How hot springs generate economic value
Wellness tourism is attractive not only because of its rapid growth, but because of the economic value generated by each visitor. Wellness trips accounted for less than 8 per cent of global tourism trips yet almost 18 per cent of total tourism expenditure. International wellness travellers spent around 36 per cent more per trip than the average international tourist, while domestic wellness travellers spent approximately 163 per cent more than the average domestic traveller. For regions, this high-yield visitor profile translates into greater expenditure across accommodation, hospitality, retail and visitor experiences, generating broader economic benefits than many traditional tourism segments.
For Australian governments, wellness tourism represents a practical pathway to strengthen regional economies and improve tourism resilience. Hot springs can act as anchor attractions that support broader investment across accommodation, hospitality, retail and complementary visitor experiences. Encouraging visitors to stop, stay and spend.
The case for wellness tourism rests on how these visitors spend. Unlike, many tourist attractions, hot springs often form the centrepiece of a broader visitor itinerary.
Visitors may choose premium accommodation, purchase wellness treatments, dine locally, participate in cultural activities and engage with nature-based experiences.
A thermal bathing trip can also include accommodation, dining, wine tourism, wellness treatments, retail shopping and outdoor activities, spreading benefits across tourism operators, hospitality, retail, transport and supply chains. Essentially hot springs experiences encourage visitors to stop, stay and spend.
Regional dispersal is another key benefit. For example, many of Victoria's leading wellness destinations are in regional areas such as Daylesford, Hepburn Springs, East Gippsland and the Mornington Peninsula, directing visitor spending into local businesses, employment and investment opportunities. For policymakers, this supports long-standing goals to spread benefits across the state, diversify regional economies and strengthen community resilience.
Wellness tourism can also reduce seasonality, one of tourism's persistent challenges. Thermal baths and hot springs attract visitors year-round because cooler weather often strengthens the experience, supporting more stable year-round revenues, higher occupancy and greater stability for the local tourism workforce.
Hot springs are a great example of why wellness tourism is desirable – combining high-value visitors, longer stays, year-round demand and regional dispersal, supporting accommodation, dining, retail, recreation and transport through broader ripple effects.
For governments, these outcomes support regional growth, tourism resilience and economic diversification. For investors, they point to opportunities in accommodation, hospitality, wellness services and infrastructure that can strengthen local economies and support jobs.
Victoria and Queensland show different paths to success
Victoria is one of Australia’s wellness tourism hubs. The state already has a large concentration of premium thermal and mineral spring experiences, including the Peninsula Hot Springs, Deep Blue Hot Springs Warrnambool, Alba Thermal Springs & Spa, Metung Hot Springs, Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa, Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve and Japanese Mountain Retreat.
It has the largest pipeline of projects proposals including Phillip Island Hot Springs, 12 Apostles Hot Springs and Resort, the Grampians Nordic Spa Resort in Halls Gap, Cape Woolamai Lodge and Hot Springs, continued expansion of Peninsula Hot Springs, and the Hepburn Mineral Springs masterplan. Together, these projects show how Victoria's wellness offer is moving from individual attractions toward a broader destination ecosystem.
What makes Victoria’s hot springs so successful is what’s happening outside of its boundaries. Many wellness sites are located in regions known for food and wine, premium accommodation, landscapes and cultural experiences, allowing visitors to combine several activities in one trip and supporting longer stays and higher spending.
International examples such as Iceland’s Blue Lagoon show that thermal bathing is most powerful when integrated with nature, hospitality and culture. The commercial opportunity is not in standalone attractions, but in destination ecosystems.
Queensland presents a different but equally important hot springs story. While Victoria is leading the market in premium commercial hot springs and destination-scale wellness resort development, Queensland’s strength lies in the breadth and geographic spread of its artesian bathing network. Anchored by the Great Artesian Basin, the state offers one of Australia’s largest collections of thermal bathing experiences, including Cunnamulla Hot Springs, Great Artesian Spa in Mitchell, Talaroo Hot Springs, Innot Hot Springs, Julia Creek Artesian Baths, Charlotte Plains Artesian Baths and a wider network of council and community-led artesian pools across Outback Queensland.
Rather than being concentrated in a small number of high-end resort precincts, Queensland’s hot springs offer is more dispersed and route based. The development and promotion of the Wellness Way, which links around 25 artesian baths, thermal pools, natural hot springs and wellness experiences, shows how the state is positioning thermal bathing as part of a broader regional tourism journey. This gives Queensland a distinctive advantage. It may not have the same depth of premium resort investment as Victoria, but it has a greater breadth of accessible bathing experiences that can support regional dispersal, longer itineraries and visitor spending across outback communities.
As the tourism sector develops into interconnected clusters, the investment opportunity grows. These clusters attract broader markets, encourage repeat visitation and support seamless regional tourism experiences - strengthening the case for coordinated investment and policy support.
What this means for Australia
The next chapter of tourism growth will be defined by a combination of preventive health, experiential travel, nature-based tourism and premium visitor experiences, creating opportunities across multiple jurisdictions. Victoria is showing how premium thermal bathing can anchor destination-scale wellness precincts, while Queensland demonstrates the value of a broad artesian bathing network.
Together, hot springs are forming part of regional tourism systems that combine bathing, accommodation, hospitality, spa and wellness services, nature, food and beverage, cultural experiences and local product.
As more projects emerge across Australia, the opportunity is to move beyond individual assets and build integrated wellness destinations that encourage visitors to stop, stay and spend.
Turning concepts into investment-ready projects
Hot springs developments can deliver benefits well beyond tourism, but realising those benefits requires a clear evidence base. The strongest projects connect thermal bathing with accommodation, hospitality, wellness services, culture and local supply chains, creating broader economic value for regional communities.
Through market assessments, demand forecasting, economic impact analysis, business cases and funding support, BDO’s Economic Advisory team helps developers, investors, councils and governments test project feasibility, attract investment and demonstrate long-term value.
Our experience spans hot springs and wellness resorts in Australia and New Zealand with the view to support the next generation of wellness tourism developments, helping move from concept to delivery.
