Adler Spa Resort Thermae

Of all the things for which Tuscany is famous, thermal baths rank somewhere in the double digits. If anything, though, that’s a testament to how rich with attractions this famous region is — anywhere else in the world a place like the ancient springs at Bagno Vignoni would be the main event.

Just up the road, in the stunning Val d’Orcia national park, the Hotel Adler Thermae is built on an old quarry with access to the same geothermic waters. The hotel is a contemporary re-imagining of a Tuscan villa, its exteriors in the familiar traditional style, surrounded by gardens and thermal pools, and the interiors tastefully contemporary — recognizably Tuscan-country style, but open and breezy, light on antiques and heavy on natural sunlight, streaming in through the terrace’s French doors. Bathrooms are particularly luxurious, with smart free-standing tubs and top-quality in-house bath products.

The rooms and suites may be spacious and handsome, but the Adler Thermae spa is where the real action is. Facilities are sprawling, with several different thermal baths as well as saunas, mud baths and a salt-water grotto. Massages are available on dry land, and the well-equipped fitness center offers everything from circuit training to yoga and pilates.

Nobody visiting Tuscany goes hungry. The Hotel Adler Thermae’s restaurant serves a fine traditional cuisine in a glass-roofed piazzetta, under the night sky. There’s plenty to do in the surrounding area, if you’re intent on staying mobile, but between the spa, the restaurant and the cocktail bar it’s more than a little tempting to just stay in.