The Newly Added Hotels We’re Planning Trips Around in 2026

"Set amid dunes and bushland less than an hour from central Melbourne, this unique spring-fed complex is described as one of Australia’s most special wellness environs. Opened in 2022, the Alba Thermal Springs and Spa incorporates nearly three dozen spring-fed pools fed by the region’s naturally occurring mineral waters, which had long made it a popular day-trip destination. In 2025 the hotel component opened on a hilltop ridge just above the complex, with five suites and two rooms, and buggy service now ferries guests down to the waters for days of sunrise soaks and sips of wine in private tubs." - Mitchell Friedman