Bringing Fiuggi water at the forefront of a regenerative wellness and medical retreat. The aim is to reduce premature aging and detoxify the body – in a place suspended beyond the time
Time is rarefied at Palazzo Fiuggi. The world is far away, beyond the line of tall green trees, of that intense color that distinguishes the territories of central Italy. It is an occasion to concentrate on one’s body, and rediscover the connection with the soul. An escape from daily life’s concerns, to make up for lost time by not taking care of yourself.
From the windows of the suite – spacious and quiet – you can watch the clouds drifting away. A stay at the court of the king of wellness and longevity – I thought at the end of my stay at Palazzo Fiuggi, after regenerating myself with medical treatments and treating myself with the best medicine: food. It is not only the majesty of the structure and the splendor of the interiors that give the feeling of being in a contemporary palace. The courtesy and attention of the staff, always attentive to your needs, in fact, makes you realize that you are in a place out of the ordinary.
Palazzo Fiuggi in Lazio
Palazzo Fiuggi is located fifty minutes away from the city of Rome. It is nestled within a private eight-and-a-half-hectare park that sits seven-hundred meters above sea level in the villes d’eaux of Fiuggi. Overlooking the Medieval thermal town of Fiuggi, the property was once known as Grand Hotel Palazzo della Fonte. Sardinian-based Forte Village team currently owns and runs it.
The group has spent several years restoring and reinventing the Palazzo to offer a «new approach to health, wellbeing, and longevity» by fusing holistic traditions with advanced Western medicine and a food line. Crafted by a team of scientists and doctors, the medical, wellness, and therapy treatments offered, use the four natural elements of water, earth, air, and fire. The aim is to rejuvenate the mind, body, and soul to achieve harmony between physical health and mental well-being.
In 1913, architects Garibaldi Burba and Giovanni Battista designed the building in the Art Nouveau style. The surrounding area of the hotel, Fiuggi, was known for its miraculous spring water. In the Middle Ages, in fact, it was praised for its power of breaking the stone as well as for curing the diseases of Pope Boniface VIII and Michelangelo. This made the Palazzo an attraction and housed stars such as Guglielmo Marconi, Francesca Bertini, Eleonora Duse, and Pablo Picasso.
Lampoon Review: Palazzo Fiuggi, history and architecture
Since its opening in 1913, the Palazzo became a congregation ground for the scientific, artistic, and political international high societies. After the First World War, in 1936, the hotel installed one of Italy’s first outdoor swimming pools, still present today. Later, during the Second World War, the Palazzo turned into a resting ground and hospital for German soldiers. The hotel became the headquarter of the Allied Forces for their period of permanence in Italy.
Between 1946 and 1960, the hotel reopened to be the summer residence of important Italian politicians and actors like Vittorio De Sica, Eduardo De Filippo, Ingrid Bergman, Roberto Rossellini, Anthony Quinn, and Fernandel. After the war, the Palazzo lost its charm. In 1960, in fact, Societa Anonima Fiuggi, the owner of the hotel, lost their rights over their attraction, the water. This led to their closure in 1982. It was then that current owners, the Forte, an international hotel chain, bought the Palazzo and reinstated it to its initial splendor.
The Art Nouveau frescoes of the facade, the rooms, and the pool were restored. Today, founder Lorenzo Giannuzi has transformed the 8-hectare park by enlisting building architect Sandro Sergi and spa architect Mario Dal Molin to work in cooperation with the wellness and medical centers overseen by the retreat’s Medical and Scientific Director, David Della Morte Canosci, and Spa Director Thorsten Lipfert.
Palazzo Fiuggi’s restoration and renovation
The Palazzo has seen the restoration and renovation of the main building, swimming pool, common areas, bedrooms, and suites. In addition, the current owners have incorporated a wellness and medical retreat. The building preserves the historic soul of the Palazzo through the refurbishment of the handmade 1800s Murano glass chandeliers and original parquet floors.
The owners reutilized their antique painting collections in the public areas and suites of the hotel, maintaining the pastel and white coloring in the common areas. To modernize, contemporary furniture and decorative elements were installed into the bedrooms to better fit guests’ needs. Each bedroom and suite now has a color palette ranging from sugar paper blue to ochre and Pompeian red.
The right side of the ground floor features Tisaneria – the Herbal Tea room – a cinema, a library, and a former large four-hundred square meters ballroom that has been converted into the Workout Movement Lab. For the Spa and Wellness center, the structure has repurposed the six-thousand square meters former conference and meeting areas. These spaces are now divided into a wellness center, beauty center, and medical area.
Overlooking Fiuggi’s Old Town
The atmosphere of the spa contrasts the grandeur of the hotel’s main aesthetic. It, in fact, infuses marble and wood materials to create a relaxing ambiance. Further, the three sections comprise twenty-one multifunctional cabins, eight beauty cabins, one Spa Suite with a sauna, hammam, and jacuzzi for couples to enjoy in privacy, six medical cabins, two pilates, and yoga studios, a nail and hair salon, and a Hydrotherapy circuit.
The Hydro Circuit also includes two thalasso pools incorporating Fiuggi waters, one contrast cold pool and a hammam. The hydrotherapy rooms will be used as a mudroom, massage parlor, and hammam. Technogym products, Reaxing and Icaros, a virtual reality fitness system, characterize the The Workout Movement Lab, a gym.
The seven-hundred square meters Terme Romane provide an ancient roman experience. A glass passage overlooking Fiuggi’s Old Town connects them to the central body of the building. The three pools will include the restyled 1936 Thalasso outdoor swimming pool, an indoor panoramic pool connected via a tunnel to the outdoor heated pool overlooking Fiuggi’s Old Town.
The retreat also includes a room with a terrace used for relaxation. Further, a herbal tea room shares healthy recipes of the Benedictine monks of the ancient pharmacies present in the medieval abbeys of Ciociaria.
Fiuggi’s Water
Natural healing properties are the main benefits of Fiuggi’s water, since the fourteenth century. The water, in fact, gained its fame when Pope Boniface VIII claimed that the final water from the nearby Fiuggi springs healed his kidney stones. Two centuries later, Michelangelo claimed the water cured him of what he called, «the only kind of stone I couldn’t love».
Soon after, Europe’s royalty received bottles of the water. But, it wasn’t till the twentieth century that it became common to make pilgrimages to spa towns. The water flows from central Italy’s natural springs where the source runs through ancient volcanic deposits in the Erinci Mountains. In Europe, it is classified as Oligomineral water. It has, in fact, been proven to contain certain components of the humic substance group which gives its health benefits.
The Italian National Health Institute for kidney stimulation has accredited Fiuggi water in breaking down and dissolving kidney stones. The water has been used to prepare patients for operations or lithotripsy with shockwave therapy. It also characterizes postoperative recovery procedures. Other than treatment for kidney issues, Fiuggi water provides therapy for urinary tract infections. It, in fact, helps boost the metabolism expelling uric acid, acting as a treatment for gout and uric acid arthropathy.
Palazzo Fiuggi will incorporate the water into every program offered at the property. They claim the water helps purify the toxins that create oxidative stress and inflammation to our immune systems that can cause premature aging. They will also be using it as a detoxifying agent. The aim is to restore balance to the body. They will host a research lab to work with Fiuggi water in the creation of regenerative medicines linked to the water, as well.
Health & Wellness Rejuvenation
The Palazzo will inhabit beauty products from four lines including, Dr. Barbara Sturm, Vitalis, Charme d’Orient for the hammam rituals, and Johanna Hakimova’s natural bio lifting. Alongside the products, the Palazzo will also blend Indian Ayurveda therapies and sound healing therapies.
First-world technology including, CT Scans and MRI technology will mark the treatments. Light needle laser therapy. Diagnostics of performance and metabolism analysis based on respiratory gases to show the optimal heart rate for fat burn. Infrared tech for brain health and sleep. Imedos technology as a non-invasive approach to regulate retinal vessels and function. MLX Dome as a detox treatment. Far Infrared Rays to stimulate metabolism and detoxification. Plasma Light Therapy for skin rejuvenation. Cellis to reduce cellulite and increase toning spa wave acoustic therapy which uses vibrations/binaural audio frequencies to induce deep relaxation.
Psammo therapy from Ancient Egyptian times carried out via equipped bed to support body, allowing the dry heat of natural quartz sand to relieve muscle and joint pain. Quartz Vibra sound healing emitted through natural quartz to reduce stress, anxiety, high blood pressure, depression and sleep disorders. Vibrahealing, an integrative treatment that uses vibrations of a bell and therapeutic music, such as binaural and monaural frequencies, guided meditation and chromotherapy to revitalise the body’s flow of energy and mental state.
Food proposals at Palazzo Fiuggi
For food, the Palazzo has partnered with three-Michelin-star-chef, Heinz Beck. The professional will use his expertise in the field of Natural Bioenergy to create menus based on the tailor-made nutritional and dietary needs of each guest. The chef will collaborate with Professor David Della Morte, Palazzo Fiuggi’s Medical and Science Director as well as specialist senescence-related diseases and genetics. They will design culinary concepts and meals that will aid with their wellness programs.
The team says dishes will use food nutrients that will «activate cellular pathways linked with anti-aging, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant processes. Showcasing food as a medicine that aids the body when cooked and served the right way». The diet concepts will target fat reduction without impacting muscle mass by harnessing the nutrients and micronutrients available through each meal. The Palazzo claims the way they use food can achieve weight loss without feeling hungry.
The programmes offered at Palazzo Fiuggi
Four bespoke programs characterize Palazzo Fiuggi Method. Doctors and experts tailor them to meet guests’ unique needs. Clients can book for either one or more weeks, each supported by a choice of à la carte treatments. The treatments include meals, consultations, and assessments. The programs are Complete Life Rewind, a multifaceted approach focused on an all-rounded aspect of wellness and the body’s needs by utilizing testing to determine imbalances. A program customized to address the areas of nutrition, fitness, and lifestyle, also follows the treatment. This will mitigate the effects of aging on a physical as well as emotional level.
Optimal Weight to reshape your body and lifestyle through a taught program of healthy habits. Deep Detox combines scientific research with Fiuggi water, hydrotherapy, nutrition, medical diagnostic and therapies to reduce toxins from the body. Immuno Boost uses natural therapies, detox treatments, nutritional consultations, and activities to rebuild mental as well as physical strength. Besides their medical services and bespoke programs, the Palazzo offers two beauty programs including an intense one or more weeks course, the Advanced Beautification program, and a three-day crash course, Beauty Crash.
Palazzo Fiuggi
Via dei Villini, 34, 03014 Fiuggi FR
Palazzo Fiuggi is a retreat within an eight and-a-half-hectare park. It features a lake, pools, gardens and woodland as well as paddle and tennis courts.
