Hot springs of Pantelleria and their beneficial effects

85 km away from the Sicilian coast and 70 km from the African ones, Pantelleria stands solitary and silent in the immense blue of the Mediterranean sea, like a pearl emerged from the seabed. And it is really wonderful land, in fact, this beautiful island of Belpaese is the surface of a volcano which rises to over 2000 meters below sea level, on the top of an immense oceanic crust thicker than 20 km.

From this origin derived the unique geological structure of the island, which is made up exclusively of rocks with numerous exmples of secondary volcanism, hot water and puffs of steam with the famous therapeutic properties. The Pantelleria hot springs are in fact well-known in Italy since ancient times: small and hot tubs carved out of the rock in which you can immerse yourself in Gadir, where the water temperature varies between 40 ° C and 50 ° C, were known and appreciated by the ancient Phoenicians, who renamed the town in Gadir, the name of Semitic origin meaning “protected place”. The immersion in the waters of these sources, particularly sweet and rich in minerals, is considered an excellent remedy for treating arthritis and rheumatism.

The hot springs of Nicà, among the rocks of the shore, join immediately the sea: a fortune, especially because the temperature of their water is between 85 ° C and 100 ° C. But they possess undoubted therapeutic virtues, and nearby there are also small deposits of sulfur and silica fouling hydrates.

Finally, the best known of the hot springs of Pantelleria is certainly the small lake commonly called Specchio di Venere (“Mirror of Venus”), a lake basin located in the northern part of the island that occupies the bottom of a shallow depression of caldera origin. The level of its waters, ranging between 40 ° C and 50 ° C of temperature, is in avarege about 2 meters above sea level and is powered either from the hot springs that by the rains.

In fact, in periods of low rainfall the surface is reduced leaving dry shallow marginal band and rich of precious thermal mud, from the characteristic smell of sulfur and sought for therapeutic use, thanks to the many benefits it brings to the skin. Unique and rare refreshment stations where you can find the well-being and balance, hot springs among the most popular in Europe on the stunning backdrop of the endless horizons of Pantelleria, whose unique wild beauty is the source of pride of Belpaese.