The Vortex^® Elementa™ outdoor sauna wins prestigious Australian Good Design Award

Most outdoor saunas are built from timber that weathers, warps and demands constant upkeep. The Elementa™ solves that. Its exterior is entirely timber-free: an ABS roof tested to nearly 11 years of outdoor exposure, an ELEMENT-V™ sealed wall wrap, and a fully weather-rated cabinet built for year-round outdoor life. Nothing rots, warps or needs maintenance.

The interior is FSC-certified Canadian hemlock, chosen for how well it handles repeated heating and cooling, and a hot rock heater delivers proper Finnish-style steam, water on the stones and all.

Each sauna arrives fully built and is craned into position, so there's no flat-pack and no weekend lost to assembly. It comes in four-person and six-person models.

Tony Jones, Head of Product Development at Spa World, said the Elementa™ was designed with real New Zealanders life in mind.

"We put so much of ourselves into this product. Every detail, every decision comes from a genuine belief that New Zealanders deserve something truly special in their own backyard," said Keiran Frost, Managing Director of Spa World^®. "To have that effort recognised by Australia's longest-running international design awards, for excellence in design, innovation and impact means the world to all of us."

Most outdoor saunas are built from timber that weathers, warps and demands constant upkeep. The Elementa™ solves that. Its exterior is entirely timber-free: an ABS roof tested to nearly 11 years of outdoor exposure, an ELEMENT-V™ sealed wall wrap, and a fully weather-rated cabinet built for year-round outdoor life. Nothing rots, warps or needs maintenance.

The interior is FSC-certified Canadian hemlock, chosen for how well it handles repeated heating and cooling, and a hot rock heater delivers proper Finnish-style steam, water on the stones and all.

Each sauna arrives fully built and is craned into position, so there's no flat-pack and no weekend lost to assembly. It comes in four-person and six-person models.

Tony Jones, Head of Product Development at Spa World, said the Elementa™ was designed with real New Zealanders life in mind.

"We spent a long time thinking about how New Zealanders use their outdoor spaces, how they relax, how they connect, what they want to come home to," said Mr Jones. "The Elementa™ is our answer to that. Knowing it resonated with some of Australia's leading design minds is incredibly rewarding."

The Good Design Awards jury said of the Elementa™: "The Jury recognises the Vortex Elementa™ sauna as a well-resolved design that successfully addresses a genuine market need for permanent outdoor wellness installations. The team is commended for their refined form language and thoughtful material selection, particularly the timber-free exterior that delivers architectural presence while requiring minimal upkeep. The Jury was impressed by the strong consideration of use cases and the way the external expression authentically belongs in outdoor environments. The design demonstrates quality execution with a modern aesthetic that appropriately responds to contemporary residential settings, establishing a lasting centrepiece for shared wellness experiences."

It's the second time Vortex^® has taken home a Good Design Award, following the Gold-winning Vortex^® IKON Spa Pool.

The Vortex^® Elementa™ Outdoor Sauna is available exclusively through Spa World^®.