Baden bei Wien, AUSTRIA: The Spa of Emperors
Baden bei Wien is just 30km from Vienna, the historic seat of one of the world’s greatest imperial dynasties - the Habsburgs. Baden was one of their favourite summer resorts; a ‘Spa of Emperors’ and a magnet for high-level politics. The town uniquely combines the classicist architecture of the beginning of the nineteenth century with the architecture and infrastructures of the turn of the twentieth century when Baden became a world class spa resort.
The spa district is centred on the spa garden that contains the Kurhaus, Trinkhalle, Sommerarena and music pavilion. The therapeutic and recreational spa landscape extends into a scenic terrain of hills and valley that contain a distinguished belt of villas and parks. Musical heritage of outstanding universal significance is linked to one of the favourite workplaces of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven and Johann Strauß.
Baden bei Wien Kurpark
Historic Urban Landscape of the ‘Great Spa’
The spatial plan of the nominated property can be divided into:
- The spa districts with the thermal baths, structures for leisure and pleasure and representative hotels (some of them with baths).
- The parts of the city, where bathing guests were hosted since at least the eighteenth century (the centre that had been enclosed by ramparts until about 1800, the former suburbs along Antongasse and Wassergasse, and, up to 1850, the independent Village Gutenbrunn).
- Spatial development of with a mixture of town houses, hotels and villas.
- The villa belt surrounding the town.
- Kurparks and spa-related landscape gardens and therapeutic spa landscape.