Blue Springs and Beyond: Eight of New Zealand’s Most Stunning Springs and Swimming Spots To Soothe the Senses

Steam billows from clear pools of water, swirling between towering green trees. Birds warble, call and tweet, and the air smells fresh. It’s a serene scene – one you can experience at many springs and watering holes throughout Aotearoa.

From warm water amid forest on Great Barrier Island to adults-only soaking pools in the Coromandel and a natural (and freezing) taonga in Te Waipounamu/the South Island, here’s our guide to picturesque freshwater spots across the country. Some you can swim in, others need to be admired from on land – but all are worthy destinations.

Blue Spring Te Waihou Walkway , Hamilton-Waikato
Home to some of the purest water in the world, the pools at this famous attraction have a mesmerising turquoise colour that can trick you into thinking it’s some liquid other than water – or that you’ve somehow found yourself in an alien world. A free, easy walk will take you to the pools through leafy wetlands, grassy pastures, and forest winding past small waterfalls. The trail is 4.7 kilometres one way, so around 90 minutes or three hours return – or you can park closer on Leslie Road for a 15-minute walk. Swimming in these springs is not allowed, as they’re a natural taonga used for New Zealand’s famously clean bottled water.

Hamurana Springs , Rotorua
Walk this 30-minute round trip through 100-year-old redwood forests and breathe in the fresh, clean air surrounding these clear waters that feed into Lake Rotorua. You’ll stand on a wooden platform to view this spring, which is the deepest natural freshwater spring in the North Island. The area, on the north side of Lake Rotorua and about a 20-minute drive from Rotorua itself, holds special significance to the Ngāti Rangiwewehi iwi, and you might see native bird species such as New Zealand scaup (a diving duck) and weweia (New Zealand dabchick, a brown, yellow-eyed swimming bird). Walk it by yourself or take the guided tour (both options have different costs) where a Ngāti Rangiwewehi descendant explains the significance of the springs, their history and brings stories to life. Swimming isn’t allowed.

Te Puia Springs at Kawhia Hot Water Beach , Waikato
What makes these springs so fun is that you need to dig them out of the sand yourself. Find them at Kawhia Beach (also known as Ocean Beach), a lovely spot in the quiet West Coast town of Kawhia – it’s like a more under-the-radar version of the Coromandel’s Hot Water Beach. Bring a shovel and dig into the soft sand around two hours either side of low tide to enjoy a soak in the jacuzzi-warm geothermal water that wells up. This is a free, publicly accessible beach, so you can bring your own kai and drinks. There’s also a carpark nearby, and you get to the beach via a short walk over the sand dunes.

Kaitoke Hot Springs , Aotea Great Barrier Island
If you're visiting Great Barrier Island, make time for this 45-minute walk through forested wetland, leading to a natural hot spring. Thankfully, the path is gravelled to minimise muddiness, or you’re travelling on wooden boardwalks, so it’s both pushchair- and wheelchair-friendly. More of a shallow river or wide stream than a pool, the springs are set among the trees and are large enough to sit or lie down in – and they’re free for anyone to use. There might be a few other people at the springs so you might make new friends – including birds like fernbird or spotless crake that live in the area.

Otumuheke Stream , Taupō
Set within Taupō’s Spa Thermal Park, a 25-minute walk from Taupō town centre ,this destination allows you to soak under a cascading waterfall or among rocks while enjoying green countryside views and the blue ribbon of the Waikato River – New Zealand’s longest. Huka Falls is also nearby. Māori came here with waka (canoes) to heal and cleanse themselves, and today everyone can enjoy them for free. Keep in mind that the water temperature can change depending on where you soak – some spots can be warmer or colder than others.

The Lost Spring geothermal pools and day spa , Whitianga
With chest-high water between 32 and 41 degrees Celsius – just warm enough for clouds of steam to billow above the clear water’s surface – these pools are a delight. Reserve a two- or four-hour spot to soak, surrounded by native bush. A worthy stop during any trip to the Coromandel Peninsula, there’s even a poolside drinks service. If that’s not enough to convince you to visit, there’s a day spa with an expansive menu (including a coconut milk soak and sugar cane exfoliation) and a restaurant that’s open from breakfast to dinnertime. These pools are adults-only, or kids aged 14 to 18 must be accompanied by an adult, and bookings are essential, with prices starting at $60 for two hours.

Te Waikoropupū Springs , Golden Bay
At the top of the South Island, just under two hours’ drive from Nelson, are the largest cold-water springs in the southern hemisphere. The water here is amazingly clear – so clear, you can easily see the bottom several metres down. Swimming and fishing aren’t allowed, but there are wooden viewing platforms and a beautiful, one-kilometre easy walk through thick forest and wetlands. Read information at the entrance about why the springs are important to Māori as a taonga and wahi tapu (place held in high cultural and spiritual regard). You can see a lot of wildlife, too, including native birds like cheeky weka, which will steal food from you when you’re not looking (and even sometimes when you are).

Blue Pools , Wānaka
In the South Island’s Mount Aspiring National Park (a key filming location for The Lord of the Rings) are these mesmerising pools. From the car park, it’s a scenic one-hour-return walk through thick forest with trees higher than most buildings, grassy open fields offering mountain views, and across a rickety wooden swing bridge that’ll make you feel like you’re in an adventure movie. The pools also have cinematic views up a river gorge, and there are plenty of fish, including trout – plus, birds such as the very small, very yellow mōhua. You can swim here, but take note the water is freezing due to being fed by glaciers.