BAD GASTEIN is a resort located at the territory of one of the Austrians national parks – Hohe Tauern. The town belongs to the Land of Salzburg. (Austria). Municipality of Bad Gastein is located in the southern part of Gastein Valley at the altitude from 840 m to 1200 m above the sea level.
As hotel Lindenhof is located in this unique place of our planet, we would like to make both our current and prospective guests familiar with the beautiful and amazing town of Bad Gastein.
This article will give an overview about Bad Gastein, we will tell you about the town’s history and also provide some statistic data.
We will tell you about famous persons, who visited Bad Gastein in the past and about the reasons why Bad Gastein developed as an active and health resort. We will tell about the beauty of Bad Gastein and it’s amazing places to see. In order one could feel the beauty and the energy of the town a visit is a must. In order to make sure that it’s worth visiting, we are pleased to provide few amazing photos of the Bad Gastein town below.
Bad Gastein pictures
Sometimes, looking at the pictures of Bad Gastein one can hardly believe that this beauty can really exist. It seems that the picturesque landscape is written by some genius artist and the picture is his creature. But this master is a nature itself. No surprise, once visited, people are coming back here again and again.
Bad Gastein photos
The pictures of Bad Gastein are really amazing. We should be grateful to the nature for this wonderful piece of land, but the citizens of Austria are the ones who are taking care of this beauty. The top ecological standards and the use of alternative sources of energy make Austria in general and Bad Gastein in particular one of the cleanest ecological places of the world.
Bad Gastein Austria – the history of the name.
According to the official data the first time the name Bad Gastein was mentioned in the year of 890. In the agreement was used a celt word “Gastuna” which relates to the hot water. From the medieval “Wildbad Gastein” the name of Bad Gastein developed. In 1327 Diepold von Gastein passed his property to feudal lord Friedrichvon Goldeck.His coat of arms presented a jar on the blue background. Since 1930 the image of the silver jar on the blue is a coat of arms of Bad Gastein.
It is interesting that for many years the name of the town was written as Badgastein. Only after the 1st of January 1997 when Land Salzburg was announced and established the town was officially renamed to Bad Gastein.
Bad Gastein information in figures
In order one could get more detailed information about Bad Gastein, we provide some statistic data. The territory of Bad Gastein (Austria) is 170,59 sq m. The distribution of the land as per its purpose of use you can learn from the table below.
Table
| Type of site | Occupied area (hectares) | Proportion of total area (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Building | 28,40 | 0,2 |
| Gardens | 16,70 | 0,1 |
| Agricultural land | 591,10 | 3,5 |
| Alps | 6947,30 | 40,7 |
| Forest | 4746 | 27,8 |
| Ponds | 122,20 | 0,7 |
| Pavement | 87,20 | 0,5 |
| Unproductive areas (wastelands, glaciers) | 4520,80 | 26,5 |
From the 1st of January 1991 Bad Gastein is a part of Hohe Tauern National park with its size of 80 500 hectares of land in the province of Salzburg. 11,9% of the national park is located in the territory of Bad Gastein, which is 9571 hectares of land.
BadGastein Austria – first settlement
The first trace of people in Bad Gastein was dated from 4000 to 2000 BC. This is indicated by such archeological artifacts as stone axes. It is supposed that those were left by people who lived in a milder climate downhill and they went up to the mountains for hunting. In the times of Romans the territory of Bad Gastein Valley was probably not inhabited and the land, where now Bad Gastein is located, was used as trade route through Tauern. Not only around the route, but also near the thermal springs the artifacts of Romans were found.
The remote valley was settled by Bavarian peasants in the 9th century; field names in the highest-lying southern parts also denote a Carantanian (Slavic) colonization. Gastein is first mentioned as Gastuna in a 963 deed, when the area belonged to the German stem duchy of Bavaria
Till the XIV century the main specialization of the citizens was cattle breeding. The found mountain farms in the areas of Planitzen, Schneeberg and Anger were dated by the year 1200 and looked like Bavarian settlements.
Bad Gastein – resort development
It took a long process for Bad Gastein to become a resort, which gives this place some additional charm. The treatment features of the local waters were proved not by several generations. Having passed the test of time, the treatment waters of this land are still requested and their therapy effects are now scientifically confirmed. It is nice to realize that the development of Bad Gastein to a resort is made in its natural way and is not effected by any special marketing efforts.
Turning back to the history… As per the legend, the thermal waters were discovered by two monks in the year 680. . The legend says that the monks cleaned the wounds of deer in the thermal waters. The fast recovery of the animals leaded to the discovery of the therapic effects of these waters. The first people to try those effects should have appeared in Bad Gastein around the year 1000.
If we talk about the modern times, the first famous cure patient in Bad Gastein was the Imperator Friedrich III, who had visited so call “Wildbad” in the year 1436. Such “advertisement” gave its results: many famous and notable persons followed him. As the number of patients grow that resort came in construction. It is known that in the year 1500 there are already 6 restaurants and few hotels constructed.
Goldmining and its influence on the town’s development
The development of gold mining is Gastein led to the growth of the town, new constructions appeared that times, which now became architectural monuments:
- In the years 1764-1765 the first pilgrim church in Bockstein “MariazumGutenRat” was opened.
- In the year 1782 archbishop Colloredo moved the mining administration to Bockstein. Today those wonderful buildings are the mining museums.
- Between 1791 and 1794 the first bathing castle in Bad Gastein was constructed.
- Around the year 1803 the construction of the first funicular railway in Radhausberg took place.
Salzburg together with Bad Gastein has lost its autonomy and in the year 1809-1810 became a French territory, then the lands were governed by Bavarians and finally it became Austria – on the 1st of May 1816.
Austria, Bad Gastein – Renaissance period and its influence on the resort development
Renaissance made a great push on the development of Bad Gastein. The building and construction rose up dramatically. The town was visited by such notable persons like:
- Archduke Johann. First he visited Bad Gastein in the year 1822. Between 1826 and 1828 he constructed Villa Merano.
- Emperor Franz Josef I made his first visit to Bad Gastein in 1845.
- His notable wife Empress Elisabeth visited Gastein spas.
- German Emperor Wilhelm visited Bad Gastein.
But not only them… Famous artists, governors and many other notable persons were attracted by Bad Gastein. They came for cure treatments, health and relaxation. Among them were:
- Chancellor Otto von Bismarck as well as Subhas Chandra Bose, a leading Indian nationalist
- Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria
- King Faisal I of Iraq
- King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia and Iran’s last king Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
- Industrialists like Wilhelm von Opel and artists like Heinrich Mann, Robert Stolz and W. Somerset Maugham.
The visits of such notable persons forced the region development. The wooden houses were replaced by impressive stone constructions. In the years 1866-1876 both neogothic Catholic Church and Evangelical churches were built.
Present times in Bad Gastein
The construction of the Tauern railway (1901-1909) brought Bad Gastein to a new step. In order to meet all the coming guests the large hotels and tourist infrastructure were constructed:
- Graukogel chairlaif was opened in 1947.
- 1950-1951: Stubrenkogel cable car started to operate
- In the year 1970-1972 the alpine road Gastein in Naasfeld was constructed and the new ski area was created.
Bad Gastein hosted the 1958 World Championships in alpine skiing. This led to the development of Bad Gastein as a winter ski resort. Later in this article we will tell you about the large possibilities and comfortable conditions for alpine skiing in Bad Gastein .
Tourist information Bad Gastein: What offers resort today?
Today Bad Gastein is still attractive for all the people either they would like to relax or improve their health. The beauty and tranquility of the area attracts tourists all over the world. Everyone can find his beloved activities any time of the year.
Thermal waters and Spas
For those who would like to relax after a busy skiing or hiking day, our spa center Felsentherme (located only 200 m from Hotel Lindenhof) offers:
- Fantastic indoor pools with warm 32° C thermal water built in an ancient massive rock.
- 600 m2 panorama wellness area, with comfortable sun beds where you can gaze out on the mountain world
- Eight different saunas and steam baths which offer plenty of variety and the right temperature, both for experienced sauna-goers as well as those who are new to the sauna world.
- Kids area: Pools with bubble-jet beds and geysers, slides and a magical rocky grotto provide lots to explore.
- Large ourdoor area: large swimming pool with hote thermal water and a separate 25 meter swimming pool for those who would like to keep active
This is a great way to revive yourself in the warm thermal waters combined with a cristal clear mountain air.
Rodon therapy in Bad Gastein
The Gastein Healing Gallery is a health center for radon therapy located in Austria’s Gastein Valley. The motto of the center is: “Live pain-free, naturally”.
Treatments in the Healing Gallery (“Heilstollen”) are centered on therapy sessions conducted in a 2.5 km-long tunnel with naturally elevated radon levels. The combination of high humidity, warmth and radon deep inside the Radhausberg in Bad Gastein makes the Gastein Healing Gallery a form of therapy unlike anywhere else on Earth. Long-lasting pain alleviation, reduced need for medications for as long as one year as well as immune stabilization, are amongst the scientifically proven benefits of radon therapy in this Healing Gallery in Austria.
The Gastein Healing Gallery aids in the treatment of rheumatic-inflammatory complaints of the musculoskeletal system, respiratory passages and skin.
From a medical perspective, a treatment duration of 2-4 weeks is recommended. Patients take part in 3-4 Gallery sessions per week.
Bad Gastein as a ski resort
It is quite hard to tell about all the ski possibilities of Gastein in one article. So, we here we touch only the main points.
The ski area of Gastein consists of 4 parts:
- Bad Gastein
- Bad Hofgastein
- Dorfgastein
- Sportgastein
The slopes of Bad Gastein and Bad Hofgastein are connected with each other, Sportgastein and Dorfgastein are separate. Staying in our hotel you will be just 379 from the Stublerkogel cable car, which will bring you to the ski area of Bad Gastein and Bad Hofgastein. The two other ski areas are reachable by the complimentary ski bus, which stops only 59 meters from our hotel. So, you can easily reach both Sportgastein and Dorfgastein even if you do not have a car.
The slopes are divided by its difficulty:
- For the beginners (blue)
- For advanced skiers (red)
- For professionals (black)
We should note that there are mostly red slopes in the area, but it doesn’t mean a problem for the beginners. There are lots of special slopes for training of both adults and children. There are plenty of ski schools. The slopes are so organized, that people with different ski levels are not mixed.
Gastein ski pass
In order to use lifts and slopes, you need to buy a ski pass. There are several types of ski passes:
- day
- multi day
- for the whole season
- for a certain ski area
- for pedestrians
- Salzburg super ski card
The price differs depending on the type of the ticket and also on the age. The day ski pass costs around 52 EUR. Sometimes there are discounts and special offers.
BadGastein – ski schools
As we have already noted there is everything you may need in Bad Gastein for an ideal ski holiday. Even if you see the skies the first time, it’s not a problem. In our town there are plenty of ski schools . Among them are:
- SkischuleBadGastein
- SkischuleSnowacademyGastein School & Ride
- AlpincenterGastein
- FreerideGastein
- Bergführer Mountain Revolution
Approved and top qualified skiing and snowboarding instructors will look after you in all aspects of winter sports. Get your first or even improve your skiing and snowboarding skills by attending a ski course.
Non ski activities in Bad Gastein
It’s not only skiing, thermal waters or radon therapy which attract tourist to Bad Gastein. This is only a small part of what you can find in our variety of attractions and activities. There are lots of other options:
I. Mainly in summer
- Hiking
- Cable cars and chairlifts Gastein
- Mountain bikes
- Golf
- Tennis
- Paragliding
- Rock climbing
- Archery
- Fishing
- Horseback riding
II. Mainly in winter
- Cross-country skiing
- Sledging
- Snowshoes
- Ice skating
In addition there is a great choice of one day excursions for adults and children. Some places of interest we describe below. And of course: not to forget the visits of local authentic Austrian restaurants and nights clubs – for night life lovers.
Places of interest and sightseeing around Bad Gastein
As the area is quite rich on different attractions and amazing places, we will mark only few of them, which are really beloved ones.
- Ice cave Eisreisenwelt. Eisriesenwelt is a cave labyrinth with a total length of more than 40 kilometers. It was created over a very long time period. The first cracks and fissures in the limestone caves began to form during tectonic elevations about 100 million years ago. Chemical dissolution processes and water erosion across the millennia caused the subterranean cracks to increase, leading to the development of immense hollow spaces.
We can easily say that in Bad Gastein you can find everything in just one resort: effective cure, spectacular nature and perfect relaxation. You will be completely full of energy, positive emotions and a wish to return here again once you leave Bad Gastein. The top reviews on the area are the best proof!
P.S. Come to Bad Gastein! Enjoy and recover the pleasant moments spent with us!
Gastein valley Austria map
You can see Bad Gastein is location in Austria map