 in [Baden-Baden](/en/politik-und-verwaltung/baden-baden/).](/de/bilder/caracallatherme/CaracallaTherme.jpg)
The Caracalla Therme is a thermal bath and leisure pool in Baden-Baden’s Bäderviertel (spa quarter). It takes its name from the Roman emperor Caracalla, who greatly enlarged Baden-Baden’s Roman baths around 200 AD. Last admission is 1.5 hours before closing. Admission costs €21 for two hours in the bathing area, or €26 with the sauna area included.[1]
History
The Kaiserin-Augusta-Bad had fallen into disrepair by the 1930s, and in 1962 it was demolished.[2] A replacement went up north-east of the original site, but bathers were slow to take to it.[3] When demand for modern wellness facilities grew in the early 1980s, the decision was taken to modernise. The Caracalla Therme was built between 1983 and 1985 to designs by the Freiburg architect Hans-Dieter Hecker.
CARASANA Bäderbetriebe GmbH has run the baths as a private business since 1994, while the state-owned Bäder- und Kurverwaltung Baden-Württemberg (BKV) remains the owner of the property.[4] In hindsight the modernisation proved an excellent investment. At the 25th anniversary in August 2010, representatives of the city, the BKV and the operating company CARASANA drew a thoroughly positive balance. 14 million people had visited the Caracalla Therme in its first 25 years. Up to 2,000 visitors a day and more than 600,000 a year underline the success of the baths.[5]
Facilities
Bathing area
The indoor area has a large pool with a therapy island and a rock grotto. The grotto’s hot pool (38 °C) and cold pool (18 °C) serve as a Kneipp bath. There is also an aroma steam bath and a brine inhalation room. Outdoors, two pools offer a current channel and whirlpools.
Sauna area
The sauna area holds seven different saunas, among them the Sanarium.[6] Between sessions you can rest in the quiet rooms.
Massages and treatments
Since 2009 the Caracalla Therme has housed the WellnessLounge with its nine treatment rooms. It offers a choice of massages, beauty treatments and other therapies.[7]
Parking
The Bädergarage directly beneath the building holds 250 parking spaces. Visitors to the Caracalla Therme pay €0.50 for each of the first two hours and €1 for every hour after that, as long as they validate their parking ticket at the cash desk.[8]
References
- ↑ Öffnungszeiten & Eintrittspreise, Caracalla Therme, accessed on 9 July 2026
- ↑ Ulrich Coenen: Von Aquae bis Baden-Baden – die Baugeschichte der Stadt und ihr Beitrag zur Entwicklung der Kurarchitektur, Aachen, Mainz 2008, ISBN 3-8107-0023-1, p. 437
- ↑ Augustabad on ub.uni-heidelberg.de
- ↑ Baden-Baden.tv report on 25 years of Caracalla
- ↑ Report on 25 years of Caracalla on rtv-baden-baden.de (no longer available online)
- ↑ Saunen / Sanarium, Caracalla Therme, accessed on 9 July 2026 (Archived)
- ↑ Press release on the Caracalla Therme, July 2012
- ↑ Anreise & Parken, Caracalla Therme, accessed on 9 July 2026 (Archived)