hot springs Archives - Wander Wonder Wonton

For a girls day out, Annabelle, Ru and I road tripped along the coast to the Peninsula Hot Springs for some rest and relaxation. We are all LOL’s (Lady of Leisure) at the moment so thought we would enjoy it while it lasts!

The Hot Springs are about an hour drive out from Melbourne. Being Kiwi, I’ve been to a fair few natural hot springs in my time. These were well laid out, using the natural lay of the land to provide separation and privacy.

We tried out most of the different pools but my fave would have to be the hottest at the very top (mainly because I enjoyed the view) and the Turkish Baths. The Turkish Baths are basically a massive sauna room shaped as an octagon. Must say the reflexology walk was quite cool too. There’s different rock shapes and sizes to stimulate the different areas of your feet. Quite Innovative.

After swanning around for hours in our towels and robes we jumped back in the car and drove to the nearest winery, The Cups Estate. Honestly, I didn’t really rate it. It’s a stunning location however I felt the wines lacked intensity. They tasted almost watered down. I was going to purchase a bottle to have with dinner but there were none that I enjoyed which was a disappointment. In saying that however, the port was lovely. The girls enjoyed the sav blanc but seeing as I am not a white wine drinker, it wasn’t up my alley. We also bought some dark chocolate from there which had a hefty price tag and was considerably average too.

All in all, well worth the trip up there! I would love to just road trip along that coast in Summer and check out all the beaches.

Woke up in Calgary and quizzed the front desk as to what to what to check out. His answer: ‘Stampede.’ Considering that’s not on right now you understand there isn’t that much to do.

We found a bridge to take pics of, a building and then cruised to the mall to get some bikinis for Vanessa so we could hit the Banff hot springs.

Vanessa bought me a Sweet Georgia Brown from Purdy’s to try – it was amazing!

I slept all the way to Banff – I have a habit of not being able to keep my eyes open in transportation at the moment. We hit the hot springs and the girls were disappointed to find they weren’t holes in the ground but a swimming pool. At 39degrees it was beautifully warm with the contrast of the freezing cold and surrounding snowy mountains.

Checked into our hostel (after Merica got us lost) and headed out for dinner. Went to Earls and I had the most delicious meal! A chicken and brie focaccia with fig jam and roasted apple – so delicious. Pomegranate vanilla mojito was just as good.

Hit up the fudge store and ended up with a big block of dark choc fudge. I’ve eaten half of it already!

Heard some huge lightening and thunder last night. Woke up this morning to find that we are stuck in Banff. All highways out closed due to flash flooding and mudslides.

We are hanging out in the lobby using wifi and hoping that it will open soon so we can start our 11 hour journey home. That’s if they open. Otherwise we may be stuck here until tomorrow sometime.

Stay tuned!