TUSCAN SPA TOWNS
The ancient Romans - and the Etruscans before them - discovered the benefit of soaking and bathing in the mineral-rich thermal waters of the hundreds of sources spread around volcanic Tuscany. Indeed, they coined the word SPA for the Latin words Salus Per Acquam or Health through Water. Modern-day Tuscans honor the tradition religiously in dozens of beautiful spa towns throughout the region. For elegance and a sedate ambience to rival Baden-Baden, the crowned heads and well-healed flock to Montecatini midway between Lucca and Florence. Nearby, in Monsummano, thermal bathing is combined with one of the most unique spa experiences anywhere - inhalation and heat treatments in the natural sauna of a stalagtite cave hundreds of feet underground. The Grotta Giusti was a favorite of Verdi and Garibaldi and today boasts a de luxe spa and hotel complex. Equally de luxe is the facilty at Saturnia in the southern area of Maremma. Nearby are the Cascate del Gorello where bathers soak in naturally-hewn limestone tubs through which crash the waterfalls of a thermal stream in a sort of natural jacuzzi! At San Casciano dei Bagni, a former Medici retreat has been converted into the magnificent state-of-the-art Fonteverde Spa and Hotel. For the best of both spa worlds, the Villa Undulna in Forte dei Marmi offer's Italy's only thermal sea water spa.
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