Austro-Hungarian spas in Romania
ita engBăile Herculane is among the oldest and most popular spas in Romania. It reached the peak of its splendour in the second half of the 19th century, when the region was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The town's most iconic buildings date from this era, including the ‘Imperial Baths’ and the lovely railway station. There are also a number of Belle Epoque hotels, a former casino and some villas and gardens. However, most of these structures and Băile Herculane itself entered a phase of decline after the end of communism, so much so that some buildings are now uninhabitable or even unsafe.
In recent years, however, the town and its heritage are being revitalised, thanks to the influx of tourists and the efforts of civil society organisations such as the ‘Herculane Project’ - but also thanks to European funds. Since 2014, EU cohesion funds earmarked for tourism development have been used for projects with which the municipality carries out the resurfacing of some roads and bridges, renovates street furniture and fountains, and finances promotional campaigns to further increase arrivals. Over the past decade, the Municipality of Băile Herculane has thus managed investments worth the equivalent of almost 12 million euros.
This content is published in the context of the ‘Cohesion4Climate’ project co-funded by the European Union. The EU is in no way responsible for the information or views expressed within the framework of the project; responsibility for the content lies solely with OBCT.
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