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Date:
27 Sept 2025
Karlovy Vary: Seeking a balance between glamour and reality
Karlovy Vary is a city of two faces. The first is the glamour of the spas, UNESCO heritage, and the film festival. The second is the everyday reality of the locals, which often bears little resemblance to a fairy tale. We have decided to implement two interconnected projects in the region under the working title "In the Castle and the Courtyard." While the first opens doors to the world through residential stays, the second, in collaboration with the KultiVary association, helps to address the real problems of people in the region.
Karlovy Vary is a city that the whole world associates with natural beauty, healing springs, and luxury. Since 2021, it has also been – together with Františkovy and Mariánské Lázně – listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site as part of the collection of Famous Spa Towns of Europe. Every year, guests from all corners of the world come here for the famous International Film Festival (MFFKV).
However, beneath this tourist facade live people whose reality is often very different. Research, in-depth interviews with local residents, and consultations with experts repeatedly confirm that the social situation in the region is concerning and requires systematic support. That is why we are coming up with the concept of two projects that connect both of these worlds.
We are opening the doors to the world
The first part of our intention focuses on openness and the contribution of new energy from the outside. The Martina Dryk Foundation plans to purchase an apartment near the centre of Karlovy Vary's happenings, which will serve as a residential space primarily intended for exchange stays of foreign students, artists, and other guests. We aim to create a dignified environment for talents who can enrich the region.
Support for social cohesion
The second part, from our perspective very important, is aimed directly at the needs of the locals. We have established intense cooperation with the KultiVary association. Members of this association have been working for the local community for five years and have the full trust of NFMD. After a series of meetings, they developed a pilot project that maps the situation in the region and proposes specific solutions to mitigate socio-economic inequalities.
This project, which has been implemented since January 2026, exactly corresponds to our vision. With its funding, we aim to achieve an important change – to enable young members of the association to professionalise their work. What they have been doing for years practically on a voluntary basis and during their free time will now become their main activity. If there is mutual interest, we would be happy to facilitate cooperation in the future with the Ústí-based association Hraničář.
However, our activities in the region do not end with social cohesion. Given the statistics that show higher morbidity rates among children not only in the spa town itself but also in the entire region, we want to initiate cooperation with local paediatricians. The goal is to seek ways to improve the situation and to support the healthy development of children in the "under-castle".