Soaking in Suds

When we moved to Prague, I compiled a bucket list of things I wanted to do before we moved on.  One of the things at the top of my list was to experience a Beer Spa.  Sadly, I just didn't get around to it before we moved and it seems to be a very Czech thing since I couldn't find anything in Germany that even compared.  Resigned to the fact that I was just going to have to live with this box left unchecked, I was pleasantly surprised when a few weeks ago when a few friends and I booked a girls weekend back in the Czech Republic.  We wanted somewhere that would be about halfway between our homes in Munich and Prague, and we came up with Mariánské Lázně, a spa town on the Czech?German border.  Knowing I was headed back to the Czech Republic, I immediately located the first beer spa and booked two tubs for my friend H and me.

Chodovar Brewery dates back to the 14th century though the first written documentation of it is from 1573.   The Brewery has continuously grown since that time and now stands as a wellness center, hotel, brewery and local event venue.  All I wanted from them was a tub full of beer.

Friday morning I took off for the border and so did my friend H.  We needed to get to our hotel and check in and then head about 10 km to the neighboring town of Chodová Planá.  Our appointment was scheduled for 4:00 and I didn't want to be late as they were booked solid and I didn't want to miss this chance again.

We saw this sign and knew we were in the right place...

We checked in at the hotel reception desk, and at exactly 4 pm they led us downstairs into the cellars and asked us to remove our shoes.

We were handed a large white sheet, led to a minuscule dressing room (with 2 other women), and were asked to remove everything else.  I guess I am just glad that they didn't make us disrobe in the hallway.  While waiting our turn to use the lockers,  H and I stopped to wonder at the drawings that lined the walls.  We are still wondering why they chose a stork and a dog for their baths...

Birthday suits secure, we wrapped ourselves in the sheets provided.  And then popped back out into the hallway.

We were led to side by side steel tubs filled with significant amounts of dark Chodovar beer, local mineral water, and some grains.  Warmed nicely to about 40 degrees (102 degrees Fahrenheit) it is like stepping into a hot tub that has a nice head of foam on top.  Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture before we got in because it was a bit chilly standing in the cellar with nothing on but I snapped one after - just imagine it with a lot of foam.

And then it was time to relax.  Helping you do that is the cold mug of beer they provide you with.  If you finish that you can always drink the dark beer that comes out of the tap at your feet, but H tried it and said it was hot so not really recommended.  And it is also not recommended to drink the beer you are sitting in - for obvious reasons.

After a 20 minute soak, they opened up our privacy curtains and wrap us back up in our sheets and lead us over to another part of the cellar.  Here they had us lay down on a bed, wrap each of us up snug as a bug in a warm towel and hand us another fresh beer and left us to relax for 1/2 hour.

Finally, the lights went on, and we were led back to the changing room where we were strictly told not to shower for at least 4 hours.  The skin needs to continue soaking in the beer to provide the full detoxifying and rejuvenating effects.  I thought that we would be sticky or smell like a brewery but our skin just felt soft and silky, and there was no lingering odor at all.

I added another check to my Bucket list, and I am so glad that H could join me.  I don't know if I will ever get the chance to do this again, but if I do, I will jump at it.  It really was a lot of fun.

We drove back to our hotel and had a bite of dinner and a walk around town as we waited for the other two J's to join us...But more on that in the next post...