After a busy day in Pisa and Lucca, we rushed back to our home base in Montecatini to visit the local spa, Terme Tettuccio before it closed for the evening. Terme Tettuccio isn’t your typical spa, the main treatment is drinking (yes, drinking) thermal spring water. While they also offer the more typical spa enjoyments, their most popular treatment is the spring water from beneath Montecatini  which was known even in Roman times to have special therapeutic properties to treat many ails such as constipation, diabetes, high cholesterol, intestinal diseases and more!

We arrived at the massive romanesque building and couldn’t resist the opportunity to have a photo shoot out front! When we finally entered, we paid our 6 euro admission and received our drinking cups. We immediately found ourselves in a courtyard with small drinking fountains lining one side. There were faucets flowing to fill our cups and many people sitting around enjoying the day. We filled our cups and sat at a small round table to begin our tasting!

Together we cheers to our trip and our friendship then all took a big gulp! Big mistake, it tasted awful! Turns out the therapeutic properties come from the extra chloride, sulphate and sodium that naturally enriches the water. While it may be good for you physically, the taste definitely leaves something to be desired…

With some hesitation, we refilled our cups and set off to explore the grounds. The grounds were even bigger than we realized. We found an outdoor double staircase with a fountain underneath, statues, and more Roman style buildings. We ended our time near the entrance at a gorgeous fountain surrounded by pillars. Cups in hand we tried to get the perfect jumping photo, needless to say we succeeded.

While the water wasn’t delicious, this stop was still one of the highlights from the trip. The grounds were extensive and exquisite. The drinking experience was absolutely hilarious and became my favorite story from our week in Tuscany. If you find yourself near Montecatini its definitely worth the trip!