The 16 best wellness retreats in Australia

Hidden in the peaceful hinterlands of the Hunter Valley, Elysia Wellness Retreat is the breath of fresh country air you didn’t realise you needed so badly. The tranquil day spa here is a relaxation sanctuary, offering more than 50 therapies and treatments – from traditional massage and bespoke facials to breathwork and ice bath immersion, reiki, energy healing and chakra clearing or wellness coaching. Fully unwind by staying the night in one of Elysia’s private adults-only suites or take a mini wellness break by booking one of their hard-to-resist packages. These come with perks like complimentary access to the spa pool, steam room and gymnasium; wellness activities, like volleyball, pilates and deep water running; an energy-boosting breakfast and more. 

You’ll find more than 50 bathing experiences at Victoria’s first geothermal mineral springs and day spa. The award-winning natural hot spring houses shared thermal mineral pools, wet and dry saunas, a hydrotherapy pool, Turkish and Moroccan hammams, and the frequently Instagrammed hilltop pool, which boasts 360-degree views over the farmlands of Fingal. In 2018, Peninsula Hot Springs underwent a $13 million expansion, which welcomed an Australian-first ice cave and a deep freeze chamber, plus a food garden that services the onsite café, as well as nine new pools. More recently, the spa unveiled ten brand-new Eco Lodges, complete with private geothermal pools overlooking a peaceful lake.

Australia’s longest-running health retreat offers transformative experiences designed to nourish the mind, body and spirit. Set within 380 acres of rainforest in the Gold Coast hinterland, Eden Health Retreat recently unveiled a new Vitality Spa Centre, complete with a cryotherapy chamber, infrared sauna, dry float pod and oxygen chamber. Stay from three to 14 nights with a retreat package that includes pampering treatments, nourishing meals, meditative experiences, guided yoga and nature activities.

There’s something inherently restorative about spending three days barefoot on a 60-acre horse ranch. Throw in yoga, meditation and sound healing, and you’ve got a pretty flawless recipe for a wellness retreat. Add private chefs serving (probiotic) ice cream and three resident horses, and you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d found yourself in a 13-year-old’s fever dream. At Sugar Beach Ranch, this fantasy becomes a reality with women-only horse retreats that harness the healing power of equine wellness. 

Gather up to seven friends for an unforgettable wellness stay at Bass Lodge on King Island. Just a ten-minute drive from the airport, this secluded property feels a million miles away. Inside, the lodge boasts four spacious bedrooms, while the huge deck invites you to enjoy King Island’s finest produce as you watch the sunset over the sea. Start your mornings with an invigorating cold plunge in the Bass Strait, thaw off in the private glass barrel sauna and melt your worries away in the sunken red cedar hot tub. A nourishing breakfast is included, with indoor and outdoor fireplaces for daily meditation, and the option of private guided yoga on the beach or remedial massages.

Escape to Australia’s modern wellness mecca for just a few tranquil days with a ‘Microdose Byron’ getaway at Crystalbrook. Surrounded by 45 acres of magical subtropical rainforest, this retreat package includes two nights of accommodation overlooking the tranquil treetops or lush forest floor. You’ll wake up to complimentary daily yoga, rejuvenate with spa treatments and infrared sauna sessions, enjoy unlimited access to the steam room and Finnish sauna, and drift into a blissful sleep with the aid of a premium beauty kit and night-time botanical drops. 

If a digital detox is what you’re after, then take a much-needed weekend offline at this ecotourism-certified wellness destination. Hidden in the Tallebudgera Valley, Gwinganna houses the largest spa in the Southern Hemisphere with 33 treatment rooms covering everything from reiki and acupuncture to naturopathy and organic facials. For a complete mind and body experience, there’s Gwinganna’s Somadome meditation pod, which is one of only two in all of Australia. The nature sanctuary hosts two-day wellness weekends through to full seven-day detoxes, with stylish suites where you can fall asleep to the gentle sounds of water and bird song. 

Escape off-grid and reconnect with mother nature in Australia’s healing heartland of Byron Bay. This tropical hinterland oasis is one of Australia’s most awarded boutique lifestyle wellness retreats offering four signature stays – Revive, Renew, Refresh and Restore. You’ll have complete flexibility to tailor your holistic journey with morning restorative yoga sessions, plus two or more daily activities of your choice. Gaia’s deluxe day spa also welcomes guests for astrology and tarot readings, natural therapies like cupping and hypnotherapy, energetic healing, clay facials and specialty massages, with all treatments including complimentary use of its pool, hot tub and sauna. 

Situated on a secluded beach in the heart of the Margaret River wine region, this luxurious spa retreat offers wellness journeys for solos and couples. You can melt away any stress with a relaxing Swedish-style massage, nourish your skin with a hydrating glow facial or relax in the infrared sauna with your loved one. Go all in with an overnight stay in one of Injidup’s ten adult-only villas, each with its own private plunge pool and panoramic ocean views.

Heaven really is a place on Earth – and you’ll find it at this world-class wellness oasis on the Mornington Peninsula. Having opened in early 2023, this sustainable, $90 million wellness sanctuary boasts a collection of geothermal pools within its perfectly manicured 15-hectare grounds. There are an impressive 31 thermal pools dotted around the undulating landscape, including geothermal pools, herbal-infused botanical pools, invigorating rain pools and cold plunge pools for the daring. Alba also houses a private rooftop salt pool that allows you to experience total weightlessness, plus steam rooms, saunas and a day spa. 

Recharge your batteries with a three-, five- or six-night wellness retreat in Tasmania’s tranquil and bushy southern mountains. The focus at Harmony Hill is on healing and stress relief, with all packages inclusive of a private villa, detox vegan meals, daily meditation, and two-hour sessions of healing and natural remedies, such as Ayurveda, sound and quantum healing treatments, plus organic facial and body detox mud therapies. Harmony Hills only welcomes a maximum of three guests per week, ensuring that you’ll receive a super-tailored treatment.

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.

If you’re seeking a complete escape into opulence and luxury, then look no further than the Spa at Crown Towers in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney. Treatments by La Prairie and Subtle Energies offer the usual facials and massages, along with other therapies such as the Detox and Adrenal Boost Journey, which begins with a foot ritual and meditation, before ingredients such as tulasi, wild turmeric and Indian lime are applied via an invigorating body scrub, mud wrap and massage. Every treatment longer than one hour is complemented with time in the Aqua Retreat, which consists of a steam room, vitality pool and therapeutic rain shower. The white fluffy bathrobe and a relaxation lounge with snacks and refreshments add that extra bit of wow factor that makes parting with your dollars a little bit easier.

Tucked away in the basement of Lilianfels Resort and Spa, this modern-day spa offers luxury spa, facial, massage and body treatments. Lilianfels’ signature package, the Outer Beauty Inner Health Retreat kicks off with a relaxing hot bath, followed by an exfoliating salt body scrub, essential oil-infused mud wrap, aroma massage, personalised facial, volcanic foot therapy and scalp massage. No detox break is complete without a leisurely swim, and Lilianfels has indoor and outdoor pools nestled in two acres of rambling English country grounds. You can even turn it into a wellness weekend by booking a night in one of the spa’s charming, boutique suites.

This Russian-inspired bathhouse and eatery in the bohemian town of Mullumbimby is the perfect place to unwind, dine and socialise, all at the same time. The Banya dining room opens seamlessly onto the plant-flanked atrium, where magnesium-enriched pools (one cold plunge, two hot mineral pools and one longer lap pool) bubble beneath strings of warm bulbs suspended between the roof. To the left, a sauna and steam room await, and upstairs, you’ll find a sun-drenched rooftop space, home to plush leather daybeds and five massage treatment rooms. The best part? You can spoil yourself with smoothies and shucked oysters post-relaxation. 

Fun fact: 80 per cent of Australia’s mineral springs are in Victoria’s Daylesford region, which makes it perfect for spa treatments and easing tired muscles with long, hot soaks. The Hepburn Springs Bathhouse has been a centre for wellness and social bathing since 1895, so you can be pretty sure they've got it down pat by now. There are two areas for soaking, with heated pools, a magnesium salt bath under a gorgeous skylight, a spa couch bath, a rainfall shower, two saunas, a cold plunge pool and an outdoor spa. Feel like even more pampering? You can book numerous spa treatments, including a mud or milk bath, an exfoliating spa, or a hot stone massage. You aren't going to feel like driving anywhere after that much relaxing, but luckily, Hepburn Bathhouse and Spa also offers accommodation options, so you can make an indulgent weekend of it.