Waiwera Hot Pools, Geothermal hot springs in Waiwera, New Zealand

Waiwera Hot Pools was a bathing facility with multiple outdoor pools filled with mineral-rich water from underground thermal reservoirs, each at different temperatures. The complex offered various pools allowing visitors different experiences with natural geothermal resources.

Robert Graham opened the first commercial bathing facilities and hotel near the beach in 1875, transforming the natural springs into a health resort. The site became a popular destination as visitors sought the therapeutic benefits of the geothermal water.

The name comes from the Māori language meaning hot water, and indigenous peoples called the source Te Rata, meaning The Doctor, reflecting their belief in its healing properties.

The park shut in February 2018 and the site fell into disrepair; the closure was not attributed to falling visitor numbers. The complex had claimed 350,000 visitors a year and held 26 pools plus slides. The springs sit in the coastal village of Waiwera, just north of Auckland, about 9 metres above sea level.

The 1879 analysis of the main spring found 136.14 grams of saline matter per gallon, mostly sodium chloride at 123.82 grams, plus calcium chloride, magnesium carbonate and iron carbonate. Robert Graham had drilled bores and was bottling and selling the mineral water by then, after the natural springs stopped flowing in the 1870s.