Baden-Baden (until 1931 simply Baden) is a world-famous spa town and World Heritage city in the west of Baden-Württemberg, at the foot of the Black Forest. The healing thermal springs that surface at the Florentinerberg were already used by the Romans. For a long time Baden(-Baden) was the residence town of the Margraviate of Baden and thus gave its name to the region of Baden, and in turn to Baden-Württemberg. Its great fame goes back to its heyday in the 19th century, when Baden-Baden rose from a small bathing town to an internationally important spa town. Emperors, kings, aristocrats and wealthy citizens came to the spa town on the Oos for the social spa cure. From this era the town has preserved a richly varied cultural heritage. In recognition of this heritage, Baden-Baden was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2021, together with ten other important spa towns, as The Great Spa Towns of Europe. Baden-Baden is also known as a town of art and culture.
, [Neues Schloss](/en/bauwerke-und-orte/neues-schloss/) and [Merkur](/en/natur-und-freizeit/merkur/)](/de/bilder/badenbadenaltstadtpanorama/BadenBadenAltstadtPanorama.jpg)
, [Neues Schloss](/en/bauwerke-und-orte/neues-schloss/) and [Merkur](/en/natur-und-freizeit/merkur/)](/de/bilder/baden-baden-panorama/Baden-Baden_Panorama.jpg)
Origin of the name
Until well into the 20th century the town was called simply Baden and, to distinguish it from other towns (e.g. Baden in Switzerland), was referred to as Baden in Baden. From this the unofficial simplification Baden-Baden arose early on. In 1931 the town officially adopted the double name.
Location and city districts
Baden-Baden’s historic old town lies in the valley of the Oos between Battert, Merkur and Fremersberg. The valley opens to the northeast towards the Rhine plain. Until the 19th century the town of Baden-Baden was bounded by its city walls. Only then did it begin to spread out into the surrounding landscape and merge with the neighbouring municipalities.
Today the town is divided into the districts of Innenstadt with the historic town centre; Lichtental with Oberbeuern and Geroldsau in the southeast; Ebersteinburg in the east; Balg, Haueneberstein and Sandweier in the north; the Weststadt and Oos in the northwest; and the wine-growing villages of Steinbach, Neuweier and Varnhalt in the southwest.
The independent city of Baden-Baden is surrounded by the district of Rastatt. Around 60 percent of the municipal area is forested. The municipal forest is one of the largest communally owned forests in Germany.
Facts and figures
- Population: 56,881 (as of 31 March 2026)[1]
- Area: 140.19 km²[1]
- Elevation: 161 m above sea level
- Highest point: Badener Höhe (1,002 m)
- Vehicle registration code: BAD
- Postal codes: 76530, 76532, 76534
- Dialling codes: 07221, 07223
- Twin towns: Menton (France), Moncalieri (Italy) and Karlovy Vary (Czech Republic). There is an administrative partnership with Freital (Saxony). The partnerships with Yalta and Sochi are suspended.
History
Around 70 AD the Romans founded the settlement of Aquae in the Oos valley, which had previously been settled by Celts, and whose name derived from the hot thermal springs, developing it into the regional centre Aquae Aureliae. After the fall of the Limes around 260 AD, the Alemanni took over the valley. A charter of 1040 attests Villa Baden as a place with its own market rights. Under the Margraves of Baden, whose rule began in 1112 with Hermann II, Baden became a residence town. In 1479 the nearby Neues Schloss (New Castle) replaced the older castle of Hohenbaden as the residence. In 1689, during the War of the Palatinate Succession, the town was burned down by French troops, whereupon the margraves moved their residence to Rastatt.
In 1806 Baden was elevated to a Grand Duchy. In the 19th century the town rose to become an internationally important spa town. Friedrich Weinbrenner built the Kurhaus (spa house), and above all the gambling at the casino drew aristocracy, the middle classes and artists from all over Europe for the social spa cure. The Lichtentaler Allee, luxury hotels and many buildings that still shape the townscape today came into being. After the German Empire banned gambling from 1871, the town modernised its bathing facilities, among other things with the Friedrichsbad. Baden-Baden came through both world wars almost unscathed. In 1945 it became the seat of the French military government for the southwest of Germany. In more recent times the town again gained supraregional importance: in 2009 it hosted a NATO summit, in 2017 the G20 finance ministers met here, and in 2021 the World Heritage title brought international recognition.
Culture and sights
For more on this, see the main article Sights of Baden-Baden
Museums
Baden-Baden has a large number of museums. The best known lie close together along the Lichtentaler Allee, which there is also called the Museum Mile.
Event venues
Baden-Baden is a festival and congress city and has several large event venues.
Buildings
Historic buildings shape the townscape of Baden-Baden.
Parks
Large parks shape the image of the spa town. They were created in the 19th century as part of the spa operations and remain among the town’s defining green spaces to this day.
Protected areas
South of Baden-Baden, the Black Forest National Park extends along the Schwarzwaldhochstraße.
City council, administration and mayor
The Baden-Baden city council was elected in the 2024 local elections and has 40 seats. It comprises the CDU, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, the Freie Bürger für Baden-Baden (FBB), SPD, AfD, the Freie Wähler (FW), FDP and Die Linke. The council is chaired by the Lord Mayor.
Since 2026 the Lord Mayor has been Thomas Jung, who succeeded Dietmar Späth in the 2026 mayoral election. He is supported by two deputy mayors: the First Mayor Alexander Wieland and the mayor for legal affairs Tobias Krammerbauer.
Economy and tourism
Baden-Baden’s economy is shaped more by tourism and the spa industry than by manufacturing and other sectors. The baths, the casino, the hotel industry and a pronounced cultural and conference tourism form its economic focus.
Transport
Baden-Baden lies on the A5 motorway. Baden-Baden station in the Oos district is an ICE stop on the Rhine Valley Railway. The nearest airport is Baden-Airpark (Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden Airport), which, however, does not lie within Baden-Baden’s municipal boundaries but nearby at Rheinmünster.
Media
Baden-Baden is home to one of the main sites of Südwestrundfunk (SWR), whose predecessor Südwestfunk was founded here after 1945.
Notable people
Numerous well-known figures have lived in Baden-Baden and decisively shaped the spa town. For a long time the Margraves of Baden were responsible for the town’s fortunes. Many names are linked to the heyday in the 19th century. Grand Duke Carl Friedrich had Friedrich Weinbrenner develop the town into an elegant spa resort. The casino lessees Jacques Bénazet, Edouard Bénazet and Emile Dupressoir knew how to invest the casino’s profits skilfully in entertainment, advertising and infrastructure projects, thereby considerably enhancing the town’s reputation. Emperor Wilhelm I with his consort Augusta, as well as Otto von Bismarck, were regularly welcome guests of the town. Great artists and writers, such as Ivan Turgenev, lived temporarily in Baden-Baden or settled here permanently. Even today there are numerous patrons, such as Frieder Burda, who continue to support the town in its positive development. Some of these figures were granted honorary citizenship of the town.
Web links
References
- ↑1.1↑1.2 Gemeindeverzeichnis: Baden-Baden, Stadt, Statistische Ämter des Bundes und der Länder, retrieved on 30 June 2026 (Archived)