Onsen Hot Pools: book it, or soak for less
What an Onsen pool at Arthurs Point costs, how hard one is to get, and the other places to soak in and around town, each with the operator's price and the date we read it.
Published 18 September 2026 · Last checked 18 September 2026 · By Queenstown Pocket
In short: The decision is whether an hour-long pool at Onsen, $180 for two ($122 alone, $260 for four), is worth booking ahead, or whether a cheaper soak does the same job. It turns on three things: how many of you there are, because Onsen prices per pool; whether you can get a slot, because every Original pool from 10am to 8pm was full for the five days its grid showed on 18 September; and ages, because Onsen takes no under-5s and 5 to 11s only before 5pm. In town, the Bathhouse is $89 each for two (18 and over); Driftaway’s tubs in Frankton are $138 for 2 to 4. Prices as the operators publish them, read 18 September 2026.
The Thursday email settles this for a given week. This page keeps the numbers behind it, with the source and the date on each one.
What each soak costs
| Option | Adult price | Child price | What you get | Time | Getting there | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onsen, Original Onsen (soak only) | Per pool: $122 for 1 bather, $180 for 2, $225 for 3, $260 for 4 | Children 5 to 11: $30, 9am to 4:45pm only | One hot pool booked for your group of 1 to 4 | 60 minutes, changing time included; open 9am to 11pm, last pool booking 10pm | 160 Arthurs Point Road, 10 km or a 10-minute drive; free 10-minute shuttle from town, booked with the pool | Onsen, Original Onsen (opens in a new tab), Onsen FAQ (opens in a new tab) (hours) and getting here (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026 |
| Onsen, Pool for Charity | $75 for 1 to 4 people | The $75 covers 1 to 4 people; the age rules below apply | One Original Onsen pool at 8.30am; 100% of proceeds go to the selected charity, now the Bruce Grant Youth Trust | 60 minutes at 8.30am daily; released every Monday for the following week | Same address as above | Onsen, Pool for Charity (opens in a new tab) and Onsen, experiences (opens in a new tab) (session length), read 18 Sep 2026 |
| Onsen, Oval Onsen (soak only) | Per pool: $127 for 1 bather, $185 for 2 | 16 and over only | An oval hot pool for 1 or 2 | 60 minutes | Same address as above | Onsen, Oval Onsen, read 18 Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab) |
| Onsen, Tri-Bathe | Per pool: $137 for 1 bather, $195 for 2 | 18 and over only | Steam, hot pool and cold plunge for 1 or 2 | 60 minutes | Same address as above | Onsen, Tri-Bathe, read 18 Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab) |
| Onsen, soak and treatment (Aotearoa Escape) | Per person: $265 with the Original Onsen, $285 with the Oval; where only 2 take treatments, a third guest can join the Original soak for $45.00 | Treatments 16 and over | A soak plus a 1-hour treatment | 45-minute hot pool plus the 1-hour treatment; last spa booking 8.30pm | Same address as above | Original + Treatment (opens in a new tab), Oval + Treatment (opens in a new tab) and Onsen FAQ (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026 |
| The Bathhouse Spa Queenstown | Per person, 60 min: $99 for 1, $89 each for 2, $79 each for 3, $69 each for 4. 90 min: $119, $99, $89, $79 each | No one under 18 | A 60 or 90-minute session, priced per person | 9am to 9:30pm daily; last 60-minute session 8:30pm, last 90-minute session 8pm | 35 Brecon Street, in town | The Bathhouse Group, Queenstown, read 18 Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab) |
| Bathe by Aluume | Communal from $55, private from $85.50 (9am to 2:30pm); from $60.50 and $94.05 (2pm to close); Twilight 6:30pm to 8:30pm from $66 and $102.60 | Not stated on the page | Communal or private hot pools; the page does not say whether prices are per person or per pool | Session length not stated; open 9am to 11pm, last arrival 10pm | 34 Brecon Street, in town | Aluume, Bathe, read 18 Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab) |
| Driftaway Queenstown hot tubs | $138 for 2 to 4 people (public rate); $69 for in-house guests | At least 2 adults, someone over 18 present, no children under 2 | A private hot tub, open to the public; no showers at the tubs | 1 hour, changing time included | 11 Lake Avenue, Frankton, over the Frankton Arm; the park calls itself 10 minutes from everything | Driftaway Queenstown, hot tubs, read 18 Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab) |
| Frankton Beach (the lake) | A public lake beach; the page states no price | The page states no price | A lake swim, not a hot pool; shallow, so the water is slightly warmer; BBQ area, toilets and a playground | No booking | Local bus to the Frankton Bus Hub, or along the Frankton Track | Destination Queenstown, beaches, read 18 Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab) |
| Wānaka Pool (QLDC) | Set by QLDC; not on any page we could read | Set by QLDC; not on any page we could read | A hot pool beside a 25 m lap pool and a leisure pool | Mon to Fri 6am to 9pm, Sat and Sun 8am to 6pm, per Lake Wanaka Tourism's listing | 41 Sir Tim Wallis Drive, Wanaka: about 1 hour via the Crown Range (69 km), or 1 hour 15 via Cromwell | Lake Wanaka Tourism, Wānaka Pool (opens in a new tab) and driving to Wanaka (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026 |
The Original Onsen page lists one price per number of bathers, with no date or time-of-day bands for adults. We could not read prices from the booking grid itself, so the checkout price for a particular date is unconfirmed. Where a page does not say something, the table says so rather than guessing.
The same hour, by group size
Onsen charges per pool, the Bathhouse per person, and Driftaway a flat rate for two to four, so the cheapest option depends on how many of you are going. The figures below are our arithmetic from the prices in the table: Onsen’s pool price divided by the number of bathers, the Bathhouse’s 60-minute per-person rate times heads, and Driftaway’s $138 divided by heads.
| Group | Onsen Original, 60 min | Bathhouse, 60 min | Driftaway hot tub, 1 hour |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $122 | $99 | Not bookable: 2 adults minimum |
| 2 people | $180 ($90 each) | $178 ($89 each) | $138 ($69 each) |
| 3 people | $225 ($75 each) | $237 ($79 each) | $138 ($46 each) |
| 4 people | $260 ($65 each) | $276 ($69 each) | $138 ($34.50 each) |
On those numbers, one person pays $23 less at the Bathhouse ($99 against $122), and two people pay within $2 of each other ($178 against $180). For three or four, Onsen comes out cheaper per head than the Bathhouse ($75 against $79, $65 against $69), and Driftaway is the cheapest of the three at every group size it takes. Bathe by Aluume is left out because its page does not say whether its prices are per person or per pool.
The free and cheaper soaks
- The lake at Frankton Beach. Destination Queenstown describes it as a popular swimming spot, fairly shallow, so the water is slightly warmer, with a BBQ area, toilets and a playground. It is a lake swim, not a hot pool. No page we read on 18 September says in words that it is free, so we call it a public beach and leave it there. Get there on the local bus to the Frankton Hub or along the Frankton Track, which has the distance and walking time.
- The Onsen charity pool, $75. An Original pool at 8.30am for 1 to 4 people, with 100% of proceeds going to the charity. By our arithmetic that is $47 less than the cheapest standard pool ($122 for one). On 18 September every charity slot the grid showed was booked: see the release day below.
- Driftaway’s tubs, $138 for 2 to 4. A private hot tub for an hour, changing time included, at 11 Lake Avenue in Frankton, overlooking the Frankton Arm, and open to the public. There are no showers at the tubs.
- The Bathhouse, from $69 each. In town on Brecon Street, 18 and over, open to 9:30pm. The per-person rate falls as the group grows.
- The Wānaka Pool. A council pool with a hot pool, about an hour’s drive via the Crown Range (69 km). We could not load QLDC’s own pool page on 18 September, so we have no entry price for it; the hours are from Lake Wanaka Tourism’s listing. The Queenstown to Wanaka guide has the ways over.
- Not an option: Kinloch. The hot tub at Kinloch Wilderness Retreat near Glenorchy turns up in lists of hot pools, but its facilities are for in-house guests only (Kinloch booking conditions (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026).
What changes the answer
Getting a slot. Onsen’s FAQ (opens in a new tab) says it is heavily booked out most days and to book well in advance, and gives no number of days. Its booking system (opens in a new tab) aims to release availability about 5 to 6 months ahead, and on 18 September it was taking bookings to 28 February 2027. The same day, the grid showed every Original pool from 10:00 to 20:00 fully booked from Friday 18 to Tuesday 22 September. The only space was late: none at all on the Friday, and on Saturday to Tuesday between one and four pools at 21:45 or 22:00. That is the state of the grid when we read it (read 18 Sep 2026), not a rule; check the grid itself before deciding.
The waitlist, and why checking beats it. Onsen runs a waitlist through a Google Form linked from its waitlist page (opens in a new tab) and contacts people by phone or email if something opens. Cancellations go straight back online as standard availability, so someone browsing the grid can book a cancelled pool before staff reach the list.
The charity pool’s release day. Charity pools are released every Monday for the following week (Pool for Charity (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026). On 18 September every day the charity grid (opens in a new tab) showed, 18 to 22 September, was fully booked.
Late pools and the shuttle. The last shuttle leaves town at 9pm and the latest return is 10.45pm (Onsen FAQ (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026). Our arithmetic: a 60-minute pool at 10pm ends at 11pm, fifteen minutes after that last return, so the 10pm slot needs your own way back; a 9:45pm pool ends at 10:45pm, the time of the last return. Onsen’s own parking is free, limited and for cars only (getting here (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026).
Weather, and the cost of changing your mind. Onsen needs at least 24 hours’ notice to change or cancel, or it charges 100% of the price; bookings of three or more pools need 72 hours (Onsen FAQ (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026). Inside 24 hours, then, walking away from a bad forecast costs the full price. If the cheaper soak is the Wānaka Pool in winter, Lake Wanaka Tourism notes that chains may be needed on the Crown Range (driving to Wanaka (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026).
Ages. Onsen (FAQ (opens in a new tab) and Oval Onsen page (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026): no under-5s in the pool rooms at any time; 5 to 11 before 5pm only, last session 4:45pm; 12 and over from 5pm; the Oval Onsen and all treatments 16 and over (16 and 17 year olds are limited to the Paradise Bespoke Massage or the Seasonal Care Facial); the Tri-Bathe 18 and over. The Bathhouse is 18 and over. Driftaway needs two adults, someone over 18, and takes no children under 2. With a child under 5, Onsen and the Bathhouse are out, Driftaway takes children from 2, and Aluume’s page states no age rule. For more with children, see Queenstown with kids.
Season. With availability released to 28 February 2027 (Onsen waitlist page (opens in a new tab), read 18 Sep 2026), summer dates to the end of February were already released on 18 September. The Wānaka Pool’s weekend hours (8am to 6pm) are shorter than its weekday hours (6am to 9pm).
How to book
Onsen, Original Onsen soak
$122 for 1, $180 for 2, $225 for 3, $260 for 4, per pool, 60 minutes; book the free shuttle with the pool. Read 18 Sep 2026.
Book direct (no commission). We earn nothing on this one.
Onsen, Pool for Charity
$75 for 1 to 4 people, 8.30am daily, released every Monday for the following week. Read 18 Sep 2026.
Book direct (no commission). We earn nothing on this one.
The Bathhouse Spa Queenstown
60 minutes from $69 to $99 per person, 90 minutes from $79 to $119, 18 and over. Read 18 Sep 2026.
Book direct (no commission). We earn nothing on this one.
Bathe by Aluume
Communal from $55, private from $85.50, rising after 2pm. Read 18 Sep 2026.
Book direct (no commission). We earn nothing on this one.
Driftaway Queenstown hot tubs
$138 for 2 to 4 people, 1 hour including changing. Read 18 Sep 2026.
Book direct (no commission). We earn nothing on this one.
Onsen is also sold on Klook. The card below shows Klook’s own from-price as klook.com showed it on 10 September 2026. Onsen prices per pool, not per person, so compare the total for your group with the table above before you pay. Klook’s terms, cancellation included, are its own; Onsen’s rule for its own bookings is 24 hours’ notice or the full price. Booking through Klook pays us a commission; booking direct pays us nothing.
Onsen Hot Pools and Spa
Up to 3 hours · free cancellation
From NZ$122 on Klook, price checked 2026-09-10
We earn a commission if you book through this link.
Other prices on this list sit with the rest of the big-ticket activities in what Queenstown activities cost; for a wet day with or without a pool, see Queenstown when it rains. Orbus times for Arthurs Point are on the Arthurs Point bus page.
Questions people ask
How much is Onsen Hot Pools?
The Original Onsen, a 60-minute pool for 1 to 4 people with changing time included, is priced per pool: $122 for one bather, $180 for two, $225 for three and $260 for four, with children aged 5 to 11 at $30 between 9am and 4:45pm. The Oval Onsen is $127 and $185 (16 and over), the Tri-Bathe $137 and $195 (18 and over). Onsen's own prices, read 18 September 2026.
How far ahead do you need to book Onsen?
Onsen gives no number of days. Its FAQ says it is heavily booked out most days and to book well in advance, and its booking system aims to release availability about 5 to 6 months ahead; on 18 September 2026 it was taking bookings to 28 February 2027. That day every Original pool from 10am to 8pm showed fully booked for 18 to 22 September, and the only space in those five days was at 9:45pm or 10pm.
Is there a cheaper way to get an Onsen pool?
The Pool for Charity: one Original pool at 8.30am each day, $75 for 1 to 4 people, with all proceeds going to the selected charity (now the Bruce Grant Youth Trust). Pools are released every Monday for the following week. On 18 September 2026 it showed fully booked on every day listed, 18 to 22 September.
Can children go to Onsen Hot Pools?
Not under 5. Children aged 5 to 11 can use the pools before 5pm only, with the last bookable session at 4:45pm; from 5pm the pools are 12 and over. Treatments and the Oval Onsen are 16 and over, and the Tri-Bathe is 18 and over. In town, the Bathhouse takes no one under 18; Driftaway's hot tubs need two adults and take no children under 2.
Is there a free hot pool near Queenstown?
Not one we could confirm. The commercial soaks on this page all charge, and QLDC's own pool pages, which would show what the Wānaka Pool charges for its hot pool, could not be read on 18 September 2026. The Kinloch hot tub near Glenorchy is for in-house guests only. The soak with no booking at all is the lake: Frankton Beach is shallow, so the water is slightly warmer, and it is a bus ride or a walk along the Frankton Track from town.
How do you get to Onsen without a car?
Onsen runs a free 10-minute shuttle from Bus Stop D on the corner of Camp and Shotover Streets, at the brown bench seats outside Café Marmolada, 43 Camp Street. It seats up to 9, must be booked with your pool, and does not collect from accommodation or take groups of 10 or more. The last shuttle leaves town at 9pm and the latest return is 10.45pm.
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Sources: Onsen, Original Onsen Soak Only (opens in a new tab), Onsen, Pool for Charity (opens in a new tab), Onsen, Oval Onsen Soak Only (opens in a new tab), Onsen, Tri-Bathe (opens in a new tab), Onsen, Original Onsen + Treatment (opens in a new tab), Onsen, Oval Onsen + Treatment (opens in a new tab), Onsen, experiences (opens in a new tab), Onsen, FAQs (opens in a new tab), Onsen, getting here (opens in a new tab), Onsen, waitlist (opens in a new tab), Onsen booking grid, Original pools (opens in a new tab), Onsen booking grid, charity pool (opens in a new tab), The Bathhouse Spa Queenstown (opens in a new tab), Bathe by Aluume (opens in a new tab), Driftaway Queenstown, hot tubs (opens in a new tab), Lake Wanaka Tourism, Wānaka Pool (opens in a new tab), Lake Wanaka Tourism, driving to Wanaka (opens in a new tab), Kinloch Wilderness Retreat, booking conditions (opens in a new tab) and Destination Queenstown, beaches (opens in a new tab), retrieved 18 September 2026. Prices are quoted as each operator publishes them and change between seasons; the booking-grid availability is a snapshot from 18 September 2026. The Klook price is as klook.com showed it on 10 September 2026. Independent guide; we earn a commission only through the Klook card marked above. This independent guide is published by Tally Sphere Limited, a New Zealand company. Spotted a change? Report a problem with this page and the page address comes with your email.