Parks of Bad Nauheim

A bath, three parks and a solar system

The Rhine-Main region is rich in spas. On the slopes of the Taunus Mountains north of Frankfurt is Bad Nauheim, a health resort that has gained importance as a spa for cardiovascular diseases since the mid-19th century. As with any health resort, Bad Nauheim includes parks for the spa guests. Three of these parks are connected by a planetary path, which, starting from a representation of the sun in Goldstein Park in the east to a model of the (former) planet Pluto on Johannisberg in the west, not only leads through the historic heart of the spa town, but also illustrates the distances between the planets of the solar system.

 

The path begins in the Goldstein Park located outside. There is an observation tower in the center of the park. This Goldstein tower is part of an old waterworks of the city. The planetary path on a scale of 1 : 2.8 billion also begins there. The park includes large lawns for sunbathing, playgrounds, an area for open-air concerts and, on the outskirts, a bird of prey observatory.

If you follow the planetary path, you will come to the historic Sprudelhof, the spa facilities and bathhouses built between 1905 and 1911 in the Art Nouveau style on the edge of the spa park. This park extends at the foot of the Johannisberg and is a landscape park designed by the Frankfurt garden architect Heinrich Siesmayer as a strolling area for the spa guests. The path leads past a monument to Elvis Presley, who was stationed in Bad Nauheim as an American soldier. Halfway up the Johannisberg, there is a smaller green area with a large war memorial to those who died in the two world wars. The planetary path (Planetenweg) ends on the Johannisberg in the middle of a vineyard with a view of the city. The town's public observatory is also located there. The sculptures for the representation of the planets are from the hand of the sculptor Rainer Landgraf.