The second weekend in May was approaching and it was still rather cold and rainy in Germany. Despite that, we took our chances and booked one of the last remaining free hotel rooms in Bad Pyrmont, a SPA TOWN just about 2hrs drive from where we live in Germany. My mom was visiting and this short trip felt like a good idea. And it was – we had full sunshine the whole Saturday, Sunday wasn´t so bad as well, but we decided to head home a bit earlier and enjoy lunchtime on our home terrace. Anyway, if you´re looking for a place to relax and enjoy beautiful parks with a Mediterranean touch, this is a perfect place to do it over here in Germany!
2 hrs from Dortmund, a good hour from Hannover, 3hrs from Leipzig and 2 hrs from Braunschweig – Bad Pyrmont is literately hidden between HILLS (yes hills, even in this part of Germany – I had to switch gears lots of times at driving ha ha) in “the middle of nowhere”. But precisely because of this, the town itself is really calm and relaxing. There are tourists, but mostly German ones, ELDERLY who come here for a REHABILITATION or YOUNG FAMILIES looking for some swimming pool action.
Bad Oeynhausen, Bad Wildungen, Wiesbaden, Baden-Baden, Bad Kissingen, Bad Elster, Badenweiler, Bad Füssing and so on. As long as a town has the word “bad” in it, you can be sure there are lots of SPA HOTELS, WALKING PATHS, PARKS, SWIMMING POOLS, MINERAL SPRINGS and so on. There are so many in Germany and Bad Pyrmont is no different.
The hotels are concentrated more or less in or around the city centre so you can easily walk around on foot during your stay in the town. I liked the architecture and how neat everything was, very clean and tidy, with lots of PALM TREES everywhere – it often made an impression as if we were somewhere in Spain rather than in Germany.
KURPARK | BAD PYRMONT, GERMANY
This HISTORICAL PARK is the main feature of Bad Pyrmont and at the same time probably one of the most beautiful parks in Europe. With its mix of ENGLISH LANDSCAPE GARDEN and BAROQUE FEATURES it is always listed as one of the best parks in Germany. 17 acres of the park are sometimes used for different OPEN AIR EVENTS – there was a tournament going on this weekend as well. ENTRY FEE is 4€ for adults, but there is no admission if you are staying in one of the hotels (don´t forget to show the cards you get at your hotel when you pay the town tax).
Every year there are over 200.000 colourful plants planted into the decorative beds, as ornaments. At the time of our visit many garden beds were empty, because they were probably switching the Spring plants with the summer ones – I´m sure everything looks even more beautiful when everything blooms during the high season.
THE PALM GARDEN | BAD PYRMONT, GERMANY
This OUTDOOR PALM GARDEN is the most northern palm garden in Europe. With more than 400 subtropical plants and around 300 PALM TREES it is the centre piece of the park. The oldest palm tree here is approximately 430 years old. It really feels like being somewhere in the Mediterranean while walking between these mighty palm trees, rather than Germany, so if you live around here and don´t have the time and/or money, this is a great alternative for a weekend with a summer holiday feel ;).
CASTLE | BAD PYRMONT, GERMANY
Built in the 16th Century, this BAROQUE CASTLE surrounded by water trentches right next to the famous Kurpark is now turned into a MUSEUM OF BAD PYRMONT. It hosts historical collections of the town and presents its significant SPA TRADITION and the importance of the mineral springs. ENTRY FEE is 3€ for adults.
MINERAL WATER SPRINGS | BAD PYRMONT, GERMANY
There are various MINERAL WATER SPRINGS in the town, with the most famous ones, BRODELBRUNNEN, AUGENBRUNNEN and HYLLIGE BORN – all situated on the Brunnenplatz square, they have been active for over 2000 years. Some other in the area are:
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Helenenquelle (on the photo)
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Fridrichsquelle
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Trampel´sche Quelle
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Wolfgangsquelle
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Hufelandquelle
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Salinenquelle
DÜNSTHOHLE (VAPOUR CAVE) | BAD PYRMONT, GERMANY
This special cave where CARBON DIOXIDE VAPORS emerges from the earth is known to be very therapeutic and one of its kind in Europe! There are traditional experiments with candles & bubbles and other presentations with the CO2 gas being carried out every day in the afternoons – unfortunately we could not visit it, because we would have to wait too long for it to open.
We ended the day with yet another delicious WHITE ASPARAGUS lunch – it´s the most popular Spring dish in this part of Germany. Flushed it down with a glass of Rose wine before taking a dip in the hotel pool and going to bed very early. The BREAKFAST next day was delicious and it was the perfect end of this short weekend getaway.
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