Czech spas attracting increasing numbers of foreign patients

Among the better known destinations outside the capital Prague are Czech spa towns like Karlovy Vary and Marianske Lazne, also known as Carlsbad and Marienbad. For decades "taking the waters" on doctors orders, and paid for by the state, has been taken for granted in the Czech Republic. Now, though, spending time at the country's spas is becoming something of a luxury for Czechs, as the country's health care system is overhauled. To make up for the shortfall in patients, the spas have found the answer: more foreigners.

Marianske Lazne, photo: Archive of Radio Prague

The number of Czechs whose spa stays have been covered by Czech health insurance companies has been falling gradually in recent years, as costs have risen. In response, private sanatoriums in the Czech Republic have increasingly been attracting patients from abroad. The deputy mayor of Marianske Lazne, Zdenek Kral, has mixed feelings about this development.

"You hardly ever hear Czech spoken in Marianske Lazne any more. That's something which should be addressed, though nobody seems interested. But on the other hand it's a good development; it's a boom and everybody's happy they have bookings. Spa buildings which were run down for ages are being renovated - that's an undeniable plus."

Taking advantage of European Union enlargement, the Hamburg based health insurance company HEK has done a deal with the group Marianske Lazne Treatment Spa: it pays for its patients to undergo treatment in Marianske Lazne, where costs are cheaper. Torsten Brunkhorst is HEK's spokesman.

Marianske Lazne, photo: CzechTourism

"This is the beginning of a new trend, which has been made possible by the unification of Europe. But there can sometimes be problems with the language barrier, and the quality of treatment has to be the same as in Germany. Certainly not all foreign spas are capable of meeting our standards. The fact many spas don't meet those standards limits the number of potential providers."

Be that as it may, the number of foreign patients attending Czech spas looks set to increase; a spokesperson for Marianske Lazne Treatment Spa said the group's co-operation with German insurers HEK was just at the beginning.