I Tried Palazzo Fiuggi, Oprah Winfrey’s Favourite Wellness Retreat
This is what I thought…
There are wellness destinations that promise a reset. And then there are places that rewire you.
An hour outside Rome, set into the Italian countryside, Palazzo Fiuggi belongs firmly in the latter category. A former grand hotel turned medical spa, it sits at the intersection of old-world elegance and modern longevity science. Think Belle Époque architecture, Roman spring water rituals, and clinical diagnostics precise enough to make even experienced practitioners pause.
As someone who lives by the mantra “green time before screen time,” the idea of a programme built around hiking, nature exposure and physiological optimisation felt instinctively right. The Hiking for Longevity programme sounded restorative, scenic, nourishing. What I hadn’t fully appreciated was that it would also be humbling, physically demanding, and quietly transformative.
Image from OPRAH DAILY
First Impressions: Precision, Not Pampering
From the moment I arrived, it was clear this wasn’t a wellness experience built on vague promises or surface-level luxury. After a warm welcome in the light-filled lobby and the wonderful management team, I was taken straight into a comprehensive health assessment. Blood panels, body composition scans, metabolic insights. The kind of data that forms a real foundation and understanding of the body, not a wishy-washy wellness afterthought.
Having spent years in clinical nutrition, I am not easily impressed by testing protocols. But this was thorough, considered and genuinely integrated. These results didn’t just inform my movement programme. They shaped my treatments, daily schedule, and even my meals for the week. It felt less like a retreat and more like stepping into a different way of living, breathing case study of my own physiology.
This is Palazzo Fiuggi’s point of difference, nothing is arbitrary. Everything is intentional.
The Room: Where the Nervous System Softens
Before a single hike, test or treatment, the room did something important. It signals safety. My suite felt less like a hotel room and more like a private pause button. High ceilings, soft light, expansive views of the rolling hills that immediately provided a ‘pinch me’ moment. The blue palette is calm and intentional. Muted creams, warm woods, a space to exhale.
The bed deserves its own mention. Deep, cloud-like, the kind that recalibrates your relationship with rest on night one. I slept with the windows cracked open, cool air drifting in, waking to rolling hills in early morning light (and believe me, it was early as I had a hike to attend to). It was the sort of view that quietly insists you stay present. Luxury here isn’t about excess. It’s about how quickly your body understands it’s allowed to rest.
Hiking for Longevity: Not a Walk in the Park
I arrived imagining gentle, cinematic walks through sunlit forests. What I got was something far more real. The hikes are demanding. Steep inclines, sustained climbs, terrain that requires focus and effort. When you’re handed a walkie-talkie on day one, you quickly understand this is not a meander. By day two, my legs were deeply aware of muscles that had been politely ignored for years.
There were moments when I questioned my choices. And then there were moments at the summit, looking out across vast valleys, where effort dissolved into perspective. I found myself thinking, “My goodness, that was hard, but it’s worth it for what’s at the top.” A line stollen, unapologetically, from Mamma Mia!, but entirely accurate.
There is something profoundly grounding about physical challenges in nature. It strips away noise. It reminds you what your body is capable of when asked, again something I visit with my clinical background but find a challenge to put into practice in a luxury environment.
The Spa: Restoration That Actually Restores
Outside of the hikes, the spa became a place of genuine recalibration. These are not treatments designed just for indulgence. They are functional, deeply therapeutic, and rooted in physiological impact.
A hot stone massage, my first, released tension I didn’t realise I was carrying. But it was the magnesium pool that truly surprised me. Having researched magnesium extensively, I was curious rather than expectant. Floating in mineral-rich water I felt my hard worked muscles softening, my nervous system calming and the sensation turned into a feeling of being gently recalibrated from the inside out.
The result was immediate and tangible. A sense of calm that lingered. Sleep that was deeper than it had been in months. Sometimes the most powerful interventions are also the simplest.
I also had a Dr Barbara Sturm facial, which felt less like a cosmetic treatment and more like a reset for tired skin. Combined with days spent outdoors, mineral-rich water, and meticulously nourishing food, the effect was unmistakable. My complexion looked clearer, brighter, and more alive. Not forced or polished.
Water as Medicine
Fiuggi’s mineral water has been revered since Roman times, historically prescribed for detoxification and metabolic support. Drinking it daily was presented not as a ritual, but as part of the clinical framework of the stay.
I was sceptical. But over the course of the week, something shifted. Energy felt cleaner. Digestion lighter. Whether placebo, environment, or genuine physiological response, I left convinced that this water plays a role in the broader ecosystem of healing here. Sometimes tradition endures for a reason.
Food: Precision Without Deprivation
As a nutritionist, food is never incidental. And at Palazzo Fiuggi, it is treated with the respect it deserves. Meals are designed by a Michelin-starred team, guided by medical input and tailored to individual needs. Portions are controlled, ingredients precise, and yet nothing feels restrictive. I am someone who loves generous, flavourful food, and I expected to feel underwhelmed.
I wasn’t. Each meal was satisfying, elegant without being empty. Vegetable-forward dishes, perfectly cooked fish, seasonal simplicity elevated by technique. I remember noting in my notebook, after one particularly beautiful dinner, “I never thought a controlled diet could leave me so content,”.
A Different Kind of Reset
Palazzo Fiuggi is not about escape. It’s about recalibration. The hikes built strength and resilience. The treatments restored balance. The food was nourished without excess. And the structure created space for reflection. This wasn’t wellness as performance. It was wellness as practice.
I left feeling steadier. More grounded. More connected to my body’s signals. And reminded that challenge, when supported properly, is often the fastest route to clarity.
This is a place for those who want depth over distraction, intention combined with indulgence, and luxury that actually serves the body. I will return. And until then, I’ll carry the reminder that wellbeing doesn’t always come from doing less. Sometimes, it comes from doing the right things, more and with care.
Words by Eleanor Hoath
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