Karlovy Vary

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Karlovy Vary (Czech pronunciation: [ˈkarlovɪ ˈvarɪ]; German: Karlsbad, formerly also spelled Carlsbad in English) is a spa city in the northwestern Czech Republic and the capital of the Karlovy Vary Region. It is located at the confluence of the Ohře and Teplá river, around 106 kilometres (66 mi) west of Prague. As of 2024, Karlovy Vary has a population of 49,353.

Karlovy Vary is named after Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor and the King of Bohemia, who founded the city in the 14th century. The site of numerous hot springs (13 main springs, about 300 smaller springs, and the warm-water Teplá River), the city grew into a spa resort in the 19th century and was a popular destination for the European aristocracy and other luminaries.

Karlovy Vary's rapid growth was brought to an end by the outbreak of the First World War, after which it was incorporated into the newly established state of Czechoslovakia. In 1938, Karlovy Vary and the rest of the Sudetenland were annexed by Nazi Germany; the city was returned to Czechoslovakia at the end of the war and most of its ethnic German population was forcibly expelled. After the Velvet Revolution in 1989, Karlovy Vary once again became a major tourist destination.

Karlovy Vary is the most visited spa town in the Czech Republic. The historic city centre with the spa cultural landscape is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation.

It is the largest spa complex in Europe. In 2021, the city became part of the transnational UNESCO World Heritage Site under the name "Great Spa Towns of Europe" because of its spas and architecture from the 18th through 20th centuries.