Just a few years ago, at the final bus stop in the picturesque Bratislava forest park, there were only simple buffets and playgrounds. Very soon, the favorite recreation spot of the city residents will regain its resort zone status, lost during the socialist era. The large-scale restoration project of the historic Ferdinandových kúpeľov (Ferdinand's Baths) is planned to be completed by the end of [2026].
The history of this place began in 1821, when a spring with a high concentration of iron oxide, which colored the water and soil reddish, was discovered in the valley of the Vydrica stream. Within a few years, popular baths of the Austrian monarch Ferdinand V were built here, which later turned into an elite country club for visitors from Vienna and Budapest. However, in the 1970s, the Soviet authorities declared the complexes “obsolete,” completely leveling them to the ground and turning the area into an ordinary forest park.
The return of historical justice began in 2021, when entrepreneur and politician Alois Glina took on the ambitious project. Since no original buildings remained, new structures are being built as detailed stylizations based on historical drawings, using natural wood, stone, and copper.
What exactly will appear on the complex territory
Despite initial environmentalists’ concerns about interference in the protection zone of the Little Carpathians, construction was approved and is now in the final stage. Among the key objects of the restored area are:
- Main building and restaurant: besides gastronomic spaces, the basement floor includes public toilets, which were critically lacking in this part of the forest park.
- Labutí pavilón (Swan Pavilion): an exact copy of the historic 1905 building, which will house the “temple of books” — a cozy bookstore and café with a reading room.
- Conceptual spaces for relaxation: instead of traditional healing procedures of the last century, the focus is on an atmosphere of calm, restoring connection with nature, and special zones for stress relief.
As the project developers noted in comments for Bratislavský Večerník, the roofs with copper covering, wooden cornices, and facades on the buildings are already fully ready. Currently, work is mostly ongoing on the adjacent territories — paving of pedestrian paths, installation of lighting, and park landscaping are being completed.
Thanks to convenient public transport (MHD) access, the location can be easily reached from any district of the Slovak capital. It is expected that the new public space will be fully operational in the coming months, combining history, ecology, and modern urban recreation.
