'Looking out over the Siena Hills, Fonteverde Natural Spa Resort has the kind of setting that can lift your spirits just by lapping up the views. Nudging the tiny village of San Casciano dei Bagni – all tiny alleys wrapped around a Tuscan hilltop – it gazes out over a tapestry of cypress trees, vineyards and distant hills.
The vista from its sprawling terrace is more than matched by what goes on inside. This former Medici residence (a favourite haunt of Grand Duke Ferdinando in the 17th century) is now an ultra-swish resort dedicated to five-star spa living, and you’ll almost certainly leave in better shape than you arrived. Guests come here for a top-to-bottom bio-energetic check-up or – as we did – for some full-on pampering.
Fonteverde Natural Spa Resort doesn’t do things by halves. Our side-by-side aromatherapy massage left us blissed out and ready to try some of the seven (there’s even one reserved for visiting pooches) spa pools. After being pummelled by water jets in the indoor/outdoor spa water pool and getting a drenching beneath the waterfall of another, we decided you can’t beat watching the sun go down from the deliciously hot waters of the fabulous terrace infinity pool as the Tuscan skies darkened above.
Dinner is a dressy affair complete with liveried waiters, but unwinding is the order of the day and it’s fine to turn up for breakfast in your fluffy towelling gown. Rooms are luxurious and smartly coordinated, while the goodies arrayed in our marble bathroom even included a thermal mud masque to try. There are a couple of fabulous terrace suites here for some serious splashing out, Fonteverde style.'
