A New Year’s Eve dip in Saturnia’s Hot Springs
There’s a tradition in the Tuscan Maremma. It sees the bravest and, I think, most romantic Maremmani head for Saturnia’s Cascate del Mulino for a New Year’s Eve midnight dip.
I know, I know, it’s winter and swimming, outside, at night mightn’t sound like the most appealing thing to do, but this ain’t no ordinary swimming hole.
The Cascate del Mulino are one of the most evocative and popular hot spring destinations in Italy, if not Europe.
Thousands of tourists descend on Saturnia in the Tuscan Maremma every year just for the chance to relax in the steaming hot waters while admiring the stunning countryside around them.
The hot springs are fed by an underground source that comes all the way from Monte Amiata. No matter what season you visit, the water is a constant and toasty 37°C and flows down three gentle waterfalls into mini pools carved into the travertine rock below.
The effect is startling. During the day, the hot springs have an oasitic quality about them. Hidden behind an old 18th century mill (Cascate del Mulino literally means Waterfalls of the Mill), the springs are immersed in the Tuscan macchia.
There’s not a house or road in sight, so you really do feel as if you’re taking the most luxurious bath in the most luxurious setting you could possibly imagine!
But at night, the entire scene is transformed. The springs are blanketed in a cloud of steam and the shadowy countryside takes on an enchanting atmosphere.
In the winter, the experience is intoxicating.
Once you get over the initial shock of taking your gear off in the cool night air, the combination of blissfully warm water, scene-stealing steam and the relaxing sounds of the Tuscan countryside at night will leave you speechless.
But enough poetics. You can visit the Cascate del Mulino any day or night of the year for free. But there is one night that trumps all others, and that’s New Year’s Eve.
If you’re worried about elbowing people for space in the pools as the clock chimes 12, don’t. Saturnia’s hot springs are actually pleasantly deserted in winter, especially at night.
It’s tradition to take a dip in the Cascate del Mulino on New Year’s Eve, but most Maremmani take advantage of the fact that they live within minutes of the springs and prefer to visit when the weather’s warmer.
So while you’d struggle to find space on a summer’s evening, on New Year’s Eve, the hot springs promise privacy and pure, paradisaical peace and quiet!
And as the new year begins, you can recline back into the pools and watch the fireworks light up the sky in Manciano, Saturnia and Montemerano, perhaps with a glass of champagne ready in hand. Magnificent.
I’ll admit, it’s hard to top. Especially if you consider the therapeutic and just plain vanity-driven benefits of Saturnia’s hot springs.
Yep, it might sound too good to be true, but Cascate del Mulino are said to have been curing minor respiratory, muscular, cardiovascular and dermatological ailments since the time of the Roman Empire.
And the water is a natural exfoliant, so you’ll be starting 2012 with perfect skin!
Honestly, what more could you ask for?
Saturnia’s Cascate del Mulino are on the Strada Provinciale Follonata/SP10 in the Tuscan Maremma. Look for the signs to your left before you enter Saturnia and park your car either in front of the springs or safely on the side of the road.
Buon Anno from all us in the Tuscan Maremma!
