Where to go

Try not to eat anything heavy at least 2 hours before your sauna,

Drink lots of water before, during and after.

Please bring

Towels x 2 (one for sitting on in the sauna, and a dry one for afterward). You can rent a towel for $3 on-site if you don’t have enough.

Swimwear or similar – We know in Europe a lot of people sauna naked, however this hasn’t caught on in NZ just yet and we are situated in The Camp and there are children around at times so we have to respect that.

Water bottle – We have water available to refill but best to arrive with a full bottle if possible.

Bring a cup for our famous complimentary herbal tea afterward. We have keep cups for sale too!

Crocs if you have them, they are the best footwear for going to the lake.  We provide some communal crocs here, but best to bring your own if you have them.

Phone on airplane mode or silent (not on vibrate). There is nothing worse than trying to relax and someone else's phone going off, please respect this. You can use your phone to take photos of course, but please enjoy one hour being in the present moment and switching off from the outside world.

We recommend taking metal jewellery off as this gets very hot and can burn you.

Warm loose-fitting clothing for afterward. Leggings and skinny jeans are hard to get back on after a sauna! You have been warned.

We have a designated parking area that’s signposted, follow the green arrows and park facing the Lake Hāwea township. Please do not park on the grass, that’s reserved for campers and please consider other cars when you park so they can fit in the space and get out.

Yes, up to 12 hours before your session bookings can be changed through the change link in your email or on the app. If you have a group booking you will need to email us at fire@thesecretsauna.nz

Up to 24 hours bookings can be canceled via your account and a refund or credit can be provided. You must email us after cancellation if you are eligible as this is not automatically refunded by the booking system.

The sauna sessions are for 1 hour, this consists of 3 x 10-15 min rounds of sauna and a plunge in the beautiful lake in between each round. We also offer 2 hour sessions if you would prefer to take your time.

Maximum 12 people in our large sauna, and 8 people in our smaller sauna.

We have an outdoor shower, however we highly recommend finishing the sauna sessions in the incredible lake for a quick rinse off and we warm you back up with our Secret Sauna tea.

The lake has quartz and other minerals so we also recommend not showering after to keep these on your skin as it makes it feel so good, its the best shower you will ever have!

Yes, we have a lovely luxurious lounge yurt with changing rooms but best to come prepared with a bathing suit on. if your session is full you may have to wait to use it the changing room. We recommend taking metal jewelry off or leaving it at home, as this gets very hot and can burn you. Don’t forget dry clothes for after!!

Sauna brain is a common side effect of The Secret Sauna, people float out of here in a blissed state and often leave their belongings behind.

We will keep items for approximatly one month, after that they will be donated. You can email us at fire@thesecretsauna.nz

We do not post lost property items so please arrange someone to collect your items if you can’t.

The PDF attached with the voucher has step by step instructions on how to add the pass to your account. The voucher code will not work on a regular booking. Please follow the instructions provided.

We strongly oppose using phones on-site as so not to disturb everyone’s relaxation, It wouldn’t be very relaxing if your host was on the phone all the time either, we aim to answer urgent emails /social media direct messages as soon as we can, sometimes we are in the sauna hosting so we may not see it right away.

You do not have to do anything you do not feel comfortable doing. However, the lake has the most incredible water quality and is filled with quartz, making you feel amazing afterward. We highly recommend trying it. You can also take a bucket down and pour the water over you if you prefer. If you have mobility issues getting down to the lake we can bring a bucket of lake water up for you.

The sauna ranges from 70-95 degrees celsius, at various levels of humidity, It is a wood fired sauna, so the temperature may vary throughout the session, your host will try and maintain the levels as much as possible but sometimes external elements impact this.

The hottest place is by the fire and the coolest is by the door.

There are too many to list here as they both have so many health benefits, head over to our Sauna Benefits page, we even have some medical study links for you to have a look at.

Yes, we do, what a great experience to gift! You can buy these on our Gift Cards booking page. You will get sent a voucher by email the code can be redeemed online. If you wish to have also have a physical voucher you can also come and collect one from The Secret Sauna.

We offer a 5 x multi-pass for one person.
6 x multi pass for 2 people to share between them.
10 x multi-pass both for one and 2 people to share.
Click here for multi passes.

It’s not advised to sauna when pregnant, but please seek advice from your medical practitioner.

We are open all seasons. Yes, sauna has so many health benefits which don’t stop just because it’s summer!  We change our opening hours to suit the seasons.

Bookings open 4 weeks in advance for the( public) shared sauna and 8 weeks in advance for private sauna bookings

From 27th December to 10th January we are open exclusively to The Camp and Crosshill guests, no exceptions, to book The Camp click here

Don’t worry, your host will give you a briefing at the start of your session with everything you need to know, If the rounds are too much for you, you can exit the sauna at any time. Please let your host if you have any concerns.

We have solar lights all around the site, and we give you very bright work safety lights to go down to the water.

Our public sessions are over 18 only.

Private sessions can accommodate under 18’s with their parents or guardians. Children are not allowed to be left in the lounge tent in any shared sessions.

Child share is common amongst friends/ partners, often we have people who come book consecutive sessions and each take turns to look after the children, they are welcome to go for a walk around the camp or play at the lake if they are supervised by an adult.

The Camp is dog friendly (except peak time during December and January).

You can bring your dog however they must be tied up when you are in the sauna and on a lead at all times.

Occasionally this is possible, but often sessions are fully booked or booked out privately, so bookings are essential to avoid disappointment.

Yes, we believe that keeping cash alive is important so if you wish to pay cash you must let us know in advance so we can save the spot for you, please bring the correct change if possible.

Yes, we understand some people may not have 2 towels if traveling or may forget sometimes, we have towels for hire for $3, and robes for hire for $10.

Yes!!! The Camp has so many different levels of accommodation available. Glamping, camping, or cabins for all budgets. See The Camp info.

If you have any questions we haven’t covered here please email us fire@thesecretsauna.nz.