Thermal waters, e-Bike and slow tourism: my wellness weekend at Fratta Terme in Romagna!

Dear friends let me tell you about my wellness and fitness weekend in Romagna, near the Italian Adriatic coast!

This summer thanks to the project Travel With The Bloggers we were lucky enough to discover the thermal baths of Romagna, a region particularly rich in thermal springs and recognized worldwide as Wellness Valley.

I spent a truly revitalizing weekend at the Grand Hotel Terme della Fratta in Bertinoro.

I had often heard of Bertinoro but had never been before. Such a beautiful part of Italy, looking like a painting with its hills, vineyards and sunflowers!

The thermal spring of Fratta Terme was known since Roman times, a wellness destination since the beginning of the 1900s, so much so that in the 30s the Grand Hotel Terme della Fratta was built, and includes a large secular park with 7 different thermal waters, which makes it unique in the whole of Italy for the diversity of its waters!

The Natural Harmony Path: salsobromoiodic and sulfurous waters

The Thermal and Rehabilitation Center is located inside the grand hotel and has mud-balneotherapy wards, vascular care, inhalation treatment, phlebology course, thermal pool for rehabilitation with hydro-massages, relaxation rooms and a gym with Technogym equipment (whose headquarters is a few km away)

Inside we can follow the Natural Harmony Path, which includes a pool of salsobromoiodic thermal waters, that is formed by sodium chloride, iodine and bromine with anti-inflammatory action, a pool of sulfurous thermal waters, which stimulate the defense mechanisms of the tissues and have a detoxifying effect on the skin, vascular hydro path, Kneipp foot bath, sauna, Turkish bath, Roman bath, emotional showers, wasser paradise.

Of course there is also a rich selection of massages and treatments, and the talented Rita made me try two truly rejuvenating treatments!
On the first day, since I had just spent the day biking, I enjoyed a post-workout massage that relaxed all my accumulated tensions, while on the second day I tried a complete face & body treatment with grape seed scrub that left my skin super soft for the whole week!

After such days spent between well-being and physical activity, I suggest you enjoy a dinner in the new restaurant of the grand hotel “Il Giardino Sospeso“, where the colors, flavors and aromas of the original creations of chef Fabio Testori will be the icing on the cake for the awakening of your senses!

e-Bike for everyone: discover Romagna in a slow, sustainable and … gently active way!

I was mentioning to you before, I spent a wonderful day biking.

Yes, the best way to discover and enjoy these fairytale villages, paths and culinary traditions in a slow and sustainable way is precisely the bike … and in order for it to be accessible to everyone, Grand Hotel Terme della Fratta offers e-Bike rental and recharge service and customized guided tours!

Thanks to the assisted pedaling, e-Bikes allow everyone to rediscover the fun of physical activity, awaken the muscles and the circulation but do not require special training, as the little engine allows us to keep a smooth and relaxed pace even uphill!

I had been wanting to try it for a long time and I couldn’t wish for a better first-time!! I felt like I was flying with the wind in my hair and the bike under my feet that almost drove itself!

My tour guide was Luigi, the Bike To cycling guide that collaborates with the hotel. I could feel the enthusiasm and the love for these places from his eyes and I got so infected that I would never get off the bike!

I must admit that when he first asked me if I wanted to do some off-road I was a little hesitant, given that I had some difficult experiences with my classic mountain bike … nevertheless I wanted to trust his experience and knowledge of the territory and I was really curious to test the potential of my e-Bike.

I let him take me through fields, vineyards, olive trees, I had a snack with apricots picked from the trees, experiences that I would never have done if I hadn’t overcome my initial fear and I hadn’t entrusted myself to my expert guide!

It was really so much fun and now I really want to buy an e-Bike for myself!!!

Medieval villages and natural wine: my e-Bike excursion in Bertinoro

During our excursion we made three stops:

We visited the amazing Fattoria Paradiso, the oldest farm in the area, whose award-winning wines are recognized all over the globe and are requested by royal families, the Vatican, the White House, famous directors…
Let me tell you a couple of anecdotes, in 1954 Mario Pezzi found in his very estate that had been handed down for centuries a vine of unknown variety that he called “Barbarossa” and it is still produced today exclusively by Fattoria Paradiso.
While in 1970 Vigna delle Lepri was born, the first Sangiovese Riserva produced in Romagna!

Of course we visited the medieval village of Bertinoro which represents the highest point with its 328 meters … what a view!!
Did you know that archaeological excavations have found bowls and other objects of prehistoric age that already showed cults linked to healing water?!
At the foot of the fortress we find the famous Column of Hospitality with its 12 rings, each corresponding to the name of a local family, which foreigners could use to tie up the bridles of their horses.
Given that in the past hosting and feeding a stranger was a great honor for the Bertinorese, being the only way to know about other places, this column was erected to regulate those who would have accommodated the travelers. Depending on the ring in which the horse was tied, the corresponding family had the privilege of hosting the traveler.

Our last stop was Fattoria Ca ’Rossa, belonging for three generations to the family of Massimo Masotti, where all the harvest is done manually and the grass is left free to grow between the rows, for a completely natural result.
The extraordinary thing about this winery is their Albana vine planted by Massimo’s grandfather in 1935, the oldest plant in the whole region, never pruned, from which Massimo decided to make a superb wine, which we can taste in the limited edition called 1935 Ultima (“last”). A truly surprising anomaly studied by researchers from all over Italy!

Casa Artusi in Forlimpopoli: discover the history of Italian home cookery

Another very interesting place that I recommend you visit while at Fratta Terme is Casa Artusi in Forlimpopoli, the first center of gastronomic culture entirely dedicated to Italian home cookery.

Pellegrino Artusi was a merchant from Forlimpopoli who, during his journeys all over Italy, realized how much each region, each area, each country had its own typical recipes, handed down for centuries in the domestic hearth, fruit of the ingredients of each land, of traditions and climatic conditions.

In 1891 he decided to collect all his notes and “stories” of cooking, which today we would call recipes, in a book called “Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well – Practical Handbook for Families”, containing over 700 typical dishes, the most complete collection of Italian recipes up to this day.

The book had an unexpected success, which since then never stopped and until today it is translated in several langauges and recognized internationally as a reference for authentic, healthy and real traditional Italian cuisine.
Today Casa Artusi, as well as being a cultural centre and a public library, is also a restaurant and a cooking school.

Well friends, I think that if you are looking for healthy food, good wine, physical activity, well-being and massages…you know where to spend your next wellness holiday!

Official website of Grand Hotel Terme della Fratta: www.termedellafratta.com