Time Out Australia Travel Awards 2026: Best Wellness Travel Nominees

Alba is the Rolls-Royce of bathing experiences. But the design is also understated. Understated elegance. The 22 thermal springs of differing temperatures wind up the hill, surrounded by Australian flora. And as you sit there bathing, you look down the hill over the main Alba building, which is both grand and minimalistic – all soft edges and raw concrete. There are pools of various shapes and sizes and views along the way, as well as saunas, cold plunge pools, sprinkling waterfall pools and enclosed cave-style pools. 

Stress less and thrive more with a day workshop or overnight retreat at this wholesome yoga sanctuary. Hidden in the treetops just a 45-minute drive from Sydney CBD, the boutique resort specialises in yoga and meditation, with a side of spa treatments and organic, vegetarian cuisine. A typical day might start with a 7am yoga practice, drawing meditation before lunch, a massage in the afternoon and a discussion about nutrition before a healthy dinner. For those who choose to stay the night, a chorus of cicadas will soothe you to sleep, with water cabins, treehouse rooms and terrace suites available.

Kiss those winter blues goodbye at the city's newest wellness experience: the floating sauna at Lake Burley Griffin. Yes, it's every bit as dreamy as it looks! Inspired by Tasmania's famous floating sauna at Lake Derby, this Canberra version is set on the shores of Yarralumla Beach East. There, you'll find two woodfired sauna rooms, each with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the calm Lake Burley Griffin. Steam up in the sauna (max six people), cool off with a dip in the lake, then repeat. Who's ready to take the plunge?

If a digital detox is what you’re after, then take a much-needed weekend offline at this ecotourism-certified wellness destination. Tucked away on a lush 200-acre plateau in the Gold Coast Hinterland, Gwinganna has been perfecting the art of wellness since 2006. With all-inclusive activities, organic meals, nature immersions, luxe accommodation and the Southern Hemisphere’s largest day spa, it’s honestly hard not to leave feeling calmer, clearer and genuinely recharged. The nature sanctuary has been awarded Australia's Best Wellness Retreat and Best Luxury Spa across multiple awards, continuing to set the benchmark for wellness nationwide.

Peninsula Hot Springs is the Mornington Peninsula’s OG hot springs. It’s like a wonderland of geothermal baths – more than 70 baths set over 42 acres (i.e. HUGE). Basically, take a compass to navigate the maze of springs and saunas and bushland and hill tracks, because it’s like a suburb in itself – with a restaurant, two cafés and a coffee hut, sun lounges and hammocks, relaxation domes, a little food farm, areas where you cover yourself in clay, luxe glamping (more on that later)… you name it, they have it. The vastness of Peninsula Hot Springs means that, despite the popularity of this place, you won’t feel cramped. 

Perched on the lake’s edge in the heart of Tamborine Mountain, this sanctuary is just a relaxed 50-minute drive from Brisbane or the Gold Coast. Sol Elements is Australia's first ‘floating’ elemental bathhouse, complete with hot thermal pools, ice baths, a cedar wood sauna, botanical steam room, scrub suite, salt cave and an open-air fire pit that descends below a lake. And it’s phone-free – because total relaxation is the only thing on the schedule.