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The marriage of thermal bathing and entertainment: Peninsula Hot Springs unveils AU$13m amphitheatre expansion

02 Aug 2018 Australia’s Peninsula Hot Springs has unveiled its new AUS$13m (US$9.6m, €8.2m, £7.3m) Bath House Amphitheatre – its biggest expansion to date.

The new area includes an Australian-first -10°C ice cave, -25°C deep freeze and sauna experience known as ‘Fire and Ice’ that draws on the hot and cold therapy phenomenon, providing a unique wellbeing and healing experience for guests.

Drawing on ancient and new therapies used across the world, Peninsula Hot Springs has tapped into the latest trends in healing for its expansion, with the inclusion of seven new hot spring pools, two cold plunge pools, an outdoor stage, food bowl, new café, wellness centre and cultural meeting spaces to accompany the fire and ice experience. The move is expected to help the hot springs facility attract up to 750,000 visitors each year.

Charles Davidson, co-founder and CEO of Peninsula Hot Springs, explained that hot springs are fast being recognised in Australia as a means of healing, health and wellbeing.

“Across the world, hot springs have offered wellness experiences that provide lasting physical and mental health benefits,” he said. “Our new Bath House Amphitheatre will not only build on our current bathing offering, but will also provide guests with a means to refresh and rejuvenate their mind, body and soul allowing them to reconnect with nature and the community. We have expanded to allow for additional guests to visit the hot springs and to ensure each visitor will experience even more diverse globally inspired experiences that have never been seen before in Australia and in some cases internationally.”

Positioned throughout the amphitheatre, seven new geothermal mineral spring pools have been designed to look out over the lake and stage area. Guests will be able to relax and take in the scenic surrounds or enjoy an array of entertainment on the new open air stage. Underwater speakers have been fitted into each pool for guests to enjoy the music and entertainment even while floating in the healing waters.

The selection of new pools includes an aquatherapy pool, which will encourage guests to experience floating treatments, which involve a therapist moving the guest’s body through the geothermal water in graceful, fluid movements.

The stage within the Bath House Amphitheatre will host a variety of arts and entertainment experiences, including musical acts, cultural talks, yoga and other wellbeing classes. The area can accommodate large private groups of up to 700 guests.

The fire and ice experience celebrates hot/cold therapy, and includes two new saunas with a capacity of 30 guests per sauna, as well as the contrasting ice cave, deep freeze and cold plunge pools.

Based on the theory of cryotherapy, the Ice Cave will be kept between 2 to -10 degrees Celsius and the Deep Freeze will be -25 degrees Celsius, and are said to provide daring guests with added health benefits, including reduced inflammation, optimised brain function, improved sleep quality, increased metabolism and increased collagen production.

With many bathing cultures represented at Peninsula Hot Springs, care has been taken to ensure guests are educated about each experience and its origins, with numerous cultural learning activities incorporated across the site. This includes a new cultural meeting space, created in collaboration with Boon Wurrung Elder Aunty Carolyn Briggs and Yuin Elder Uncle Max Dulumunmun, that has been designed using sacred principles and will be the stage for many future events.

Operating since 2005, Peninsula Hot Springs has grown at 20 per cent each year since its inception, and currently receives 480,000 annual visitors.

The unveiling of the new amphitheatre area enables the commencement of Peninsula Hot Springs’ future onsite accommodation facilities, which will include glamping and 126 rooms of accommodation available within three years. Private lodges will be suitable for couples and groups of up to 14, as well as larger condominiums with double rooms and capacity for 30 people.

The new Bath House Amphitheatre will be open to the public in September.

The three-acre terraced garden will launch in stages over the coming years. The first stage of food production has begun and fresh, organic produce from the Food Bowl is being used in the onsite dining areas.

Future plans will include the capacity to grow teas and medicinal plants that will be available for purchase onsite in the retail areas.

When complete, the Food Bowl will have seven long curved terraced areas, thermally heated glasshouses and an underground mushroom cave. It will also function as an event and meeting space with an anticipated capacity of 1,500 people.

The new Amphitheatre Café will be the third onsite dining area where guests can enjoy a fusion of seasonal, local, organic and whole (s.l.o.w) food. The indoor/outdoor café will focus on harvesting its fresh produce straight from the Food Bowl, and will have a menu inspired by international cuisines, designed to complement the globally inspired bathing experiences.

A multipurpose wellness activity centre will host a variety of wellbeing programmes and activities, including corporate meetings and functions, various wellness activities including mat and aerial yoga, Pilates, tai chi, meditation, massage, health & wellbeing talks, massage classes for groups of up to 28 and many more.