The first spa town to receive UNESCO recognition in 1987, Bath is home to one of the best-preserved Roman bathhouses in the world. However, its heyday as a spa town dates to the 18th century and Bath’s glorious Georgian and Palladian architecture has been the setting for everything from novels by Jane Austen to the Bridgerton series. Marvel at the stately Circus and Royal Crescent, visit the Jane Austen Center to learn more about the author’s life, or visit one of many tea houses in the city.

Dubbed the “Queen of Spas,” France’s greatest spa town is a dazzling 18th-century cityscape that melds several architectural styles. Set in a bend in the River Allier, its parks, boulevards, and sweeping bath complex linked by covered promenades—known as “Little Paris”—were largely built under Napoleon III and became the model for spa towns in France and across Europe. Take a trip from Lyon to explore Vichy’s colonnade-lined Parc des Sources, where you can soak in the waters at Les Célestins.

Royalty and celebrities have been flocking to this luxurious spa town on the edge of the Black Forest for centuries, drawn by its therapeutic waters and fine architecture. The old town spa district is home to the ruins of ancient Roman baths and the sumptuous 19th-century Friedrichsbad bathhouse. On the opposite bank of the Oos River, the new spa district—built during the Belle Epoque—houses the Kurhaus (bathhouse), Trinkhalle (pump room), casino, and theater.

Lining both banks of the River Lahn (a tributary of the Rhine River), the spa quarter in Bad Ems is wedged between the steep wooded slopes of the Lahn Valley—follow the walking trails up to the city’s scenic overlooks to take in its Baroque and Renaissance Revival architecture. Highlights of this storied Weltbad (spa resort) include the impressive Kurhaus and pump room at the quarter’s center, and the Kursaal (entertainment hall), casino, and theater strung like pearls along the river.

Architecture buffs delight at the wonderland mix of neo-classical, Renaissance, baroque revival, Biedermeier, and art nouveau elements that make up the spa quarter in Bad Kissingen. Much of the area was built (or restyled) by architect Max Littmann in the early 20th century, including the massive Wandelhalle (Grand Foyer), Brunnenhalle (Pump Room), and magnificent Regentenbau (Concert Hall). The dazzling Luitpoldbad was the largest bathhouse in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century.

Mariánské Láznĕ became a premier retreat for the European aristocracy in the 1800s. Royalty, politicians, and intellectuals were drawn by the temperate microclimate, rolling hills of West Bohemia, and vast spa complex set around the mineral springs where they could “take the cure” not far from Prague. Enjoy a day trip to this genteel spa town, part of the West Bohemian Spa Triangle, to marvel at the Renaissance and baroque revival bathhouses, pavilions, colonnades, Kursaal, and theater.

Set just northeast of Mariánské Lázně (and often combined in a single day trip from Prague), Karlovy Vary is arguably the Czech Republic’s most magnificent spa town and was the gathering place for European royalty and high society for centuries. A favorite of the King of Bohemia Charles IV—for whom the town is named—this crown jewel of the West Bohemian Spa Triangle has thermal spring water and is the home to a geyser that spurts hot water more than 40 feet (13 meters) into the air.

Baden bei Wien was once the Spa of Emperors—a nickname that it still retains to this day. The spa district is a treasure trove of 19th-century Biedermeier architecture and art deco buildings from the early 20th century, and visitors come here each year to bathe in the sulfur-rich thermal and cold springs. Stroll along the avenues of the Kurpark, considered one of the most beautiful gardens in Austria, and admire the historic Kurhaus, Trinkhalle, Sommerarena (concert hall), and music pavilion.