photo credit: Caleb Baildon & www.nzhotpools.co.nz

New Zealand has one better – a place where the beach is the hot tub.

Aptly-named “Hot Water Beach” lies on the Pacific coast of New Zealand’s northern island, south of nearby Mercury Bay.

This is one beach where visitors don’t just build castles made of sand – they build temporary spas and hot tubs. Underground hot springs seep up from below the shoreline to create an all-natural hot tub experience, right on the beach.

Beachgoers plan their spa-digging around low tide, and soak in the hot water as the tide comes in. It’s an exquisite, if temporary, pleasure. As the tide comes in and fills your tub, you soak while the tide gently undoes your hand-made creation. The sun goes down and the beach bonfire is lit.
You can imagine, it’s a popular spot. Local hotels and amenities support guests and locals alike as they combine a beach holiday with relaxing in a sandy hot tub.

New Zealand is blessed with geothermal energy. In fact, ten percent of the country’s electricity is generated from the geothermal activity from volcanoes that generate huge amounts of piping hot water. This hot water rises to the surface, cooling as it goes – but it’s still plenty hot when it pokes through the earth’s crust.

The two main fissures at Hot Water Beach regularly produce water as hot as 64* Celsius (147*F) at a rate as high as 15 litres per minute, according to a local website about the beach. Hot springs are a cornucopia of minerals that rejuvenate and cleanse. The hot springs at Hot Water Beach is no exception.

Relaxing, playing and connecting to nature’s own hot tub on a beach – sounds like an experience not to be missed by avid spa-goers!

If you’ve been there, let us know! We’d love to hear your stories about it…

Tags: hot tub beaches, natural beaches, natural hot springs, natural hot water beaches, new zealand