Friedrichsbad Baden-Baden

It's a very old, charming spa. Yes it is in need of some renovation in parts, but on the whole, it's a pleasant and authentic experience. Don't go if you are expecting a modern flawless spotless time. Yes there are 17 steps (not necessarily rooms) to the spa experience, and yes 2 of them are showers and one is drying yourself with a fresh warm towel, but I felt that if you did all 17 mindfully, it was worth the money. There are no boiling hot baths because that's not always the point of natural thermal waters in my humble opinion. Staff were nice enough. Going on a Friday afternoon it was very quiet and peaceful. Even laying in the relaxation room in silence for half an hour under a blanket was lovely. But if you are more into sleek chic clean spa with cafe and more steam rooms, try their partner spa Caracella. Oh and it's all textile free unless you go on Wednesday or Saturday.

The spa itself is “okay.” The water in most of the tubs is not hot, only warm, and most tubs smelled chlorinated so the water is likely only tap water. The steam room was nice and warm but not very steamy. The large showers at the end dump a lot of hot water on you which is a nice way to warm up before going out (because the baths aren’t very hot). The staff were friendly or at least tolerant to us as first timers but I only interacted with the front desk lady, the guy at the spa entrance, and the girl in the locker room. Overall, I think this venue is overpriced but this is the best I’ve found in Europe so far. In my opinion, if you want a nice thermal bath, visit an onsen in Japan.

for 38 euros with no time limit, friederichsbad is worth your time. I spent over 3 hours and would've stayed for longer if i didn't need to catch my flight. while there is less variety compared to caracalla, this can be overlooked by the atmosphere of the spa. the interiors are wonderfully decorated and it genuinely feels like a place to relax.

Wow reading the other reviews was an experience in itself. Anyway, here's my impression of the Friedrichsbad. The staff were super nice, the lady at the reception and the young man at the entrance to the baths themselves were great. Everything was explained well to me in a friendly way. The lady at the soap massage station was also very nice and professional. The thermal showers with antique fittings are cool. The first two rooms (hot air ones) are so beautiful, with intricate tiling and paintings, I found the temperature very pleasant even though I also usually enjoy hotter sauna. I liked that there were two rooms with varying temperatures. I did enjoy the soap massage, I felt super clean afterwards and my skin was prickly in like a nice way. Then the steam room with natural steam from the springs. Of course it's going to have a smell from the minerals in the water. For example, in Iceland every shower smells like eggs because of the sulphur in the water, that's normal. Once I got used to the unusual smell, it was very nice. Then you go through a variety of pools with decreasing water temperatures, once you get to the beautiful domed hall the water seems cold, but it's an exercise pool, if you swim a bit it feels very comfortable. So I did some laps while enjoying the incredible architecture. Then you just take a dip in a cold water pool at the end. The end of the experience didn't really do it for me unfortunately. The relaxation room is nice but I think I was too invigotated from the cold pool to take a nap haha. The reading room I didn't enjoy, it's quite cold in there and not cozy at all, and the reading material is a selection of 5 magazines in German. I agree also that the paper cups for tea don't match the vibe of the place, so I just left to relax in my hotel room. I went on a Monday afternoon and the baths were not crowded. I don't understand everyone's problem with "old men" being there. They are enjoying the baths just like you. Maybe I was lucky but I didn't feel like I was stared at more than usual. Felt pretty comfortable as a feminine person visiting alone (went on a textile free day). Cleanliness also was not an issue. Main thing: the marble in the exercise pool has some sharp edges! That's really not nice when you're doing laps and hit it with your hand or leg 😓 In the end, I'm glad I went. It does feel a bit expensive for what you get, especially with the soap massage. It's nice but it's only 10 minutes. I sure hope that most of the money goes to the workers and not to the carasana upper management haha. Also, I would definitely improve the reading room experience because it's the last thing you do before you leave and it affects your whole impression.

I scanned the negative reviews before posting and they are accurate in my experience. I went in expecting a high level of service for the price being asked. The staff on the day I went in at 11am (November 23, 2025) couldn't have been more condescending and unfriendly. As we waited in line to enter the facility, a handful of us were made to wait while two women at the front desk bickered openly with each other. That should have been my cue to leave. But I stayed and learned that there seems to be a morale issue with the staff working here. They just don't seem to enjoy being there or creating a restful atmosphere. Upon entering, the abrupt and cheerless woman giving instructions to the baths, treats first timers with disregard. And the clothed male attendant walking through the baths is simply coldness incarnate. Kindness goes a long way my guy, and not everyone understand the quirks of the rules this place has. He seems to really hate his job. All in all, the staff give the place a very strange unease and discomfort. And that is the opposite of what this place is claiming to offer. On top of that, the steamroom lacks steam and the hot water lacks heat. It's all so .... tepid and unwelcoming.

This place is amazing... I spent three hours in a world of tranquillity. The facilities are fabulous, you can relax, steam, sweat, soak and swim, you lose all track of time. Once inside the building the architecture and design is outstanding. Really helpful staff, everything was explained clearly and how you follow a route around the different areas. This was my first visit to Friedrichsbad, I had previously been to the large spa next-door, but this place was amazing. I would recommend you embrace the nudity and enjoy it how the Romans used to bathe. This is now a must visit place when I am in Baden-Baden.

If you are interested in visiting rather ancient historic bath houses, go for it. Now if you are expecting modern showers, heated pools and saunas (over 60 degrees heating rooms) be aware of this place. My boyfriend and I, as a young couple, felt rather eerie in this facility. The moment we went there (after 6PM on a friday) the ‘spa rooms’ were 90% filled with men and all the rooms stank.. And also be aware of the fact that on specific days they do not accept textile (no not even bath ropes or any other sort of textile to cover your private area). So if you are a rather shy person, make sure to check that in advance. The staff was kind enough to go ask the cashier if it was possible to get refunded and luckily enough we were (we didn’t stay over 30 minutes). Overall I bet this place would interest specific groups of people but I would recommend young couples to go to Carcalla to have a better spa experience.

While Caracalla Therme is a place many people including myself, keep coming back to, Friedrichsbad is a place most people will visit just once. Reminded me of the movie Hotel Grand Budapest. Towels and slippers are advertised, but they give a sheet instead of a towel, and you don’t get slippers right away. So I’d recommend bringing your own. The wooden loungers in the first two rooms are incredibly hard and uncomfortable. The pool floor wasn’t smooth - I could feel nail heads under my feet. I guess this is how people used to relax before they invented comfort and soft surfaces! Because there is not much to do and I could have used my time better, I spent 2 hours and left, having paid 38 eur! It’s too expensive for what they offer!

What an experience. I've never done anything quite like this, and I'm eager to try it again. The baths do a nice job of combining luxury and the historical character of the original building and experience. You start off in a changing room, then move progressively though saunas, steam rooms, and thermal baths that get progressively warmer to raise your body temperature, then progressively cooler (culminating in a dunk in very cold water) to bring it back down. Along the way, you are scrubbed with a stiff brush to exfoliate your whole body. Some words to the wise. First, like many German baths, this is a coed nude bath, so be prepared for that. Second, it is not the same as the gentle pampering people may expect elsewhere. You're largely on your own in the baths, spas, and saunas, but the staff can be very businesslike as you move through the processes. Don't take it personally - they do a lot of turnover each day, and generally leave it to you to navigate the process - and you will leave feeling refreshed, relaxed, and invigorated!

Came here this past weekend with a friend. This was the first time I've been to a spa in Germany. I read up on spa etiquette here and knew that it was textile free and possibly a mixed-sex environment. We decided to drive to Baden Baden because it's known as the "spa town" in Germany. I chose to get the Luxury admission ticket which was good for 4 hours and included the soap and brush massage and cream massage (part of the 17 step Irish Roman bathing ritual). They provide everything you'll need to go through all the stations (towels, mats, slippers). I thought I would feel uncomfortable walking around completely naked but it was a norm for everyone and I had a nice relaxing time. The soap and brush massage felt so good! The relaxation room was also another one of my favorite steps. There are single-sex and mixed-sex bathing days but even on single-sex bathing days it will be mixed at stations 10 and 11. I'm already planning my next visit here in 2 weeks!

The architecture here is the cherry on top of a wonderful experience. There are beautiful mosaics and the dome in the main pool is wonderful, the pictures do not do the experience of floating in the big pool looking up at the dome justice. My husband and I went on a couples day and where a little worried about the nudity at first but our fears quickly vanished, there where plenty of other couples enjoying the experience together. Its a little confusing going through the 17 steps and they aren't are straight forward as you would like, but you'll figure it out and you'll never feel cleaner. We got the soap massage but not the lotion one and felt that this was perfect. You are still able to use lotion even if you don't get the second massage. Pro-tip: bring fresh new everything to change back into when you're done. There's also hair-dries in the locker rooms, which was helpful.

Affordable luxury - for €35 you get 3.5 hours in this Old Wold spa, plus a soap brush scrub. If you're not cool with nudity, you can go to Caracalla next door but it's less "traditional". Friedrichsbad is all naked, all the time. Honestly, after 5 seconds you really won't even care - most people are older or fatter than you and you'll never see them again anyway. You arrive and divest yourself in a locker room. My visit happened to be on a "segregated" day where men and women are separate except for 2 rooms. Most days, it's co-ed. Once you're in the buff, you go through a series of 17 stages, all well marked with recommended times and directions in English. You start with a shower (gorgeous rainfall style), then sweat in 2 dry air rooms. Then shower again, and get scrubbed down with German efficiency and thoroughness. Another shower - then to the damp sauna rooms with eucalyptus steam. Then comes a series of soaks in various pools (the best parts IMO). Finally, the freezing cold plunge if you dare - I did and it was COLD!!! Warm up with hot towels, lotion up, and get wrapped up like a mummy for some r&r. You'll emerge cleaner and more relaxed than you ever thought possible. I have bad hips and this vacation's uphill hikes had been kicking my fat ass - 3 hours here made me feel human again. My tip - you can spend as long as you want in any of the rooms as long as you stay within your allotted time. If you aren't into the the sitting around at the end, feel free to cycle back to your favorites.

Had a wonderful experience here! My boyfriend and I went for the afternoon and both loved it. I'm very glad we chose to go here instead of the more modern, run of the mill-looking place next door. Once you get used to a coed nude space, it's very freeing, and it feels like an authentic Roman bath experience. We did the basic package which included sandals, towels, and tea in the lovely resting room at the end. 25€ felt like a good deal.

It's simply beautiful, but not all the employees are. I don't mean physically, but in personality and sneers. If you don't like what you are doing for a living, go to college or don't work in the service industry. And don't talk about the guests in another language that you 'think' they don't understand. This stupid American understood what you said in Russian.

Indeed a cool place to relax but its confusing me from time to time because there is not enough explaining about the detailed process... A must stop by in Baden Baden though

Friedrichsbad is an experience that I think is worth doing if you don't have an expectation already in your head. I'm from Northern California where zen/silent experiences are often the idea. I've lived in Europe on and off for years and have finally come to the firm understanding that many public baths in the old world are very social compared to ones in the states. If you can accept that, it's sort of a joy seeing everyone (all shapes and ages) bathing together and chatting away. It's a very authentic cultural experience I would say. A couple important points: 1. I wouldn't suggest this as a first place for trying out nude bathing for the shy person. Your towel is taken away and you move through the rooms stark naked with many other people. On top of it there is a lot of logistics about the stations. It's pretty overwhelming at first. 2. There REALLY is no hot bath. Caracalla is better if you want a hot tub. 3. Insanely wonderful blasting- life changing- hot mineral showers!!! I like these because ZERO chlorine (unlike pools.) I suggest sticking entirely to the showers and alternating with the cold plunge. I went back and forth 8 times. Unless you take time to really warm up your body in these showers, you'll likely feel too cold to get into the whole thing (in winter months .) So, don't just expect them for rinsing , use them as part of the therapy. 4. Don't take the unfriendly service personally, it's a pretty exhausting job having to explain over and over again the same thing to confused tourists. Other Baden Baden spa notes: Caracalla is awesome too. They have a fabulous Italian salad there where you can add fresh grilled chicken. Sometimes finding greens while traveling is hard so I was pleased ! If you want an insane massage go to Brenner's Park Hotel and ask for Ottoman from Tunisia. There are no words to describe his massage ..... Just so incredible and worth every penny .

as spas go, Awesome. a luxury mineral hot springs in Baden-Baden on the grounds of an ancient roman-irish bath. built entirely of limestone, marble, soaring columns and glass cupolas, it looks and feels like a cathedral - a bathing tradition for over 130 years. Mark Twain: "here at the Friedrichsbad, you lose track of time within 10 minutes and track of the world within 20." less public than Caracalla, the entry is 31€/3hrs with a 10min herbal soap body-everyinch-scrub. there are 17 stations that start with a high-pressure bath, then a recline at the ornamental tiled-marbled-skylighted sauna, eucalyptus steam rooms, pools of varying heat, cold water plunge (LOVE) and rest lounge where you're wrapped like a baby. full spa services from massage, facials, thalasso to more extensive cures also available. and as you'd expect, hygienically-clean and german-efficient. the spa is mixed and completely nude (no ifs, no buts) so check your yankee prudishness at the door. no one looks. too long.

If you go to Baden-Baden, you must do a bathing experience. Friedrichsbad is the more traditional...Carcalla is the contemporary. As a historian, I tend to lean towards the traditional, so off to Friedrichsbad we ventured the first morning we were in Baden-Baden. We picked up tickets at our hotel, the Hotel Am Markt, for 2 euros less than buying them at the spa (19 euros instead of 21 euros each). We decided to skip adding the soap brush massage, but we could have added it to the bill when checking in at the spa. We went on a Tuesday, which is a mixed sex day where you can do the experience with your partner (several days a week are single sex, where men & women only meet at the big pool in the middle). We locked our things in our lockers and spent nearly 3 hours (the maximum time we were allotted) going through the steam, sauna, showers, whirlpools & baths. It was glorious! I'm glad we went on a mixed sex day though, as I might have felt stranger about the prancing around in my birthday suit by myself. After a (very) quick dip in the cold plunge tub, the towel person rubbed us dry with hot towels, sent us to lotion up, and then tucked us into the quiet room to catch a few zzzs. It is well located in the pedestrian center of town, less than 10 minutes from a majority of the center city hotels, shopping areas & the casino. There is very limited street parking in front, but there is also a small parking garage underneath. We chose to leave our car at our hotel (which was about a 2 minute walk away). A unique experience for those travelers who want to do something that they can't easily do at home! And my skin felt super awesome for several days :)

My wife and I went together and enjoyed the experience overall. We went with the luxury package that included the soap scrub and lotion massages. We were certainly relaxed by the visit and liked the old school charm. The facility requires all clients go nude, so be prepared if you're body shy or worry about that kind of thing. When compared to other spas we felt Friedrichsbad was unique, but offered more of an "assembly line spa experience". The highlights are the architecture and the thermal pools. The building is beautiful and an old one. Very classical style architecture with marble, pillars, and painted tiles throughout, and the dome over the main pool area is really special. The thermal steam rooms were comfortable, well lit and spacious. The "relaxation" rooms were also very pleasant. Some areas for improvement include how easy is to get confused about the "17 station" steps, and the rules that followed (i.e. at some point you can't wear slippers or a towel, but you wouldn't know this without a staff person telling you abruptly). The station numbers were posted with arrows to the next station, but because you sometimes have to go back from the direction you came, it feels somewhat counter-intuitive. I guess on a second visit, this would no longer be an issue! The water in the pools could have been warmer, but still pleasant and nice to soak in. The massages included queuing up, and were incredibly short and rushed - which is where the assembly line feeling sets in. I followed up with a full massage the next day and wasn't particularly impressed.

What a divine experience! In terms of thermal baths, this one is the best I have been to so far. The ambience and decor sets you back in time to the legacy of the kings who used it. It has various thermal pools with different temperatures and functions. Also 3 different steam rooms and 2 different saunas. It is a regulated experience, in that there is an order of the rooms and that is the recommended order although you can go back and forth. The attending personnel are friendly and kind. There is an offer of a brushing and soaping and also a cream massage. I did not do either. It's a nudist bath. On the day I went it was mixed - for both men and women. More men than women and I got the feeling that some guys were there to meet women. I was hungry at some point but didn't get anything to eat. In all, I would love to go back soon. I wish I lived close by and could go once a week. For a regal thermal bad experience, it's definitely the place to do. The one thing I didn't like was the newer stained glass ceilings in some of the thermal pool rooms, I felt it ruined the experience. It was more artistic in a modern sense and destroyed that feeling that you were in an ancient place. Knot that old, just since 1877.

going to the friedrichsbad was a completely delight. i had an amazing time doing it the "german way"- naked. it was 23 euros for the basic package/3 hrs, which is without the scrub(wished i did this because i heard it was amazing!) i went on the day that men and women were separated (although there is a section where they mix) and it was not crowded or awkward in anyway. i would recommend not going in large groups( with a friend or two), because it's just not the place. you go through a series of saunas and bathes that range in temperatures. you can go through all the steps again if you get done early or just choose the sauna/bathes that you liked most, which is what we did. it was a very relaxing day, and i highly recommend doing this!!

I visited both the Friedrichsbad and Caracalla spas. Other than families with children, I would definitely recommend Friedrichsbad over Caracalla. It was my first visit to each. I speak some German, but I am certainly not fluent. I went on a day when the females and males are mainly separated. The staff was friendly and were happy to explain the next step. I got off-course at one point and the staff politely pointed me in the right direction. Very, very inexpensive compared to anything in the U.S. 3+ hours for 37 Euro, including scrub down. Don't worry about the naked part - you'll get over it quickly. Beautiful interior to look at while you are avoiding eye contact : )

This spa is way over-rated and the staff is not friendly, almost rude. Try other spas in Germany.

I would give the Friedrichsbad less than one star and even take away some stars if possible. Terrible place, terrible experience. Shame on the people running this tourist sham. They have taken a very good concept and reduced it to a money making tourist trap staffed by miscreants and undesirables of the worst kind. When I seek a service offered for money, I want to encounter satisfied providers who have my best interests at heart. To put it mildlythis place blows big time.

Ridiculuously overrated and overpriced. No real Sauna, hottest water was 36C, thermal steam room was only enjoyable when standing since all the warm air gathered in the top of the room, cold water was certainly colder than 18C and not usable at all, everything else was just pools to sit in, certainly not justifying 23 Euros for the Basis package. Someone said, Bad Wildbad is far better, maybe you should check this out alternatively.

I had read of the Friedrichsbad prior to traveling to Germany this year. Although, I vacation in Germany every year, this was my first time to Baden Baden. First on my list of things to do upon arrival in this beautiful city was to take the waters at the Friedrichsbad. I was pleased that I went with a German friend who was able to help me navigate the 17 various stations throughout. I was a bit uncertain how the totally nude experience would be for my American self, but after a minute or so it seemed perfectly comfortable and certainly made sense considering the intent of the bathing experience. The inside of the structure is beautiful, extremely clean, well serviced, and very well maintained. Even though there were 17 stations, I very quickly identyified my favorites----the various saunas and the large warm soaking pools (as opposed to the cool pools). I did not partake of the brush massage, but certainly wish that I had. I enjoyed about 2 hours and would have remained the maximum 3 hours, but had other hungry friends waiting for lunch outside. The closest bathing experience that I have had in the USA was at the Greenbriar in WV and the Homestead in VA. Neither one, however, come close to the Friedrichsbad quality and value, especially in the variety of self-paced treatments or the price. I deffinitely look forward to my next visit to Germany and the Friedrichsbad, although, I may visit instead the Thermen in Aachen to compare.