If there's one thing Sydney residents love more than the beach it's a little bit of TLC. Whether we're going for a hot stone massage or a meditation retreat – there's nothing we won't try out in the name of wellness.
We’re well versed in the importance of taking care of ourselves, physically and mentally. But when your tried-and-tested remedies won’t cut it, sometimes, it pays to up the ante. Luckily for Sydney-siders, wellness centres have cropped up on just about every corner of the city in recent years, each one boasting innovative and luxe solutions to keeping your mind and body in check.
Of course, while we’re blessed to be spoiled for choice by this new crop of health hubs, it can make planning your visit a little difficult. Luckily, that’s where we come in. Whether you’re looking to sweat out your sins in an infrared sauna, or float away your worries in an ice bath, we’ve got you covered.
Read on for all the spots on our radar next year...
1. City Cave (multiple locations)
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Locations: multiple locations across Australia
Services:
- float therapy
- remedial, sports, relaxation, and pregnancy massage
- infrared sauna.
About: If you’re looking to make sauna, massage, and float therapy a part of your weekly routine, City Cave might just be the solution. With centres just about everywhere in Australia, and membership options for regular visits, you can relax to the tune of 400kg of epsom salts in a private float room, or detox in an infrared sauna no matter where you are.
2. Nimbus Co (multiple locations)
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Locations: Bondi, Byron Bay, Manly, Richmond (VIC), Fitzroy (VIC)
Services:
- infrared saunas
- ice baths.
About: For a little R&R on Sydney's east, we love Nimbus co. You can chill out solo in a small infrared sauna, or bring a friend (or two) to the large sauna room, where you'll find complimentary towels, water, and an iPad for your entertainment. For those looking for the full experience, why not compliment your sauna with a plunge in the ice bath?
3. Shelter (Double Bay)
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Location: Double Bay
Services:
- traditional sauna
- infrared sauna
- ice bath.
About: You might be better-acquainted with Shelter's heart-racing cycle and boxing classes, but did you know this luxe gym is also home to it's own wellness facilities? If a workout isn't enough to get you sweating, a visit to their traditional and infrared saunas surely will be, followed by a rejuvenating ice bath.
4. Capybara (Surry Hills)
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Location: Surry Hills
Services:
- bath house
- steam room
- hot stone sauna
- lounge area
- ice plunge.
About: A new addition to Surry Hills, Capybara is serenity personified. Designed to offer a reprieve from our fast-paced world, the spaces pays tribute to wellness rituals from various cultures, from the sento and onsen of Japan, to the Moroccan hammam. There are also memberships available for those looking to develope a regular wellness ritual.
5. Slow House (Bondi)
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Location: Bondi
Services:
- bath house
- infrared sauna (small and large)
- massage (including lymphatic and pregnancy)
- full body treatments
- facials.
About: After closing their smaller space on Bondi's Curlewis street, Slow House partnered with Beach Fit to develop the ultimate wellness haven. The larger, luxe fit-out not only offers saunas and a bathhouse, but massages, full body treatments, and facials. An oasis just steps away from Bondi Beach.
6. Sauna Amalfi (Avalon)
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Location: Avalon Beach
Services:
- infrared sauna
- contrast therapy.
About: Designed with the light, bright Amalfi Coast in mind, Sauna Amalfi is the perfect escape from modern life, nestled in the streets of Avalon Beach. Here, you can unwind with a 45-minute infrared sauna (complete with TVs and Bluetooth speakers, so you can tune into a show as you tune out from the world), or embrace extremes with contrast therapy, as you switch between teh warmth of the sauna and the chill of a cold plunge.
7. RCVRI (multiple locations)
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Locations: Cronulla, Manly, Coogee, Martin Place (opening soon)
Services:
- traditional and infrared saunas
- normatec
- hyperbaric chamber
- steam room
- zero gravity experience.
About: RCVRI is a wellness-lover's dream, with (literally) everything you need to restore and recover at your fingertips. Whether you want to keep things traditional with a steamy sauna, or go all-in on zero gravity flotation bed, the options are endless.
8. CalmBar (Rozelle)
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Location: Rozelle
Services:
- infrared sauna
- ice bath
- breathwork.
About: CalmBar is dedicated to the benefits of cold and heat exposure, combined with the intrinsic power of the breath to get through it. Melt away your stress with 30 minutes in the infrared sauna, followed by a challenging (but rewarding) plunge in an ice bath handmade from Western red cedar. There's also shower facilities stocked with fresh towels and sumptuous Leif products.
9. Sense of Self (Surry Hills)
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Opening: second half of 2025
Location: Surry Hills
Services:
- bath house
- massage studio (remedial, pregnancy and relaxation)
- gua sha facials
- Hammam steam bath
Melbourne's iconic bathhouse Sense of Self is opening the doors to its first Sydney location in the second half of 2025 (exact date yet to be confirmed). The outpost will be located in a whopping 1000-square-metre warehouse space on the border of Surry Hills and Paddington, and will be kitted out with hot pools, cold plunges, saunas, steam rooms and massage treatment spaces.
10. Soak Bathhouse (multiple locations)
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Opening: April 2025
Location: Bondi Junction and Alexandria
Services:
- magnesium rich warm mineral pools
- hot spas
- cold plunge pools
- dry cedarwood saunas
- steam room
- massages
- private, infrared saunas
Gold Coast gem Soak will be opening two locations in Sydney this year. The Bondi Junction outpost will boast two mineral pools, three hot springs inspired thermal spas, sauna, steam room, cold plunge pool and an invigorating cold bucket, while its Alexandria counterpart will feature 700 square metres of state-of-the-art facilities – the brand’s most expansive locations yet – including warm magnesium-rich mineral pools, steamy hot spas, invigorating cold plunge pools, dry cedarwood saunas and aromatic steam rooms.
Need more help to unwind? Here are 10 of the best wellness retreats in Australia.
