Therme Group names entertainment chief to shape immersive wellbeing experiences

Therme Group is betting that the next big cold-plunge experience will feel less like a tub and more like a fully staged night out. The company named Rainer Maelzer as chief entertainment officer on 27 May 2026, putting an attractions specialist, not a spa operator, in charge of how its wellbeing spaces are designed and delivered.

Maelzer will lead the development and global execution of Therme’s next-generation recreational experiences. Therme said the role is meant to reinforce entertainment as an essential pillar of modern wellbeing, while still keeping safety and emotional standards in place across its facilities. That distinction matters for cold-plunge readers because it points to a market moving beyond simple soak-and-sauna formats and toward guided rituals, tighter crowd flow and more immersive thermal circuits.

Maelzer arrives with a long track record in water-based attractions. He co-founded wiegand.maelzer, which built signature attraction systems used in Therme projects, and previously served as president of WhiteWater ERA. Robert Hanea, Therme Group’s founder and chief executive, said Maelzer’s background would help the company create immersive environments that blend innovation, recreation and wellbeing for guests of all ages. Maelzer said he wanted to elevate thermal experiences beyond functionality into something memorable and emotionally resonant.

The appointment also fits the company’s broader scale-up strategy. Therme Group completed its €1 billion Therme Horizon joint venture with CVC on 20 August 2025. That platform brings together Therme Erding in Germany and Therme Bucharest in Romania and is described as serving about 3.5 million guests annually.

Therme’s project pipeline shows why the entertainment angle is becoming central. Therme Manchester is marketed to welcome 1.7 million guests in its first year and to maintain a year-round indoor climate of 33°C, with water slides and a wave pool built into the experience. Therme Singapore is being positioned as Asia’s first large-scale wellbeing destination at Marina South. For visitors, the shift is clear: the winning thermal destination is no longer just about finding cold water and heat. It is about packaging both into a destination that feels designed, choreographed and worth staying for.