Simply letting go

Heilbad Heiligenstadt

Warm water, wellness, green forest nature and a secret piece of Eichsfeld sour cream cake: people can thoroughly enjoy themselves in Heilbad Heiligenstadt. With all seven senses

In the evening, when a long day of wellness is coming to an end, I sit down next to the little fairytale castle. Climbing roses creep up to the roof; their sweet scent has something bewitching about it. An evening breeze blows down from the wooded hills. There is a stream burbling at my feet. Otherwise, there is complete silence. I breathe in deeply. It is doing me good to sit here in the Heilbad Heiligenstadt fairy tale park. So much good that I wander why there is no one else here. Probably because everyone else went to have dinner a while ago. In any case, I think that the fairytale park was really created for us adults. Because the soul can find such wonderful peace here.

Everything here is good for tired eyes and exhausted souls

Wellness is easier said than done. When we think of wellness, we generally think of a sauna, a massage and a lounger. And a bathrobe. But might it not take a bit more than that if you really want to do yourself good? Heilbad Heiligenstadt is a good place to get to the bottom of this question. Not only because here, in the extreme north-west of Thuringia, 27% brine springs up into the daylight from the earth’s interior, an excellent remedy. But also because of the Vitalpark. It is right opposite the fairytale park and is a modern combination of a spacious thermal bath landscape with fitness rooms, a spa and a rehabilitation centre. Attached to it is the comfortable Hotel am Vitalpark with 130 rooms if you want to stay the night.

And this is advisable because it means that you just have to pull on leggings and a T-shirt early in the morning and can then hurry through the private walkway into the vitality centre, where the day starts with yoga before you have even had your breakfast. Outside on the flat roof. The sun salutation with a view of nature gets you in the mood for exercise. Heilbad Heiligenstadt is in the Eichsfeld region, in the geographical centre of Germany. With its gently rolling hills and forests, it is good for tired eyes and exhausted souls – and invites you to go hiking. I had booked a short tour with hiking guide Sigrid Seifert, who knows every stone here – and every herb in the meadows. On the panoramic hiking trail, we headed towards Dün, a plateau.

There was a wonderful view over the town beneath us. The trail was simple, but we moved forwards solely. Because the lovely Ms Seifert discovered all kinds of herbs in the meadows by the side of the trail, and I, of course, had to try all of them: earthy wild carrots, ribwort plantain buds that smell like mushrooms, a handful of deep purple alfafa. Delicious! The trefoil with its slightly bitter flavour and the leaves of the wild Jerusalem artichoke tasted wonderful. A small consolation for the fact that I was missing lunch at the hotel – and the exquisite wild herb salad with a citrus vinaigrette that the head chef regularly serves there. On the way back to the Vitalpark, I walked through the spa park, through which the Leine river flows and where there is even a real waterfall. It did me good to breathe in the humid, fresh air and to get a taste of the cultural spirit. Theodor Storm lived in Heiligenstadt for a long time as a district magistrate and wrote the fairy tale “Die Regentrude” in his spare time. The young, beautiful Regentrude kept me company in the form of a slightly weathered wooden sculpture whilst I did my breathing exercises by the waterfall.

Heinrich Heine also spent time in the town, if only briefly. He was baptised here in 1825 and then is said to have drunk some coffee. Perhaps in Wilhelmstrasse with its colourfully painted, friendly old town houses. In any case, it was impossible for me to simply walk past the cake counter in Café Multhauf. I believe that the Eichsfeld sour cream cake must be included in a holistic wellness concept.

In the afternoon, I finally let go – in the four pools of different sizes in the Vitalpark’s thermal baths. Lazing around delightfully in the warm water. Interspersed with time in the sauna and the steam room. The best bit was the new, large discovery sauna, where snow globes enriched with essential oils evaporated into a fragrant, steaming hot vapour on the hot stones and Thuringian landscapes rolled past – on a large screen. Our eyes are known to relax with our bodies. From outside, screams could be heard. A young couple was trying out the ice bath – they both climbed into cylindrical, black plunge pools filled with cold water with a temperature of just 6°C. It is good for inflammations and pain, said the pool attendant. The enhanced form of the Kneipp pool for extreme wellness enthusiasts, I said. “It makes you catch your breath at first, but then it’s great,” babbled the young man. I assured him that I would try it too on my next visit and snuggled into my bathrobe again. Later, I will do another circuit of the fairy tale park.

¡ OUT OF THE SEA, I COME OVER HERE

The poet Theodor Storm came from Husum, but lived in Heiligenstadt between 1856 and 1864, where he was employed as a magistrate. In his spare time, he founded a choral society and wrote the fairy tale “Die Regentrude”, the novella “Im Schloss” and the most famous German Christmas poem “Knecht Ruprecht”. The literature museum reminds visitors of the poet’s years in Heiligenstadt and organises cultural events.

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Cover: ©Isabela Pacini working for CMR, Thüringer Tourismus GmbH