Thermal waters in Italy

In this field Italy has taken up and developed a practice which has been widespread through-out the peninsula since the time of the Romans, when thermal waters and baths were already a typical feature of town life. Interest in the Italian spas is not exclusively for health care reasons. Their proximity to great centers of art makes the spa resorts excellent bases for cultural excursions. In addition the splendid parks surrounding the most famous spas, and the infrastructure which has been created for leisure activities, make them ideal holiday resorts in their own right. Italian thermal spas are not only those which exploit hot water resources (as the literal meaning of the word "thermal" might suggest) since mineral water springs are now also generally included in this category.