42.93° N · 11.70° E · Val d'Orcia
On the slopes of Monte Amiata, hot spring water runs down a ravine in the woods and leaves pools and a great white limestone formation, the Balena Bianca, in the Fosso Bianco. They are free hot springs: you don't pay, you walk a while through the woods and the first pools are less hot than those higher up.
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Step by step
A small village on the slopes of the Amiata, in the municipality of Castiglione d'Orcia. From there you enter the woods on foot.
A short walk among trees. The first pools are not very hot.
The ravine turns white with lime. The waterfalls have formed hotter pools.
The great limestone formation that gives the place its name, like the back of a whale.
The same way. Dry off and change before leaving the woods, especially in winter.
It is the opposite of a spa: nobody charges, there are no changing rooms and the water comes out as it pleases. That is why people like it, and why you should go carefully: slippery stone and pools that change with the rain.
Bagni San Filippo is a hamlet of Castiglione d'Orcia, at about 520 metres altitude, on the slope of Monte Amiata. Its name comes from the little church dedicated to St Philip Benizi, who according to tradition stopped here in 1269. Next to the village sulphurous hot springs well up and flow down a ravine in the woods, the Fosso Bianco, and as they run they leave calcium carbonate. Over the centuries that lime has formed waterfalls, stepped pools and a great white mass that people call the Balena Bianca, the white whale.
There is a spa hotel in the village, but what attracts almost everyone is the free part: the pools in the woods, where anyone can bathe without paying.
It suits those looking for a hot bath in the open air, with no hours or tickets, who don't need facilities. Families love it, with children who move well and water shoes: the walk is short and the lower pools are shallow.
It doesn't suit those who want comfort: there are no changing rooms, showers or bar in the ravine, and you change among the trees. Nor those looking for solitude on an August Saturday. With a pushchair you cannot reach the pools: the path is earth, roots and stone.
The practical way is to go by car: Bagni San Filippo is a short distance from the Via Cassia, between San Quirico d'Orcia and Radicofani, in the southern part of the Val d'Orcia. Public transport in this area is scarce. If you walk the Via Francigena, stage 36, from San Quirico d'Orcia to Radicofani, it allows a detour here.
You can go all year, and winter has its charm: the hot water steams in the cold air and there are far fewer people. In spring and autumn the temperatures are ideal for changing outdoors. July, August and weekends are the times with the most visitors. To be quiet, go first thing in the morning or on a weekday.
Nothing. The pools in the woods are free and open to all. The cost is petrol and whatever you have afterwards in the village.
The lime concretions are fragile and take years to form. Don't climb on the thin edges of the pools or break off pieces of lime. Don't use soap or shampoo in the water and take all your rubbish with you. These are common-sense rules that keep the place as it is.
In heavy rain, the ravine carries more water, the pools change and the stone is even more slippery: better to leave it for another day. As an alternative, Bagno Vignoni, in the same Val d'Orcia, has its famous square occupied by a pool of hot spring water, which looks good even in bad weather.
Who it's for
What to bring
More to do
Itineraries
Tips
First thing in the morning and in winter there are fewer people.
Both are on the same stage of the Via Francigena: wild water here, tamed water in the square at Bagno Vignoni.
There are no facilities in the ravine: what comes in with you goes out with you.
Sulphurous water darkens silver.
Get out from time to time, drink water and don't bathe on a full stomach.
Questions
No. They are free hot springs in the woods.
The first pools are only slightly hot; those of the Fosso Bianco, more so.
Yes, with water shoes and supervision: wet stone is slippery.
It is a natural area open all year. In heavy rain, better to wait.
Not in the woods. You change among the trees and shower when you return to your accommodation.
The great white formation of calcium carbonate left by the hot spring water in the Fosso Bianco, shaped like the back of a whale.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/italy/tuscany/val-d-orcia/things-to-do/bagni-san-filippo-white-whale
