Pull off the dusty south coast highway and within a few minutes you are in a green and manicured enclave, where healthy, wealthy couples stroll to and fro in beige robes – like members of some exclusive cult, which perhaps in a way they are.
Highlights of a brief stay here included swimming in the cold water pool – least popular of the three on site – and being invited to a gong bath, the latter being a surprisingly stimulating experience.
Once we were all comfortably settled on rows of loungers, our gong hostess, Angela, asked us to close our eyes and then began.
First came the soothing sound of a rain shaker but we fairly swiftly moved on to the big stuff. A crescendo of gong strokes sent wave after wave of good (and powerful) vibrations right through every part of the body. All accurate sense of time was lost but the session seemed to go on and on – in a most welcome way. It was utterly relaxing yet totally invigorating.
The Adler Spa has such an "international" feel that you could really be anywhere – the staff tend to speak Americanese rather than Italian. But if you need the real Sicily, it's still there on the doorstep...