00:01Wellness tourism is booming, with more people traveling not just to see new places,
00:07but to improve their physical and mental well-being.
00:10But did you know that Germany has been a wellness destination for centuries?
00:15Wellness is huge here, and today I'm going to show you why and how you can experience it for yourself.
00:21From nudity rules, modern spas, to centuries-old thermal baths, this is wellness the German way.
00:33First, we're starting right here in the busy, fast-paced capital city Berlin.
00:38Even here you'll find hidden oases designed to help you switch off completely.
00:43And this here is one of the trendiest.
00:46With locations in Berlin, Hamburg, Dusseldorf, and soon Munich,
00:51Babali is designed to bring a slice of Bali Indonesia to the city.
00:55Phones are banned outside the locker rooms.
00:57But beneath the island aesthetic lies a very un-Balinese ritual.
01:02The main thing here are the saunas, which are known to boost circulation, detoxify, reduce stress, improve skin, among many
01:10other health benefits.
01:11Sauna culture in Germany is taken very seriously.
01:15Babali sees about a million visitors a year across all their locations.
01:20The easiest way to get into Babali, book your time slot for entry online, preferably on a weekday and early
01:26in the day.
01:27And listen to this story.
01:29On one of the most important nights of Berlin history, when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, most East Germans
01:35rushed to the border.
01:36But a 35-year-old Angela Merkel did not.
01:40Because Thursday was sauna day for the future German Chancellor.
01:43History could wait, but her wellness ritual came first.
01:49In East Germany, public bathhouses or Volksbäder with pools and saunas were essential, since most homes didn't have full bathrooms.
01:58Now, saunas are a nationwide ritual tied to Freikörperkultur, Germany's free body culture, where nudity is seen as healthy and
02:06natural.
02:11Which brings me to something very important.
02:14This is a textile-free zone, which means swimwear is not permitted.
02:18Guests should wear bathrobes or a towel when they're outside of the saunas and pools.
02:23Before entering the sauna, leave your shoes and robe outside.
02:29And inside, always sit or lie on your towel. No bare skin on the wood.
02:35Temperatures range from around 60 to 100 degrees Celsius.
02:39After your sweat session, it's important to cool your body back down.
02:43Whether through a cold plunge or a kneip walk, a 19th century German hot and cold water therapy believed to
02:49boost circulation and help the body recover and reset.
02:55So, that was modern wellness in Germany.
02:58But now, I've headed down south to find out more about Germany's long-standing history as a wellness destination.
03:07Germany has 350 official spa towns, many of them with the word Bad in the name, which literally translates to
03:14bath.
03:15For example, Baden-Baden, where we are right now, one of UNESCO's great spa towns of Europe.
03:21An official spa town must offer natural healing resources like thermal waters along with infrastructure designed for health and relaxation,
03:30including parks, clinics and cultural spaces.
03:34And Baden-Baden in Baden-Württemberg does just that.
03:37I'm going to speak with a local guide to learn more about what makes this place so special.
03:42How did the city develop into a wellness destination in the first place?
03:45So, in the first place, I really have to start with the Romans, because it was 2000 years ago that
03:52the Romans, let's say, by accident found Baden-Baden.
03:57They've seen white clouds coming up from this place here.
04:01And so they approached and they found the 12 hot springs here at Baden-Baden.
04:07They liked the fact so much that they remained here for 250 years and they built up, of course, two
04:15thermal baths here at Baden-Baden.
04:19It's finally time to explore the spas here.
04:22Today, Baden-Baden has two main ones, the modern Caracalla Therme from the 1980s and historic Friedrichsbad, which I'll be
04:30visiting.
04:31It's a little chilly out today, but that's perfect for some indoor wellness.
04:35Let's go bathing.
04:37The Friedrichsbad was built in 1877 in elegant neo-Renaissance style with vaulted ceilings and marble arches.
04:45It follows a Roman-Irish bathing ritual, a 17-step experience of steam rooms, pools, massages and cold plunges designed
04:54to warm the body, boost circulation and leave you feeling refreshed.
04:59The key here is the thermal water that's naturally heated and is rich in over 3000 minerals.
05:05It comes from springs deep below Baden-Baden and is forced up by volcanic activity.
05:11Ooh, that feels really good.
05:14It's not too hot, very warm.
05:20Okay, here I can stay forever.
05:26From modern urban spas to ancient bathing systems, wellness in Germany is more than a trend.
05:32It's part of a long-standing culture.
05:40I think that's the absence of waste.
05:42It would be something else.
05:42It's something else.
05:42It would be something else for me that might be...
05:43It might be something else, but there might be some sort of indication that I want to be worsened.
