Many faces of Švýcarský dvůr
In 1835, a one-story half-timbered house with a saddle roof stood on the site of today's Green House. The building on the then Pragerstrasse was called the Säuerling Haus (acidulous water house). 15 years later, the house was not half-timbered anymore and, in addition to the construction work, its name changed to Schweitzer Hof, not Schweizer Hof as would result from the name Švýcarský dvůr (Swiss Court). What does one extra “t” mean? It is probably connected with livestock raising, because the German “schweitzen” means “to milk”.
As time went by, the Tschamerhöhl and Minerva villas were built here, a café with a music podium, and other smaller buildings. In 1944, the entire area except Minerva was purchased by Karl Selinger. During the war, the Švýcarský dvůr was a reserve military hospital for the SS, later occupied by the Red Army. After the war, it was in a terrible state and was confiscated by a Beneš decree.
Sanssouci with a seaside atmosphere
The Sanssouci Hotel was created as the first spa hotel in the entire spa triangle, after a 58-year pause. The last one before it was the Hotel Imperial built in 1912.
The contract for its construction was signed on June 2nd, 1968, and the ground works were initiated in October of the same year. The hotel, evoking a seaside resort with a spacious balcony and a beautiful view of the Teplá River valley from every room, opened on May 29th, 1970.
The construction did not take long for the time, only 18 months. The study was prepared by Arch. Ing. Jiří Martínek from Zdravoprojekt Praha, and the project itself was then a work of the Yugoslavian architects Bogdan Čosič and Milena Janičeová. It was built by a Yugoslavian company 7. Juli Beograd. It is interesting that the team of subcontractors participating in the construction was truly international: Ten from Yugoslavia, three from the then ČSSR, two from Austria, and one from West Germany. The total construction costs were approximately two million dollars. The built-up area was 1,530 m². All the floors together covered an area of 14,045 m².
The new facility had a 185-bed capacity - 101 single rooms, 30 double rooms, and 12 suites. The dining room seated 320 guests, and there were facilities for about 100 employees.
Since 1999, the complex has been owned by the Imperial Karlovy Vary Company, and since April 15th, 2009, it has formed an integral part of the Spa Resort Sanssouci.
Švýcarský dvůr today
Švýcarský dvůr gained its present appearance gradually; it was built in two phases. The first part was built in 1950, and originally accommodated the spa personnel. Švýcarský dvůr belonged to the state; it was a part of the Imperial Spa Sanatorium. The additional construction and the gala opening took place on October 10th, 1969. In November of the same year, it opened its doors to patients.
The Švýcarský dvůr Spa Sanatorium became a part of the Imperial Karlovy Vary joint stock company on June 30th, 2000. Since April 15th, 2009, it has been an integral part of the Spa Resort Sanssouci.
