The Ōpuke Thermal Pools and Spa project is an innovative and sustainable hot pools facility located in Methven, near the base of Ōpuke (Mt Hutt). The project aimed to offer a high-end hot pools experience, an exclusive luxury spa, an adult-only pool with a swim-up bar, and quality changing and hospitality areas, all while maintaining a strong sustainability ethos.

The site for Ōpuke is strategically located on the northern edge of Methven, bordered by the Methven Racecourse and sheltered by mature shelterbelts and adjacent farmland. The design concept is rooted in reflecting the context of the flat Canterbury plains at the base of the mountains. Visitors experience a journey that begins in the plains' car park, passing into the mountains through the building's entrance, designed to evoke the sensation of entering a gorge like the nearby Rakaia River gorge. The design aims to create a sense of exploration, surprise, and discovery, reminiscent of finding natural hot pools in the mountains.

To address the challenges of the plains site, the designers created landforms around the external pools to protect them from prevailing winds and reduce heat loss from the pool surface. The site features excavated materials from a lake that separates the adult and family pool areas, acting as a heat sink for excess energy generated by the solar array during summer months. The main entry, cut through the landform, leads to the building emerging from the site and opening up to views of the distant main divide.

Raw, natural materials were chosen to provide substance to the building, inspired by the concept of carving through the foothills of the mountains. Gabion walls and acid-etched precast concrete guide visitors through the entry, leading to a dark concrete floor with light aggregates resembling the valley floor. The roof structure is structurally expressive, featuring a large waffle grid of LVL beams braced by concrete walls and supported by slender steel columns. The roof cantilevers beyond full-height glazing, providing solar protection and shelter for the building edges and the adult pool overhang. A dark aluminum rainscreen on the fascia protects the LVL structure and gives a clean finish to the roof edge.

The design not only provides a unique and luxurious experience for visitors but also incorporates sustainable features, contributing positively to the tourism market in Methven and strengthening the region's employment and infrastructure. The careful integration of natural and man-made elements creates a harmonious and immersive environment that captures the essence of discovering hidden hot pools in the mountains.