Moree Artesian Aquatic Centre

A country New South Wales pool complex fed by naturally hot water from the Great Artesian Basin.

MargaretRDonald

Bathing: Outdoor
Established: 1895

The Moree Artesian Aquatic Centre is a public bathing complex in the cotton-growing town of Moree, in northern New South Wales, supplied by a bore sunk into the Great Artesian Basin in the 1890s. The water surfaces hot and mineral-rich and is fed into a set of open-air artesian pools alongside conventional swimming pools, making it one of the few Australian town baths built around a natural thermal source.

Balnevia view

Why visit

This is bathing as civic infrastructure rather than luxury: locals, travellers and touring caravanners share the same warm outdoor pools under a wide inland sky. The complex is also a landmark in Australian civil rights history, which gives an ordinary afternoon soak here unusual weight.

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The water

Thermal water

Source: Great Artesian Basin bore (1895)
Mineralisation: Warm artesian mineral water
Character: Naturally hot artesian water from the Great Artesian Basin, fed directly into open-air pools

History

Moree's artesian bore was drilled in 1895 in search of irrigation water and instead struck hot mineral water, which the town soon channelled into public baths. The site became nationally significant in 1965, when the Freedom Ride led by Charles Perkins challenged the pool's exclusion of Aboriginal residents; the baths are now listed for their heritage and social importance.

Practical information

Entry is inexpensive and the artesian pools are noticeably hot, so limit early sessions and rehydrate afterwards. Opening hours are seasonal and the complex is used for lap swimming as well as thermal bathing, so quieter times are mid-morning on weekdays.

Getting there

Moree lies on the Newell Highway roughly 630 km north of Sydney and 480 km south-west of Brisbane, with rail and regional flight connections. The centre is in Anne Street, a short walk from the town centre.