Where can you find the 'spa of lumberjacks' in Slovakia?

Brusno was a closer and cheaper alternative to Karlovy Vary.

In this postcard from 1963, we see the original buildings with wooden facades, typical for bath and hotel buildings in mountainous areas.In this postcard from 1963, we see the original buildings with wooden facades, typical for bath and hotel buildings in mountainous areas.

Locals have known of the springs for thousands of years and used them. In the course of their work, lumberjacks, miners and charcoal-burners walked along the Brusnianka brook with its healing springs. They certainly drank water from them, and bathed in them.

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The first documented mention of the springs is from 1818 in a parish chronicle, and the first bathhouse started to be built in 1834. Guests used it until 1859 when it burnt down. However, it was quickly repaired – in 1861 - and more buildings were added.

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The heyday of the the Brusno spa occurred during the first Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) when the three one-story buildings with 150 rooms used to be full. A large number of the guests were Hungarian businessmen and officials with their families. Brusno was a closer and cheaper alternative to Karlovy Vary, in what is now Czechia. The waters of the two spas share a similar chemical composition, and therefore used to treat similar ailments.

The spa was in bad condition after WWII, which a fire made even worse in 1947. In order to restore the buildings, Podbrezovské železiarne (at that time the Central Slovak Iron and Steel Works) became the new owner, but a year later the process of communist nationalization began and the spa fell under the ownership of the state.

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In 1975 construction began on Poľana Medical House, with 200 beds, but it didn't start operation until 1985. Use of the older buildings ended in 1986.

In this postcard from 1963, we see the original buildings with wooden facades, typical for bath and hotel buildings in mountainous areas.


This article was originally published by The Slovak Spectator on November 17, 2014. It has been updated to be relevant today.

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