The abandoned Schwarzwaldklinik Bad Rippoldsau was once one of the largest rehabilitation and spa clinics in the region. Built in 1977, the complex covered about 30,000 square meters across four buildings, with around 200 single rooms, nearly 40 double rooms, staff accommodation, and a public thermal bath and sauna. It was widely promoted in advertising films and TV marketing programs in the 1990s.
In February 1998, a major fire destroyed large parts of the treatment area, forcing the evacuation of 140 patients and shutting operations for over a year. The clinic fully reopened in 1999 and was later recognized as a model clinic for nutritional medicine. Financial problems followed: the first insolvency came in 2007, and although an investor briefly rescued it, a second insolvency in 2011 led to permanent closure, costing about 100 employees their jobs.
A Chinese investor bought the property in 2015 and planned a €60 million luxury health hotel redevelopment, but renovation works were never completed. Much of the inventory was auctioned off in 2017, while remaining assets were left to decay. A resale attempt was initiated in 2019, but the final outcome remains unclear.
