# Gurgitello Spring **At a glance:** The Gurgitello spring is the most famous thermal spring in Casamicciola Terme and gives its name to the basin in Piazza Bagni. Praised by Giulio Iasolino in 1588, it supplied the Pio Monte's treatment house and the Antiche Terme Belliazzi, built over the spring in the 19th century. Today you experience it through the spa establishment. ## Useful information - **Type:** Thermal spring - **Area:** [Piazza Bagni and the Spa Quarter](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/areas/piazza-bagni-spa-quarter/) - **Address:** Piazza Bagni, 80074 Casamicciola Terme NA - **Coordinates:** 40.743900, 13.909300 - **Where:** Piazza Bagni, inside the Antiche Terme Belliazzi - **Basin:** Gurgitello basin - **Type of water:** Bicarbonate-sodium-chloride-sulphate (according to reported analyses) - **First scientific description:** Giulio Iasolino, 1588 - **Establishment:** Commissioned by Ferdinand II of Bourbon, completed in 1854 ## Casamicciola's most famous spring The Gurgitello spring is the main source of the [hydrothermal basin](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/gurgitello-thermal-basin/) of the same name and the very symbol of Casamicciola Terme's spa tradition. It rises in [Piazza Bagni](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/key-places/piazza-bagni/), in the upper part of town, at the foot of the Ombrasco hill. Over the spring stand the [Antiche Terme Belliazzi](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/belliazzi-historic-thermal-spa/), considered the oldest spa establishment in Casamicciola: today it is through them that you can experience the Gurgitello water at first hand. ## The character of the water Available descriptions speak of a crystal-clear, colourless and odourless water with a slightly alkaline taste, oily to the touch. The analyses reported, carried out on samples taken at the Belliazzi baths, show alkaline bicarbonates and sulphates, sodium chloride and calcium phosphate; the proposed classification is bicarbonate-sodium-chloride-sulphate. For the basin as a whole, popular sources give temperatures of around 60–65 °C. In the spa tradition, Gurgitello water and its associated muds have been used for musculoskeletal complaints such as arthritis and rheumatic pain, and for the respiratory tract; today the establishment offers mud treatments, baths and inhalation therapy. **A note on health.** Information on the properties of the waters is of historical and general interest only and is not medical advice: thermal treatments should be taken only at licensed establishments and on a doctor's recommendation. ## History The name comes from the Latin _gurges_, “whirlpool”, which according to tradition the Romans used for the stream of boiling water that ran down to the sea. Pliny the Elder mentions the virtues of Ischian waters frequented by soldiers stationed at Pozzuoli, and local tradition links this passage to the Gurgitello itself. In 1588 Giulio Iasolino, a Calabrian physician, devoted ample space to these waters in his treatise _De' rimedi naturali che sono nell'isola di Pithecusa, hoggi detta Ischia_ (On the natural remedies of the island of Pithecusa, now called Ischia), judging them the most effective of all those he had observed. In 1604 the Neapolitan noblemen of the Pio Monte della Misericordia chose the Gurgitello area to open a house where the poor of Naples could be treated free of charge, the origin of the [Pio Monte della Misericordia complex](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/pio-monte-della-misericordia-complex/). In 1852 King Ferdinand II of Bourbon visited the springs of the “Bagno del Gurgitello” and decided to build a new establishment inspired by Roman baths, completed in 1854. In 1864 Giuseppe Garibaldi, wounded at Aspromonte in 1862, came here for treatment. ## How to visit The spring is not open for bathing: it lies within the Antiche Terme Belliazzi establishment, which opens seasonally. For visits and treatments, contact the establishment directly. Piazza Bagni can be reached on foot from the harbour and Piazza Marina, heading inland and uphill for less than a kilometre, or by the island's public buses. ## What to see nearby - The other springs of the basin: the [Stomaco or Cappone spring](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/stomaco-or-cappone-spring/), the [Oro, Argento and Ferro springs](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/oro-argento-and-ferro-springs/) and the [Ombrasco spring](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/ombrasco-spring/). - The [Antiche Terme Manzi](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/manzi-historic-thermal-spa/), linked to Garibaldi's stay and to the story of Angelo Rizzoli. - The [Cotto and Sinigallia basin](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/cotto-and-sinigallia-thermal-basin/), on the western side of Piazza Bagni. ## Frequently asked questions ### Where is the Gurgitello spring? In Piazza Bagni, in the upper part of Casamicciola Terme. The spring lies inside the Antiche Terme Belliazzi, which were built directly over it. ### Can you visit the Gurgitello spring? It is not freely accessible. You experience it through the Antiche Terme Belliazzi, an establishment that opens seasonally: contact it in advance for opening times and visiting arrangements. ### Why is it called the Gurgitello? The name comes from the Latin gurges, “whirlpool”. According to tradition, the Romans used this name for the stream of boiling water that ran down to the sea. ### Did Garibaldi really take the cure at the Gurgitello? Yes, in 1864 Giuseppe Garibaldi stayed in Casamicciola and took treatment at the Gurgitello baths. He was seeking relief for the wound he had received at Aspromonte in 1862. ## Also worth seeing - [Gurgitello Thermal Basin](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/gurgitello-thermal-basin/) - [Antiche Terme Belliazzi](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/belliazzi-historic-thermal-spa/) - [Pio Monte della Misericordia Complex](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/pio-monte-della-misericordia-complex/) - [Stomaco or Cappone Spring](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/stomaco-or-cappone-spring/) - [Oro, Argento and Ferro Springs](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/oro-argento-and-ferro-springs/) - [Ombrasco Spring](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/thermal-spas/ombrasco-spring/) - [Piazza Bagni](https://visitcasamicciola.com/en/key-places/piazza-bagni/) ## Sources and further reading - [Terme d'Ischia – Fonte del Gurgitiello](https://www.terme.ischia.it/fonte-del-gurgitiello) - [HIMETOP (Università Campus Bio-Medico) – Belliazzi Baths on the Gurgitello](https://himetop.unicampus.it/belliazzi-baths-on-the-gurgitello/) - [Hotel La Maggioressa – Ischia: bacini e sorgenti termali di Casamicciola](https://www.hotellamaggioressa.com/it/ischia/) - [IschiaPrenotazioni – I principali bacini termali di Ischia](https://www.ischiaprenotazioni.it/blog/ischia/I-PRINCIPALI-BACINI-TERMALI-DI-ISCHIA) - [Discover Campania – Ischia, cento sorgenti per l'isola termale](https://discovercampania.it/en/explore-campania/territory/the-islands/ischia/territory/thermal-baths/ischia-one-hundred-springs-for-the-thermal-island) - [Ministero della Cultura, Beni abbandonati – Complesso Pio Monte della Misericordia «Ex Terme Gurgitello»](https://beniabbandonati.cultura.gov.it/beni/complesso-pio-monte-della-misericordia-ex-terme-gurgitello/)