What will £500m mega spa bring to Manchester?

On a sprawling site close to the Trafford Centre, workers have been laying the foundations of a huge indoor water park designed to draw in millions of visitors to the North West.

The Austrian developers behind the £500m Therme Manchester wellbeing resort hope to import Europe's spa culture to a city more famous for rain and canals than hot springs and thermal waters.

Therme's owners said the development, which will be the size of 28 football pitches, will include a lagoon, gardens, wave pools, sauna, steam rooms and water slides.

The site will be covered by a sprawling patchwork of glass pavilions with indoor temperatures kept at a balmy 33C.

Some areas will be adults only, while others will be for families.

Those behind the resort said there will be a "blend of the ancient tradition of healing thermal waters alongside multi-sensory sauna rituals", with the spa therapies billed as "affordable luxury".

Therme already operates two major wellbeing resorts in Germany and Bucharest that welcome about 3.5 million visitors each year.

It is being built at a site closed to the Trafford Centre that was home to to the now-demolished Event City, a conference centre which was one of the largest venues in the region.

Those behind Therme said a 650ft (200m) bore hole was drilled at the site before the work started to ensure it had "natural thermal capacity" and could use geothermal energy from deep underground to heat and cool its facilities.

Greater Manchester was chosen because of its "excellent transport links, ensuring easy access for visitors across the North West of England and beyond," the developers said.

They then decided to site the development close to the Trafford Centre because it had a connection to the region's Metrolink tram network and it was offered to Therme by the landowners, the Peel Group.

Planning permission was granted by Trafford Council in 2023.

The construction of Therme Manchester is set to be completed in late 2028.

Prices for the facilities have not been revealed yet, but the company has said its mission "is to make wellbeing experiences widely accessible and affordable".

In a statement, Therme said the resort would "offer a range of ticket options for many budgets".

More widely, they have said the project would hopefully contribute 600 jobs directly and hundreds more indirectly, through local supplies and businesses.

They have also predicted a wider boost of £4.5bn towards the UK economy, with about half of that benefiting Greater Manchester.

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