If you are dreaming of a few days of relaxation in Italy, here's how to organize your stay in Abano Terme, a spa town in the Euganean Hills.
Abano Terme is one of the best known spa resorts in Italy and Europe and is the perfect destination for relax body and mind.
Where is Abano Terme
Furthermore, it is immersed in the area of Euganean Hills in the province of Padova, where the protagonists are nature and relaxation.
Not only that, the town is crossed by a long pedestrian area full of shops, gardens and ancient buildings.
Finally, thanks to the nearby station of Abano, you can easily and quickly reach the nearby Padua and Venezia.
When to go
Most people who go to Abano for spa treatments recommend spring e autunno to enjoy the pleasant climate and be able to freely use the outdoor thermal pools.
However, I have chosen the Christmas period to visit it and the atmosphere is unique: the city is filled with lights, music and events. The buildings and gardens are illuminated and decorated to give an unmistakable backdrop to those strolling in the pedestrian areas.
Surely you will find low temperatures but imagine to wrap yourself up to go out and find, upon your return to the hotel, thehot water from the pools and heat of the sauna that will make you forget the hours spent outside.
Why Abano Terme
I chose this destination for a desire for well-being, a desire to disconnect from the daily commitments of work and family and not for spa treatments, so what I will describe will not include muds, inhalations and all the treatment paths that hotels offer in their packages.
I divided my journey into days, to be able to fully experience a period of 5 days in Abano Terme not giving up either relaxation or culture and leisure.
Day 1. Relax in the pool
If you arrive in the afternoon there is only one thing to do: run to the room, throw away suitcases and bags, opening them only to take swimsuit, slippers, bonnet and bathrobe and immediately run into thewellness area of the hotel where you have decided to stay.
Curiosity must be removed immediately. Almost all hotels with a wellness program have an indoor and outdoor swimming pool, strictly heated and with whirlpool, showers, sauna and Turkish bath.
If the evening has already fallen you have to try the outdoor swimming pool. Before getting your hair wet, go outside and, while swimming, you will experience a unique sensation of warmth that will protect you from the winter cold.
The soft lights and the relaxing music do the rest to enjoy the first exciting evening in Abano Terme.
Day 2. Heated spa and city tour
You have tried the swimming pool at night, now it's time to try the spa heated by the rays of the morning sun. A couple of hours of relaxation, a shower and off to lunch.
We have chosen the full board, is the treatment that most visitors choose: it is comfortable, allows you to fully enjoy all the hotel services and leaves the right time for city trips and excursions.
If you decide to spend the whole day out, the restaurant will give you the possibility to choose a packed lunch.
In the afternoon of the second day I recommend the visit of the town of Abano Terme. As I told you, during the Christmas period the city is colored and lights up, filling up with tourists and with afternoon and evening events, for children and adults. But it is beautiful in all seasons.
A walk in Abano
Imagine leaving your hotel and finding yourself in the center, in a city that is called the garden city, thanks to the massive presence of parks, squares and avenues surrounded by greenery and the colors of the flower beds.
Go along the Viale delle Terme, a wide tree-lined avenue full of shops, clubs and hotels, which leads to the Piazza del Sole e della Pace, also renamed Piazza della Meridiana for the presence of the sundial - the only one of its kind - designed by the astronomer Salvador Condè.
From Viale delle Terme you reach the Urban Thermal Park, a green island of great contemporary architectural importance.
It is a complex of gardens, pedestrian streets and cycle paths framed by condominium and commercial buildings.
The green is in the meadows that line the paved streets and in the trees that complete the area along the main avenue. The green is interspersed with important contemporary sculptures that capture the gaze of the most distracted tourist. To be seen.
Finally, the Kursaal Gardens, another green area where citizens and tourists can relax by walking among the trees or sitting on a bench to read.
To conclude the day dedicated to Abano, after dinner take a trip to the La Fiesta lounge bar, in the center. Cozy atmosphere all week and on Thursday there is the hilarious karaoke of Miss Linda and Marcello.
Day 3. The swimming pool of Montegrotto
In addition to the primacy in relaxation and the care of mind and body, the Euganean Hills area wins another record: in Montegrotto there is the deepest pool in the world.
Y-40 The Deep Joy it is the only swimming pool characterized by thermal water, where courses are organized for freedivers and divers and visits are allowed to the curious.
At a depth of 15 meters, the tank conveys into an illuminated well that descends below the earth and reaches up to 42 meters.
The constant temperature of about 30 degrees allows you to dive without the suit.
Under the surface they have been carved out routes that can be visited from where it is possible to observe the swimmers, surrounded by water. You absolutely must know this Italian record. The rest of the day is dedicated to relaxation, after all you go to Abano especially for this.
Days 4 and 5. Trip to Padua and Venice
After visiting Abano and its surroundings, it's time to take the train. Less than ten minutes from the center is the Montegrotto station which takes you to Padua in 15 minutes and to Venice in 45 minutes.
Padua can also be easily reached by bus or car, but the spectacle that Venice offers upon arrival at the Santa Lucia station it is priceless. The station is located at the gates of the Venetian Lagoon, so stick your nose to the window and don't miss a glimpse of the landscape.
For the moment my trip is over, in the meantime plan your holiday in Abano Terme.
