Images: Mineral Wellness.
After almost two years of delays, Adelaide’s long-awaited communal bathhouse is finally ready to welcome its first guests.
Mineral Wellness, tucked away on Flinders Street, will open to the public this Saturday, bringing a European and Japanese inspired wellness experience to the CBD.
The project, first announced in 2024 by co-founder Thomas Iasiello, was originally expected to open in spring that year. But after a series of complications with the build and engineering specifications, the opening was pushed back.
“It’s been an up and down roller coaster, but we’re good to go, which is amazing,” Tom said.
If you’re looking for somewhere to spend 90 minutes escaping the chaos of the city, Mineral Wellness might just be the place.
The concept was inspired by Tom’s experiences in Japan and Europe, where communal bathing is less of a luxury and more of a regular part of life.
“I lived in Japan for a little bit, where obviously onsens and super popular. I’ve also spent a bit of time in Europe,” he said.
One particular experience in Milan stuck with him.
After flying from Australia to Europe, Tom headed straight to a bathhouse housed inside a converted train station.
“They had about five different levels and all these different saunas. It was just an amazing experience. You walked out of there floating.”
When he returned home, he realised there was something missing.
“After that experience, and my time in Japan, I came home and thought, ‘This doesn’t really exist here.’”
“I really enjoyed it. It became something that I was interested in and something I saw a lot of value in. I wanted to recreate that experience, and the emotional experience I had there, back home.”
Rather than positioning itself solely as a recovery space for athletes and wellness devotees, Mineral Wellness is designed to be somewhere people can simply switch off.
For $65, guests get 90 minutes of access to the entire bathhouse, including an infrared sauna, traditional sauna, Turkish-style steam room, hot mineral pool, cold pool, salt room and relaxation areas.
Fresh teas, sodium hydration, fruit and nuts will also be available.
“There are no rules,” Tom says.
“It’s a space where you can really unwind and get whatever you want out of it, whether that’s recovery or simply having a place to de-stress and dissolve.”
Perhaps the most unexpected addition is the bathhouse’s self-led mud scrub, inspired by the traditional Turkish hammam.
Guests can add a mud pack experience using either Moroccan clay imported from Morocco or French green clay, alongside an exfoliating mitt.
“The idea is that you sit in the steam room and the steam opens your pores. You use the exfoliating mitt to wipe away or clear the dead skin,” Tom explains.
“You then make the mud yourself, sit down and put it on. It leaves your skin feeling super revitalised and refreshed.”
The communal element is also central to the concept.
“In Europe and Asia, It’s a space where people go to meet up. That’s what I want Mineral Wellness to feel like,” Tom says.
The bathhouse’s interiors have been designed by nearby Loucas Zahos Architects, “focusing on high-quality materials to recreate that soft, curved European aesthetic,” Tom says.
The bathhouse will open to the public this Saturday, August 29, with a promotional offer planned for the opening weekend.
Mineral Wellness
When: Monday to Friday 7am to 9pm, and Saturday and Sunday 7am to 6pm
Where: 248 Flinders St, Adelaide
For membership options and more information, click here.
