Terme di Gambassi

Terme di Gambassi, which presents itself as Le Terme della Via Francigena, stands in Gambassi Terme in the province of Florence. Its water is the Acqua Salsa di Pillo, from a spring in the valley floor of the Rio Sanguigno in the Pillo locality; the operator describes four outflows marked by gas vents, historically collected into a single rectangular tank of more than 7,000 litres. The site states that the source is thought to have been known to the Etruscans, that in 1861 it belonged to the marquis Ludovico Incontri of Florence, and that it was nicknamed the Montecatini of the poor for the crowds it drew despite having no facilities at all; the first documents confirming curative use date from the early 1900s.

The operator classifies the water as salso-bromoiodica, rich in mineral salts, chloride, bicarbonate, sulphate and magnesium with free carbonic acid, and calls it a hypothermal water of high mineralisation, suitable for respiratory and gastrointestinal conditions through inhalation and drinking therapies. From the catchment point it is pumped to the establishment through a 3.8 km distribution pipeline and arrives at a temperature of 15°C, which the site says makes it classifiable as a cold thermal water. The mineral-water concession for Pillo was granted in 1964 by the Province of Florence. The same page gives two different dates for the building itself: one passage says construction of the establishment dates to the period 1978-1980, while a passage further down says the establishment was born in 1974; the operator does not reconcile the two.

The centre offers thermal therapies (inhalations, drinking cures and micronised nasal douches) aimed at digestive and respiratory complaints, plus thermal baths for the skin, massages and beauty treatments, a pilgrim wellness programme tied to the Via Francigena, and a fitness area with multifunction equipment; the operator states the wellness centre was refurbished in 2023. The bathing circuit, called the Cammino del Benessere, contains an indoor thermal pool at 34° with hydromassage and a cervical waterfall, a grotto at 32° with pure thermal water, hydromassage and cervical waterfall, and an outdoor pool in the garden, together with a soft Finnish sauna and a Turkish bath with aromatherapy and chromotherapy, an ice waterfall, cooling showers, a Finnish bucket shower and indoor and outdoor relaxation zones.

Opening is daily 9.30 to 19.00; thermal cures run Monday to Friday 9.30 to 18.30. Admission to the wellness circuit is by time slot, on weekdays 9.30 to 19.00, and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays in a morning slot 9.30-14.00 and an afternoon slot 14.30-19.00. Booking is by e-mail request stating the date and desired slot.