STORIES

Photo: Esperas Hotel

Some hotel pools are made for cooling off. Others tell a story.

Across Europe, historic hotels turn a simple swim into something more memorable, with cave-carved pools, seawater swimming, rooftop settings and far-reaching views. From Nordic bathing rituals to sculpture gardens and atmospheric coastal estates, each reflects the history and landscape around it — offering a different way to dip into the past.

Relais Antico Monastero di San Biagio, Italy

A peaceful pool in the Umbrian hills

Set within an ancient monastery surrounded by the wooded landscapes of Umbria, San Biagio lends a contemplative quality to time beside the water. Its panoramic outdoor swimming pool looks across the green hills, while the wellness centre offers hydro-relaxation tubs, hammam rituals and treatments using water and clay from Nocera Umbra. Together, they create a peaceful retreat rooted in the landscape and wellness traditions of Umbria.

Kyrimai Hotel, Greece

Where the pool meets the Maniot Sea

At Kyrimai, the distinction between pool and sea feels wonderfully slight. Set directly on the coast of the Mani Peninsula, the hotel brings together a carefully restored store, residence, warehouse and stone tower, with its outdoor swimming pool surrounded by the complex’s historic stone architecture. Beyond it, guests have direct access to the clear Maniot Sea. It is an irresistible pairing: the calm of the pool and the open water stretching out just steps away.

Palazzo Bifora, Malta

A pool above the Silent City

Above the narrow streets of Mdina, Palazzo Bifora’s small, heated rooftop pool offers an unexpected perspective on Malta’s former capital. It overlooks the ancient rooftops, with sweeping views across Mdina’s skyline and towards the neighbouring villages. With just six suites in the meticulously restored palazzo, the rooftop retains a rare sense of intimacy. Few city pools place swimmers quite so evocatively between Mdina’s medieval history and the wide Maltese sky.

Esperas Santorini Hotel, Greece

A pool carved into the cliffs of Oia

Perched high above the Aegean in Oia, Esperas Santorini Hotel grew from traditional cave houses and canaves carved into the volcanic rock. Its distinctive half-cave swimming pool, completed in 1997, was carefully carved into the cliffside and integrated into the natural surroundings. From the water, guests can look out across the caldera and the Aegean beyond. Surrounded by whitewashed cave houses and Santorini’s dramatic landscape, it feels entirely at one with its setting.

Skytteholm Nordic Spa, Sweden

Warm water, cold lake

On the shores of Lake Mälaren, Skytteholm’s heated outdoor pool remains warm throughout the year, inviting guests to swim beneath summer skies or amid the stillness of a Swedish winter. The experience follows the contrasts of Nordic bathing: warm up in the pool, hot tubs or lakeside sauna, then brave a revitalising dip in the lake. With the waters of Mälaren stretching out beyond the spa, the pool becomes part of a wider ritual shaped by warmth, cool air, forest and water.

Palácio Estoril Hotel Golf & Wellness, Portugal

A pool with Bond credentials

The elegant garden pool at Palácio Estoril has its own place in cinematic history. It appeared in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, whose cast stayed at the hotel during filming in Portugal in 1968. Newly constructed at the time, the pool has since been upgraded while retaining its original design. Framed by palms and the grand hotel, which opened in 1930, it remains every bit as glamorous as its screen appearance — a place for an unhurried swim with a hint of espionage-era intrigue.

Abano Ritz Hotel Terme, Italy

Pools warmed by deep thermal waters

At Abano Ritz, the water has already travelled an extraordinary distance before anyone steps into it. Rainwater filters deep beneath the Pre-Alps, gathering minerals and heat during an underground journey of more than 25 years before rising through wells in the Euganean area. The hotel’s indoor and outdoor thermal pools are maintained at approximately 33°C to 36°C, depending on the season, and surrounded by a 6,000-square-metre private park. Even the excess heat is put to use: as the water cools from more than 80°C to bathing temperature, its thermal energy helps to heat the hotel.

Renvyle House Hotel & Resort, Ireland

A heated swim on the Wild Atlantic Way

At Renvyle House, the pleasure of an outdoor pool comes with a distinctly Connemara backdrop. Set within a 150-acre estate on the Wild Atlantic Way, the heated pool offers views towards the Atlantic, while an outdoor hot tub with a sea view provides another way to enjoy the coastal setting. Elsewhere across the grounds are a private freshwater lake, a pebble beach, woodlands, orchards and gardens, making water part of the wider experience of the estate. First opened as a hotel in 1883, Renvyle combines the easy charm of a historic country house with the elemental beauty of Ireland’s western coast.

Hotel Pałac Romantyczny, Poland

A palace pool in an English-style park

Set within the grounds of a 19th-century mansion near Toruń, Hotel Pałac Romantyczny’s heated outdoor pool offers a relaxed counterpoint to the grandeur of its historic setting. Open seasonally, the pool is surrounded by the greenery of a 16-hectare English-style park, where tranquil ponds and winding paths invite guests to explore beyond the water. Designed by Italian architect Henryk Marconi, the palace brings architectural elegance to the experience, making an afternoon by the pool feel less like a conventional hotel swim and more like a summer escape on a romantic country estate.

Adriatik Hotel, Albania

Seawater swimming on the Albanian coast

Set directly on the sandy shore of Durrës, Adriatik Hotel pairs its historic beachfront setting with two outdoor seawater pools: a large main pool and a separate pool for children.The hotel describes the main pool as the largest outdoor pool on the Albanian coast, with loungers and a pool bar creating an easy transition from swimming to long afternoons in the sun. Beyond lies the hotel’s private beach and the open Adriatic Sea. Built in 1957 and reopened as a five-star hotel in 2003, Adriatik offers a distinctive blend of resort life and modern Albanian history beside the water.

Villa Bergzauber, Austria

Saltwater swimming with an Alpine panorama

Set on a hillside above Windischgarsten, Villa Bergzauber’s heated saltwater pool looks out across the mountains and valleys of Upper Austria. The seasonal pool sits within three hectares of park-like grounds shared by the historic villa and a collection of contemporary earth houses built into the landscape. Dating from 1900, the villa was completely renovated in 2016, creating a striking backdrop for a summer swim. With lawns, mature trees and the Austrian Alps unfolding beyond the water, the pool feels wonderfully immersed in its surroundings.