Hotéis perto de Chiesa di Santa Maria Maddalena, Saturnia

If you search TripAdvisor for Saturnia, you will see several different ”properties”. And that's because there are. I would have thought that there were these hot springs with a resort built around it, but that is sort of the case and sort of not. In reality, the Saturnia hot springs have THREE different ”properties” all somewhat connected and all somewhat (confusingly) distinct. Here is my guide to them: PROPERTIES - 1. Saturnia Tuscany Hotel Resort 2. Saturnia Parco Thermal 3. Saturnal Thermal Springs PRICING - 1. Saturnia Tuscany Hotel Resort - pricey 2. Saturnia Parco Thermal - middle market 3. Saturnal Thermal Springs - FREE POOLS 1. Saturnia Tuscany Hotel Resort - Big swimming pool fed by original spring, with a natural (small rocks) bottom. Protected seating area around it. 2. Saturnia Parco Thermal - Multiple pools including an indoor one and one for children as well as a saune. All outdoors with no real protected seating. 3. Saturnal Thermal Springs - The Insta-iconic original. A public beach like place. Shallow, rocky and crowded. The Resort and the Parco are physically connected to each other and share a spa (with very weak massage treatments...no pressure, just slathering oil on you), but they are different commercial entities. So if you want a day in the ”thermal” (well, tepid) pools with ”magic algae”, then you have two choose between a package by one of these two different (but connected properties). Neither of these places are that near to the original and famous springs themselves (those are about a half mile drive down the road). In short, we don't regret visiting Saturnia. It was a good excuse and base from which to visit a bunch of lovely surrounding Tuscany sites (Pitigliano, Sovana, Montemerano), and we enjoyed playing a round of golf amidst the Tuscany countryside scenery (and the course is dog-friendly, so they get bonus points for that). But if you want to make a trip for some hot springs in Europe, Iceland and the Azores are miles better.

The place is upscale, no doubts. But that's why you expect a lot from it, especially when you are paying over $400 for a night. And the feeling when you walk out of the front door after 3 days that could have been in paradise is disappointing. Starting with the hard time you have to reach the resort at night, with no proper and adequately lighted signs on the small hillside roads (my navigation stopped working several times due to lack of signal), and a semi-dark fenced gate where you must find a barely visible ring to request access, except that we drove off because we had the impression the place was closed. Then the room: the size of a Manhattan hotel room worth less than $200. Tiny, with no place to even open your luggage and not a shelf in the bathroom to put your beauty case (my wife was very unhappy...). And finally the Restaurant: totally inadequate for such a presumptuous place. A lot of fancy dish names, but no substance at all. We ordered a Tuscany lentil soup that tasted like lentils straight out of a can without any seasoning. Had to flood it with parmesan to get a slight sense of taste. The tagliata was equally tasteless and far from the great Tuscany tradition of superb beef meat. Deserts mediocre and totally forgettable. As for the positives: breakfast is rich and attractive, with handy fruit/vegetable centrifuges to make by yourself delicious juices to start your day on the right foot, and plenty of other offers, mostly healthy and tasty. But the pools are the real attraction, or better, the spring water is the real attraction. The pools are pools: maybe you would expect something more ”nature-shaped” rather than a large rectangular standard pool, but the water itself is quite attractive, warm and soothing. It's fun to locate the bubbling spots and spend time there, letting the bubbles tickle your body while you float with the help of long styrofoam sausages. It smells like sulphur but not overwhelmingly. The personnel is generally courteous and respectful. And most importantly, people seem to adapt to the rule of silence and even if the pool gets somewhat crowded at times, you are rarely disturbed by noisy or chatty guests. Overall a mixed experience, but certainly not up to the expectations for the price.