Inside Prague’s Beer Spa Scene: My Experience + 3 More Beer and Wine Bath Options
Inside Prague’s Beer Spa Scene: My Experience + 3 More Beer and Wine Bath Options
Prague is one of the few cities that has never lost its magic for me, even after a couple of decades removed from my first visit. I still remember arriving for the first time as a wide-eyed backpacker on Christmas Eve back in 2006. I had no plans, but that night, I made new friends and we ventured out to the Old Town to find ourselves in a Christmas market that looked straight from the movies. Families bundled up with under lights from the stalls, trdelník turning slowly over hot coals, and easily the biggest Christmas tree I’d ever seen. For the younger me, it was an unforgettable experience.
Since then, I’ve returned many times. Even as Prague’s popularity has grown, there’s still that old-world charm, especially when you slip away from the crowds and into the neighborhoods where people actually live. On this last trip, I stayed with a friend away from the city center. We caught up over wine and Vietnamese food, mostly away from tourist circuit.
But there was one thing here, in the center, I’ve had on my list for years. A beer spa.
I love a good bathing culture, if you know me, chasing hot springs from Noboribetsu in Japan to the Blue Lagoon in Iceland. But the idea of a wooden tub filled with hot beer always sounded so random, absurd, and almost too indulgent. So, right up my alley.
Soak in a warm bath infused with hops and brewer’s yeast, sip cold beer from your own tap, and pretend like this is some form of wellness. I booked us a session at Bernard Beer Spa, one of the city’s most well-known spots, and brought my friend along to see if it was just a tourist trap or something worth trying, even as a local.
What Exactly Is A Beer Spa?
If you’ve ever seen this on social media, you might think you’ll be soaking in a tub of beer. Not quite that literal. If you read carefully, you’ll find it’s more of a warm bath mixed with natural ingredients used in the beer brewing process, like hops, barley, and active brewer’s yeast.
It’s like using one of those fizzy bath bombs with a special brewer’s blend in a deep oak tub. The aromatic wood keeps the water warm and gives you that feeling like you’re bathing back in medieval times.
While you treat your skin with the good stuff, you’ll also be drinking it from your own private beer tap attached to the tub.
Each room is private and each tub is designed for one or two people. There are rooms with side by side tubs that can accommodate up to four people, if you want to visit with friends.
The lighting is low, the feel rustic, and after your soak, you can fall back on a straw-covered bed (full Medieval experience) for a post-bath cool down, letting the ingredients supposedly work its magic on your skin.
The History Behind Bathing In Beer
The experience is admittedly geared towards visitors, but the concept behind the medicinal benefits of a beer bath goes back over a thousand years. Beer, and its ingredients have long been valued for its medicinal properties, meant to be anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory.
Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans believed bathing in beer mixed with herbs and honey had healing properties. Monks, known for their brews, would soak towels with beer to cure various ailments.
The modern concept for a beer spa is a Czech innovation and the first beer spa, Spa Beerland Chateaux, opened in Prague in 1981. Since then, more have followed in the city and all over the world.
Whether or not you’re interested for the health benefits, a beer spa bath is nonetheless a unique experience, one that’s great for couples or groups of friends looking for an alternative activity.
How Much Does It Cost?
A typical 1 hour private beer spa session for two people sharing one tub will typically run around 3000 CZK or €125. Prices will vary slight depending on the hour of the day and if it’s a weekend. You might find a lower price for mornings and a higher price for evening slots.
If you’re looking to go solo, this is the best option I found and will offer a lower rate for 1 person at around under for around €80.
For couples and groups, I found the lowest prices at Bernard Beer Spa and the highest prices at Original Beer Spa.
Best Beer Spa Options in Prague and Why We Chose Bernard
There are a handful of beer spas in Prague, but their similar names make it a bit confusing to sort out at first. Ultimately, they’re all very similar. Took me a while to figure out the small differences and make a decision, but here’s my take.
Beer Spa Beerland
Spa Beerland was the original and first beer spa to open in Prague and also the largest of the beer spa companies. They have two locations in Prague, as well as beer spas in Carlsbad, Marienbad, Pilsen, and Franzenbad.
The New Town location, near Náměstí Republiky and the Palladium shopping centre, is their largest and most modern spa. It’s housed in a restored cellar.
The Old Town Chateaux location is in the basement of a historic 17th century house at the Golden Pear hotel. There are three different spa rooms that can accommodate up to 8 people in 4 baths. You can also rent out all three rooms for up to 16 people.
At Spa Beerland, you get both unlimited light and dark Krušovice beer on tap along with some homemade beer bread.
Note: Both locations have the straw beds and fireplace, but honestly, you’re not paying to lay on a straw bed. I’ll explain more below.
Conclusion: They are the original, but also seem like the most commercial. I liked how the Old Town rooms looked, but location was a bit further away.
Original Beer Spa
This one confused me a bit because the name has the word Original, but they’re not the original. There are two standalone locations and one that is part of the Michaelangelo Grand Hotel.
Prices were more or less the same across the locations, but overall they were the most expensive option amongst the beer spas. There’s a room with a sauna at the Zitna location, but for the additional cost, I’d just go to a separate sauna and not cut into my bathing or drinking time.
At Original Beer Spa, you get both unlimited light and dark Krušovice beer on tap along with some homemade beer bread.
Conclusion: I didn’t see anything that justified the higher prices, other than that they branded the word Original into their name.
Bernard Beer Spa
This was the one we went with. There are four location, so make sure you’re booking at the right location. I’ve linked them below.
- Majestic Plaza Hotel (map location)
- Spa Carolline Hotel (map location)
- Hotel Metamorphis (map location)
- Hotel Prague Centre Plaza (map location)
We went for the Majestic Plaza location since it was closest to a great Georgian restaurant we were heading to afterwards.
Honestly, Bernard looked like the other places as far as the rooms and tubs, so the prices and massage option were notable factors.
I was influenced by the lower price and the option with a 20 minute massage. They also had traditional Czech snacks you can order while you’re there to go with the beer. My friend insisted we had to do the pickled cheese, a local favorite that’s perfect with a cold beer.
Unlike the other places, Bernard did not have a straw bed, just a normal one. I wondered if I would be missing out on the full experience, but an hour goes by quickly, and we didn’t even get out of the tub.
Conclusion: We ultimately chose Bernard because it looked smaller and more intimate, offered a massage add-on and snacking options. All the beer spa places in Prague more or less looked the same, so we just wanted something a little less commercial.
At Bernard Beer Spa, they also serve their own beer. Coincidentally, I had tried and really liked a bottle of Bernard alcohol-free cherry beer the first day I arrived on this trip. Maybe that left a lasting impression. Maybe it was the pickled cheese.
After we finished, they sent us off with a couple of bottles of our choice. We chose one of their dark beers and of course another bottle of the cherry beer.
Bonus: Prague Wine Bath Experience at Letna or Lazne
I should also mention Letna since they offer a beer and wine spa bath. So if beer is not your thing, or you want to try a wine bath instead, this could be an option. They use metal tubs instead of wood ones, which may or may not be a dealbreaker for you.
There’s also a salt cave lounge where you can sit and relax, kind of like the ones you find in a Korean Jjimjilbang spa.
Their prices are quite good, especially if you happen to find a discounted rate.
Lazne also offers a wine spa option, but they also have the straw beds and you’ll find the more rustic wood tubs that I prefer.
Both are located on the north side of the Vltava River.
The Beer Spa Experience and Was It Worth It?
Checking in was straight forward. You should plan to arrive 15 minutes early as recommended. You’re offered a drink while the room is prepared, but I was no hurry knowing the free-flowing tap was available tub-side.
We were led down a brick-lined hallway past rooms that smelled like warm bread and toasted grain to a changing room. You can bath in the nude or with a bathing suit. My recommendation is to do the bathing suit.
Our room had one large oak tub that was freshly filled with steaming water. In the middle was a wooden plank, with our pickled cheese, bread, beer mugs, and a basket filled with the barley, hops, and yeast concoction. Before we got in, this was mixed with the hot water and it instantly started to foam and froth like you’d expect from a yeasty bath. Not that I’ve ever taken one.
More importantly, a polished Bernard beer tap was mounted beside the tub. After giving us some basic instructions, we were left to enjoy the hour as we wished. She recommended 30-40 minutes in the bath and then drying off and relaxing on the bed for the duration of the hour.
As soon as we stepped into the bath, I knew I made the right choice to finally check the beer spa thing off my bucket list.
Good food, good beer, and good company – all while bathing. Just some of my favorite things.
An Hour Of Soaking And Drinking
We had the room to ourselves, and everything felt clean and calm, albeit a little more romantic than I expected. I tried to pour us both a beer and failed miserably as I ended with half a glass that was all foam. Embarrassingly, I buzzed for help and the hostess was glad to show us the proper way of using one of these taps. It was not as straightforward as I was used to, so don’t be shy and ask for help.
The water was hot but like what you’d expect in a jacuzzi. The bath itself felt more like steeping in tea than beer, except for the unmistakable aroma of hops and the barley bits floating in the water, giving it a slightly herbal scent.
I usually like my baths warmer, but at the typical 104°F, it would have been too hot to stay for more than 15-20 minutes. I would appreciate the lower temperature since we ended up spending more or less the entire hour comfortably chatting away in the bath.
We never used the bed. I feel like we might have considered jumping on a straw bed for a couple of minutes, but the time was better spent in the tub drinking and eating.
Only Beer Spa In Prague With A Massage
There would also be time to relax during our massage, so we soaked until we were basically pruning before drying off and moving to the other room for the massage.
The massage itself was only 20 minutes, but it was nice to ‘cool off’ and get some of the knots in my shoulders worked out while it was already warm.
Ultimately, the novelty of drinking a cold beer while soaking in hot beer ingredients was just that – novelty. Manage your expectations. For us, it was a nice hour doing something different on a Monday evening. My friend, who had never even considered trying something like this despite living in Prague, admitted it was more fun than expected, but a bit expensive from a local’s perspective.
So, is it worth it? As a one-time experience while you’re in Prague, why not. It’s not cheap, but it’s a memorable experience to bring back home. We had a few beers each and left relaxed, laughing about the experience, with our skin feeling smoother.
Is a Beer Spa Good or Bad for Your Skin?
The beer spa concept claims that the brewer’s yeast and hops are full of vitamins and active enzymes that soften your skin, reduce stress, and improve circulation. I can’t confirm the science, but my skin did feel soft afterward, and I didn’t leave smelling like beer.
The water has an earthy scent, like if you were steaming herbs. You feel the yeast and foam on you, but it rinses off cleanly. We took a full shower afterwards, and there are shampoos and soap using some of the same beer spa ingredients, but its recommend to just rinse without soap, to get the full effect.
Would I go just for the skin benefits? Probably not. But as a novel experience and something different to do in Prague, it was worth doing, like the robotic bar, and even the Pilsner Urquell Experience, which were both positive surprises.
Updated on July 24, 2025
