Guests in Baden
As a fashionable spa in Europe, Baden has attracted a growing number of guests since the 11th century. In the golden age of the so-called Badenfahrt trips, those included the participants of the Councils of Constance and Basel, the Austrian dukes, who even after the loss of their sovereignty still travelled to Baden for health treatments. They were joined by pilgrims, noblemen and burghers from southern Germany and Austria, as well as from further afield. In the 17th and especially the 18th century, the resort went into crisis, which was also reflected in the type of guests. Foreign guests were a minority. Only in the 19th century, with greater medical knowledge and an improved infrastructure, Baden regained its importance in the network of European spas: the great era of spa treatments began. At that time, the bourgeoisie used the annual spa treatment as a temporary way of life and until 1913, the number of overnight stays in Baden increased practically continuously. The symbiosis of spa life, renascent tourism and the arts led to a cultural flowering that continues to fascinate today.
