The Black Forest's belle-époque spa capital, where Dostoevsky gambled and Queen Victoria took the waters. The Friedrichsbad runs a nineteenth-century ritual of seventeen stations of steam, scrubs and plunge pools; the Caracalla next door is the modern, swimsuited alternative. Walk the Lichtentaler Allee's riverside gardens between soaks, and dress up for an evening at the Kurhaus casino — the prettiest in Europe, and worth it just for the chandeliers.
Featured in Ten spa and hot-spring escapes to switch off together · Romantic