Hayball

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa 

Hayball

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

ARCHITECTS
Hayball

AREA
150000 m²

INTERIOR DESIGNERS
Hayball

YEAR
2022

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION
Minicon

BUILDER
Gdp Group, Ramvek

ACOUSTIC ENGINEERING
Arup

LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION
Paul Mcquilan Landscapes

SERVICES ENGINEERING
Stantec

SIGNAGE
Mass

LOCATION
Fingal, Australia

PROJECT MANAGERS
Spark Projects

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING
Stantec

CATEGORY
Hospitality,Therem,

ELECTRICAL AND MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
Stantec

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
Mala Landscape Architecture And Urban Design

LIGHTING CONSULTANTS
Arup

HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING
Stantec

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Alba Thermal Springs & Spa is an enduring 15-hectare tourism venture with rejuvenation at its heart.

Drawing on the unique endemic planting communities and shifting atmosphere of the Mornington Peninsula environment, Alba Thermal Springs & Spa reimagines the former green wedge site into an immersive bathing and wellness destination, comprising 32 geothermal pools, water features, and spa buildings nestled into the tertiary dune landscape.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Taking advantage of the natural fall in the land, the main building emerges from the gentle undulation of the terrain.

The form is characterized by raw concrete allowing the organic sensibilities of the site to be the hero and cultivate a language between built form and landscape.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

The façade’s ribbed texture, bronze glass, and metallic finishes add an of element robustness and minor intervention amongst the natural surroundings.

The curved concrete walls express the purity of form, delineating the spaces and cutting through the landscape creating sunken courtyards and curating opportunities for light and shadow.

The interior scheme is a continuity of minimalist design. Simple forms and a circular motif are adopted throughout and articulated with curved walls, rounded windows, and large skylights that punctuate the space illuminating the interior.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Celebrating the process of arrival, a spiral stair rises from a reflective indoor pool as a sculptural feature and as a mechanism to demark the public and private spaces.

Raw materiality is expressed through a feature wall clad in hand-made Spanish brick tiles, concrete pillars, and flooring that are softened by touches of timber paneling.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Elements of the native landscape such as Bottlebrush seed pods, Eucalyptus gum nuts, and seashells are referenced in the relaxation lounge and spa treatment rooms.

The use of natural, tactile materials and tonal color palettes strengthen the indoor/outdoor connection.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Pinned off a meandering stone path, the bathing experience at Alba sees all pools forming a family of simple geometries, allowing intuitive wayfinding, dispersion, and equity of bathing experiences, the efficiency of operations, and reliability of materiality.

Though simple in form and precise in detail, each pool’s conscious siting, its interaction with topography, views, planting, seasons, and micro-climate curates a unique experience.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

In the rolling dunes, intimate circular pools perch over the golden tips of coastal spear grass as it sways together with clouds of saltbush.

Around the largest dune, pools sit flush around a central water feature, its flow programmed to mimic the tides while its geology suggests an exposed permanence under eons of shifting sand.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Formal ‘botanical pools’ are hidden in gullies of tea-tree scrub, dappled shadows playing on straight lines of warm stone.

On ridges-shallow pools lie low for reclining, submerging the full body out of the wind, with a comfortable curved coping for staring upwards at clouds whipping from ocean to bay.

Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit

Alba Thermal Springs & Spa presents itself as a world-class wellness destination and a unity of architecture, landscape, and environment.

The holistic approach grasps the environmental complexities of the site and captures the fleeting qualities of nature for a recalibrating sensory experience.


Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit


Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit


Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
© Willem Dirk Du Toit


Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
Pavilion Ground Floor Plan & Axonometric Site View
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
Plan - Ground Floor
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
Plan - 1st Floor
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
Plan - 2nd Floor


Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
Sections
Alba Thermal Springs and Spa
Locality Site Plan

Hayball
T +61 3 96993644
Hayball
Level1/250 Flinders Ln, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia