Bad Elster (Germany)

The oldest Saxon state spa

Although Bad Elster is not located in the Egeria National Geopark, but just beyond its border, the two areas are related. Geology knows no borders. Bad Elster (in Czech, Lázně Halštrov) is a spa town in the German state of Saxony. It is located in the Vojtsko district and has approximately 3,600 inhabitants. The town is located near the borders of three territories: Saxony, Bavaria and Bohemia and near the cities of Aš, Hof and Plavno. Bad Elster is one of the towns of the Friends in the Heart of Europe microregion. It lies in a valley along the White Halštov and is surrounded by tall forests that protect it from extreme temperature fluctuations.

Bad Elster. Goethe's Well. Vintage postcard from 1910

The healing effect of the Halštrovský spring (once known as Säuerling (Kyselka), today Moritzquelle) was recognized very early. Jiří Leisner, then the Plav town doctor and personal physician of the land lord, Duke Moritz of Saxony and Zeitz, wrote in 1669 that "this water has been used since time immemorial not only by the inhabitants of Elster, but they would travel all the way from Adorf to get it" and he also wrote that "it was used by patients with many diseases". In 1795, the famous poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe visited Elster, and later mentioned the Halštrovský springs in his work Hermann and Dorothea.