Bad Soden am Taunus

Bad Soden am Taunus is a spa town in Main-Taunus-Kreis with several natural healing springs rising from underground rock layers. The town spreads across the Taunus slopes and reaches down to the flat plain near the Main River.

Springs with high mineral content were discovered in the 15th century and soon attracted nobles and wealthy visitors from across Europe. Official recognition as a spa town came in 1922 with the granting of the Bad title.

The name carries the prefix Bad since 1922 as recognition of the healing springs that still flow in the local spa park today. Residents use the public fountains to bottle mineral water while visitors walk along the marked hiking trails through the wooded slopes.

The town center lies within walking distance from the train station, and hiking trails start directly at the edge of town without steep climbs in the first sections. Mineral water fountains in the center remain accessible all year round and are available free of charge.

Leo Tolstoy chose this location as a setting in Anna Karenina because of the 19th-century reputation of the mineral springs across Europe. The water from some springs contains so much iron that it quickly turns reddish-brown on contact with air.