A pure and preserved nature | Contrexéville Tourism

The commune of Contrexéville carries out many actions in favor of sustainable development as evidenced by the obtaining of the labels below:

Contrexéville strives to offer everyone a harmonious life and to guarantee a preserved city for future generations.

It is one of the 600 communes labeled Green Stations, the 1st ecotourism label in France.

The Green Station Spirit is tourism with a human face, proximity, weaving links between nature, the land and Man.

Positive Energy Territoryfor Green Growth

Common healthy land without pesticidesawarded by the Ministry of the Environment

Commune Nature zero pesticide approach (3 dragonflies)awarded by the Grand-Est Region

Ville Nature (2 dragonflies)awarded by the French Agency for Biodiversity

Green Stationthe 1st ecotourism label in France

Flower City Sign Visual 3flowers 700x257

Cities and villages in bloom3 flowers

Its water

A gift of nature

In the heart of the Vosges Plain, the water of Contrexéville, protected by impermeable layers of clay and marl, has the remarkable characteristic of containing both calcium and magnesium sulfate elements.

This mineral water actively participates in the elimination of kidney lithiasis or fragments after lithotripsy. Through its richness in minerals, it also contributes to covering the recommended daily intake of calcium and magnesium.

Healthy water begins with healthy soil…

This is the maxim of Agrivair, which has been working to protect the Vosges subsoils and springs since 1992. This approach in favor of the environment, unique in Europe, allows human activity and land protection to coexist.

All about the sources

Contrex is a natural mineral water rich in mineral salts. 1L of Contrex per day provides 58% of the recommended daily allowance of calcium and 24% of magnesium.

The therapeutic virtues of the waters have been recognized since 1760, thanks to the publication of a memorandum by Dr. Bagard, 1st physician to the Duke of Lorraine Stanislas Leszczynski.

The 3 springs of Contrexéville: La Pavillon, la Souveraine and la Châtillon-Lorraine are cold (11°C) and differ from each other by their different mineralization.

The Confrérie des Gousteurs d’Eaux inducts and rewards the faithful curists and personalities during a traditional ceremony at the Pavillon des Sources.

"The trouble with water is that it gets wet!"

Bourvil, curist at the Thermes de Contrexéville in 1956.

For the record...

The Cour d’Honneur marks the entrance to the Thermal Park, the access to which was once reserved for the curists and closed by gates: the gate and part of the gates are reinstalled at the entrance to the Castle of Dombrot-le-Sec.

On the right, the Thermal Gallery: inaugurated in 1912, it is a covered gallery-promenade of 180 m long, for 8 m broad and high, in the Greco-Roman style, that we owe to the architect Charles Méwès. The theme of ceramics and mosaics, in shades of blue is now the joy of photographers, and has been taken up in the development of a traffic circle at the entrance to the city.

The marble plaque sealed at the entrance to the gallery is a message to all those who come to seek healing: “The pious and beneficent Stanislas, benefactor of his country, has put the curative waters of Contrexéville back into service, for the happiness of humanity.”

In the center of this gallery, the Rotunda is topped by a copper dome, where curists come to drink the water. Inside, the statue of the “Verseuses” soars gracefully to the top of the dome.

Did you know?

Springs are captured at the level of the park, under the feet of Contrexévillois at depths varying from 5 to 100 m. To protect this precious and fragile water table, a set of very strict measures has been put in place. The objective is to avoid the infiltration of pollutants. Thus, in an area of 11,000 ha around the water table, the spreading of herbicides and pesticides is prohibited. To replace them, the technique of burning weeds is used. Insects and animal pests are eliminated thanks to their natural enemies: ladybugs in the case of aphids, birds of prey for rodents etc.