Points of Interest

• The Bollente kiosk and thermal spring: the town’s undisputed symbolic monument and a mandatory stop for visitors. A true gift of nature, thermal water gushes out at an incredible rate of 560 litres per minute at a temperature of 74.5 C. The intervention of the municipal administration led by Giuseppe Saracco radically transformed the ancient area around the spring of the same name by demolishing the old Jewish Ghetto (1870-1880). Engineer Giovanni Ceruti was responsible for the eclectic-style shrine-temple (1879), which highlights the importance of the place. The civic tower dates back to 1763 and was built to a design by the Alessandria-based architect Giuseppe Domenico Trolli over the arch of the ancient Porta della Bollente.

• The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta: for over ten centuries it has been the landmark of all urban and diocesan life. This cathedral stands on the square overlooked by the 15th-century Bishop’s Palace and the Diocesan Seminary, close to the massive fortress of the Castle.

• Paleologi Castle, Municipal Archaeological Museum: the castle of Acqui Terme, known as “dei Paleologi”, dates back in its original layout to the 11th century. It was, at first, the residence of the bishop-counts of Acqui, who lived there until violent internal clashes between the town’s noble families put an end to their rule. It later became the stronghold of the mediaeval village of Acqui and the seat of the town’s governors before passing to the Marquises Paleologi del Monferrato in 1260. Starting in 1708, the complex came under the direct administration of the House of Savoy, who progressively deprived it of its original function as a fortress, assigning it, from the early 19th century, to the function of prison that it maintained until recent years. Today it is home to the Municipal Archaeological Museum, which houses interesting remains from prehistoric and protohistoric times, the Roman era and the late antique and medieval periods.

• Il Giardino Botanico “Birdgarden” is located within the castle walls and is a natural oasis in the heart of the city.

• Borgo Pisterna: this is the ancient heart of Acqui Terme, where the streets are lined with houses and noble palaces of great artistic value, dating from the 15th to the 18th century, that have recently been refurbished and revalued. This area is also the setting for shows held throughout the summer at the ‘G.Verdi Open-air Theatre.

• Piazza Italia: it is the town’s central square, criss-crossed with the scenic stepped fountains of the “Water Lilies” that descend from Corso Viganò towards the centre of the square.

• The Rotten Water Temple: located in the bathing area, beyond the river. It is a thermal water spring with a much lower flow rate than the other springs, gushing out at 19°C.
  The Roman aqueduct: the arches of the Roman aqueduct constitute one of the historical boasts of the city of Acqui. Indeed, this is the best preserved of all monuments of its kind still existing in the territory of present-day Piedmont and one of the most significant examples of Roman aqueducts in the whole of northern Italy. The construction of this system can be traced back to the early imperial age, perhaps to the Augustan period (early 1st century a.C.).

• The Roman Pool: remains from a vast thermal complex dating back to the Imperial age, found in 1913. It is a vast hot-water pool (calidarium) originally entirely lined with marble slabs and flanked by several rooms heated through a hypocaust system. The water for the facility was brought through a canal directly from the source of the Bollente. The thermal building, together with the nearby amphitheatre discovered in the 1960s, occupied a peripheral area of the ancient Roman Aquae Statiellae, outside the built-up area but convenient to reach via the Via Aemilia Scauri.