The Spas
THE SPA "TERME ELBANE"
The spas in San Giovanni, facing the bay in Portoferraio, cover an area of 5 hectares of marsh lands. The marshes supply mud that is extremely therapeutical, so much so that this modern spa resort is the largest thalasso therapeutic center in the western Mediterranean.
The Romans, who after the Ligurians and the Etruscans ruled over the Island of Elba for centuries, were among the first to understand just how relaxing and healing the thermal waters could be. In the past, the existence of public baths, where both men and women could use the baths and saunas at different times, was a clear sign of Roman presence. Portoferraio, the Roman Fabricia, gained in merit above all during the Augustinian era at a time when important and powerful people from Rome built their villas here, and where the emperor's family and the court went to when they wanted to relax, but also where the Emperor also frequently banished all those he considered undesirable. Even to this day, the remains of the large villas can be found on the promontory of the Grottos and in Linguella, the most extreme point of the Medicean port, where the octagonal Matello tower rises, once the antique prison baths.
The spa park has a special appeal. Here, you can enjoy both therapeutic treatments and complete relaxation. An area where nature is completely pollution free, where sounds, colours, scents and the air itself combine to become a true elixir for anyone who wishes to restore their mind, spirit and body. If you are willing to wait, you might also see herons and sea ravens land on the surface of the sea and watch as gray herons plunge into the lagoon so rich in plankton in their search for food.
