .
On the Booking.com service, the Kolonada 4 * hotel has a rating of 7.6 – “good”.
The hotel is located very conveniently, especially for those people who came not just to rest, but to have a full treatment: literally opposite, at a distance of 5 meters, hot healing springs. This Karlovy Vary hotel allows you to undergo a full treatment: a swimming pool, a wellness center with an extensive list of procedures, a drinking course of thermal water. A variety of treatments for relaxation and wellness can be bought right here. It is noteworthy that in the indoor pool they use 100% natural thermal water, not diluted with ordinary fresh water.
Hotel “Colonnade” in Karlovy Vary offers its guests comfortable rooms, the price of a double room starts from 135 € per day. Breakfast, pool, sauna – all this is included in the price.
Detailed information on the conditions for staying at the Kolonada is on this page .
Prices in the article are for July 2019.
When is the best time to go?
When planning a trip to the famous Czech health resort for relaxation and treatment, it is worth considering when it is better to go. Having thought over the budget in advance, it will turn out to calmly do the recovery and relax your body and soul as much as possible.
In this resort, the high season is considered the time from the beginning of July to mid-October and the time of the Christmas holidays from December 25 to almost mid-January. A little cheaper, but still expensive, to go here on vacation in April and May, as well as in the second half of October. The lowest prices are observed in November and December, from mid-January to the end of February. Average prices are held in March and June – as a rule, in June it is much more profitable to go to Karlovy Vary for treatment and rest than in April or May.
Useful tips before going to a spa hotel in Karlovy Vary:
