“The sauna with the best view I have ever seen; I cannot wait to come back.”
Barlow was in New Zealand this year with his mate, comedian and singer Jason Manford, filming for two weeks while experiencing some of the country’s best food, wine and sights for the TV series Gary Barlow’s Food & Wine Tour: New Zealand.
The first of the six-part ITV series screened last week to millions of Brits. This week’s second episode featured Queenstown and ended with a plunge at Watershed.
Jason Manford and Gary Barlow being filmed at Watershed Sauna.
Jason Manford and Gary Barlow contemplate the plunge into Lake Wakatipu.
Bowden says he’s been under an embargo from ITV producers and has had to keep Barlow’s visit secret.
“I did not think I’d meet a British pop star in the sauna when I moved to Queenstown,” Bowden says.
“Both Gary and Jason were warm, funny, completely engaged and very happy to throw themselves into the experience.
“They experienced exactly what you want every guest to experience – sitting among some of the best nature in our country, building up the courage to jump into some fairly serious cold water.
“Being behind the camera watching Gary jump into Lake Wakatipu and then backstroke was a highlight, slightly ridiculous and hard to forget.”
Barlow and Manford arrived in Queenstown in a Maui campervan, and while there, the pair went jetboating and visited Amisfield Winery.
They also enjoyed food and wine experiences in other parts of the country, including eating at Craggy Range in Hawke’s Bay, and a barbecue on Waiheke Island where A-list chef Ben Bayly grilled seafood for them.
Chef Ben Bayly (left) worked the barbecue for Gary Barlow (centre) and Jason Manford on Waiheke. Photo / @OfficialGaryBarlow
Bowden says Watershed had been open for just over a month when Barlow gave his review.
“Hearing that from someone who has travelled practically everywhere was pretty special,” Bowden says.
Barlow and Bowden also bonded over their time on X Factor – Bowden was host of the New Zealand series, and Barlow a judge on the British version.
When Barlow’s daughter visited Queenstown with her friends recently, Barlow WhatsApped Bowden.
“Gary got my number off the production crew and told me they were coming to Queenstown, and he wanted to surprise them with a booking at Watershed so they could experience it too,” Bowden says.
Bowden opened Watershed with his fiancee, fellow wellness entrepreneur Esther Cronin, and their business partner, high-end tourism entrepreneur Andrew Glenn, in December 2025. He says the place has been buzzing since, welcoming thousands of locals and visitors.
“It has exceeded anything we could have imagined,” says Bowden.
“We’ve achieved Qualmark Gold, appeared in The New York Times twice and in Conde Nast Traveler.”
Esther Cronin and Dominic Bowden at Watershed Sauna.
A-listers, including Bowden’s friend, Zuru co-founder Nick Mowbray, have flocked to the floating contrast therapy haven.
Some All Blacks are said to be frequent visitors, and it was on the itinerary of many of the golfers at this year’s New Zealand Open.
“We’ve been lucky to welcome some incredible people, but we protect everyone’s privacy,” Bowden says. “Once the phones are away, nobody really cares who anyone is.”
This week, Bowden and Cronin are excited to host their first morning, pre-ski “Sauna rave” with a full crew of Snow Machine music and ski festival influencers expected from Australia.
Bowden says Watershed will be rehab central in November, with the Queenstown Marathon dates nearly completely sold out. He and Cronin will run the marathon with their weekly 500-member-strong social run club, the Wakatipu Plunge Club.
“Our weekly run and plunge is something Esther and I look forward to more than anything else each week.”
Esther Cronin and Dominic Bowden at Watershed Sauna 3.
He says their move to Queenstown has led to them convincing three friends to move down from Auckland too.
“We both came from creative and media backgrounds, so working in wellness has given us the chance to bring together everything we care about – wellness, design, movement, nature, storytelling and bringing people together,” Bowden says.
He says working with a partner can be the ultimate test, but Watershed has become stronger because they bring different things to it: Cronin has an eye for detail and how an experience should feel, and Bowden acts as host, looking after people and future planning what they will do next in the region.
He says he took advice from his younger brother Liam, who has worked with his husband and business partner Steve Boyd at their successful Deadly Ponies leather goods business for more than 20 years.
“Esther and I have followed Liam and Steve’s advice – our rule is when we get home, no more Watershed chat.
“It’s a daily challenge.”
Party People
Sofitel styling session
Sofitel Auckland and fashion stylist Lulu Wilcox celebrated the launch of their new partnership and Wilcox’s “Style Me From My Suitcase” in-room styling experience for Sofitel hotel guests.
Sofitel Auckland general manager Reto Borer welcomed guests at Sofitel’s Opera Suite, where they enjoyed Pommery champagne and canapes, while Wilcox demonstrated how she would transform a suitcase of clothes into complete looks.
Lulu Wilcox and Reto Borer. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Attendees included Wilcox’s daughter Julia McDade, AFC Creative director Alicia Haszard, tech entrepreneur and music producer Tamawera Owens, Byond managing director Tony Collins, Pop Agency’s Tess Woolcock and Ben Parkes, and media including BusinessDesk lifestyle columnist Hélène Ravlich, Urban List contributor Ava Wardecki and Apparel Magazine editor Caitlan Mitchell.
Julia McDade and Lulu Wilcox. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Tamawera Owens, Alicia Haszard, and Ben Parkes. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Holly Lindsey, Tony Collins, Ava Wardecki and Caitlan Mitchell. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Ben Parkes, Lulu Wilcox and Tess Woolcock. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Ava Wardecki, Hélène Ravlich and Reto Borer. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Faye Swift and Kate Smith. Photo / Norrie Montgomery
Ricardo Simich has been with the Herald since 2008 where he contributed to The Business Insider. In 2012 he took over Spy at the Herald on Sunday, which has since evolved into Society Insider. The weekly column gives a glimpse into the worlds of the rich and famous.