[8]The name of the town literally means iron-water-place, as the mineral waters springing from the earth in Zheleznovodsk were believed to have high content of iron.

Zheleznovodsk is situated in the saddle between Mounts Beshtau and Zheleznaya, in what the locals refer to as aerodynamic tube, which attracts strong winds in the winter.

[4] Zheleznovodsk, along with Pyatigorsk, Yessentuki, Kislovodsk, and Mineralnye Vody, is a part of the Caucasian Mineral Waters, a renowned Russian spa resort.

The town economy revolves around sanatoria, where dozens of thousands of people from all over Russia and former Soviet republics come year-around to vacation and rest, as well as prevent and treat stomach, kidney, and liver diseases.

Dozens of spas operate in Russia's Caucasus Mountains region, exploiting the mineral springs in the area; colonic treatment is a specialty.