Landscape Design
14 Pools and Hot Tubs That Blend Beautifully Into the Landscape
Tranquil swimming spaces surrounded by flowers and foliage create a peaceful sense of escape
Few experiences soothe the mind quite like spending time in water outdoors. These hot tubs and pools take that calming effect further, with designs that immerse bathers in nature to boost the sense of peace and escape.
Whether your yard is in a rural setting or a city neighborhood, you can create your own restorative retreat using natural materials and thoughtful plantings, as these spaces show. Which of the designs speaks to you most?
Whether your yard is in a rural setting or a city neighborhood, you can create your own restorative retreat using natural materials and thoughtful plantings, as these spaces show. Which of the designs speaks to you most?
2. Natural Camouflage
Residents of this home in Denver can sink into their backyard hot tub amid grasses and flowers, such as yellow black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia sp.), in this design by Mile High Landscaping.
The plants nearly camouflage the tub, while the steel sides reflect the earthy green of the surrounding vegetation. The tub recedes from view when not in use thanks to a mat that unrolls on top. Simple spike downlights at the four corners of the space add enough glow for evening dips without glare.
Before and After: 4 Inviting Yards Featuring Native Plants
Residents of this home in Denver can sink into their backyard hot tub amid grasses and flowers, such as yellow black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia sp.), in this design by Mile High Landscaping.
The plants nearly camouflage the tub, while the steel sides reflect the earthy green of the surrounding vegetation. The tub recedes from view when not in use thanks to a mat that unrolls on top. Simple spike downlights at the four corners of the space add enough glow for evening dips without glare.
Before and After: 4 Inviting Yards Featuring Native Plants
3. Meadow Spa
A corner of this backyard designed by Simon Orchard in Hampshire, England, offers a tranquil spa experience with a wood-fired, cedar-clad hot tub on a composite deck.
The fence has been extended to create privacy, and vines will eventually soften the lines. Tall, abundant wildflowers with long blooming periods fill beds on either side, adding to the immersive feel.
A cold-water copper shower offers a bracing cool-down, while hooks to its right are perfect for hanging robes. The little shelf is made from an old wine box and can hold plants, as here, or glasses of wine.
A corner of this backyard designed by Simon Orchard in Hampshire, England, offers a tranquil spa experience with a wood-fired, cedar-clad hot tub on a composite deck.
The fence has been extended to create privacy, and vines will eventually soften the lines. Tall, abundant wildflowers with long blooming periods fill beds on either side, adding to the immersive feel.
A cold-water copper shower offers a bracing cool-down, while hooks to its right are perfect for hanging robes. The little shelf is made from an old wine box and can hold plants, as here, or glasses of wine.
4. Tub With a View
Dyna Builders‘ remodel of this midcentury property on Mercer Island, Washington, aimed to maximize the stunning views of Lake Washington. The decision about where to locate the new hot tub was no exception.
Built above the outdoor seating area down the steps to the left, the tub has been positioned so bathers have a view across the water, with tall plants filling stepped containers in front.
The wood plank base extends up the back, into a short overhang that incorporates lighting for when the sun goes down.
13 Outdoor Spaces That Beautifully Integrate a Hot Tub
Dyna Builders‘ remodel of this midcentury property on Mercer Island, Washington, aimed to maximize the stunning views of Lake Washington. The decision about where to locate the new hot tub was no exception.
Built above the outdoor seating area down the steps to the left, the tub has been positioned so bathers have a view across the water, with tall plants filling stepped containers in front.
The wood plank base extends up the back, into a short overhang that incorporates lighting for when the sun goes down.
13 Outdoor Spaces That Beautifully Integrate a Hot Tub
5. Quiet Seclusion
An inviting hot tub in this Portland, Oregon, backyard sits on smooth Tuscan limestone pavers just steps from the primary bedroom.
Pistils Landscape Design + Build cloistered the tub with horizontal wood fencing and a lush evergreen hedge. Woodland plants, including vine maples (Acer circinatum, USDA zones 6 to 9; find your zone), surround the area so bathers can lie back and watch the green leaves against the sky in privacy.
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An inviting hot tub in this Portland, Oregon, backyard sits on smooth Tuscan limestone pavers just steps from the primary bedroom.
Pistils Landscape Design + Build cloistered the tub with horizontal wood fencing and a lush evergreen hedge. Woodland plants, including vine maples (Acer circinatum, USDA zones 6 to 9; find your zone), surround the area so bathers can lie back and watch the green leaves against the sky in privacy.
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6. Private Escape
Irregular flagstones surround an organically shaped pool and hot tub in this Los Angeles backyard by Roy Altaras Landscape Design and Build. The raised tub with stone steps gives bathers a view of the surrounding foliage and water below as they relax.
Tight plantings around the yard, including climbers trained up the walls, create a lush haven, while trees surrounding the property offer privacy.
Irregular flagstones surround an organically shaped pool and hot tub in this Los Angeles backyard by Roy Altaras Landscape Design and Build. The raised tub with stone steps gives bathers a view of the surrounding foliage and water below as they relax.
Tight plantings around the yard, including climbers trained up the walls, create a lush haven, while trees surrounding the property offer privacy.
7. Lush Lawn Setting
Anyone looking to incorporate a pool that blends with a green landscape can take inspiration from this design. It was created as part of a guesthouse addition to a 1970s ranch-style home in a Baltimore neighborhood.
Ziger Snead Architects took the lawn right up to the pool, with only a narrow stone edge framing the water. Wide-set square pavers lead to the pool house, just visible on the left, while lush woodland plantings and ornamental grasses appear to merge with the wooded backdrop.
Anyone looking to incorporate a pool that blends with a green landscape can take inspiration from this design. It was created as part of a guesthouse addition to a 1970s ranch-style home in a Baltimore neighborhood.
Ziger Snead Architects took the lawn right up to the pool, with only a narrow stone edge framing the water. Wide-set square pavers lead to the pool house, just visible on the left, while lush woodland plantings and ornamental grasses appear to merge with the wooded backdrop.
8. Lakeside Mood
Natural swimming pools like this one in South London by Ellicar Pools & Gardens use a filtration system, where a submerged pump pushes water through to the planted area, or regeneration zone, and impurities are absorbed and harmful bacteria destroyed.
The pool was fitted with great care to avoid the roots of the mature trees surrounding the yard. Wood decking echoes the landscape and is soft and warm on bare feet. At the far end near the ladder, young or less-confident bathers can enter the water slowly via a tiny beach. The designers placed a small bubbling boulder water feature there for tranquility.
Natural swimming pools like this one in South London by Ellicar Pools & Gardens use a filtration system, where a submerged pump pushes water through to the planted area, or regeneration zone, and impurities are absorbed and harmful bacteria destroyed.
The pool was fitted with great care to avoid the roots of the mature trees surrounding the yard. Wood decking echoes the landscape and is soft and warm on bare feet. At the far end near the ladder, young or less-confident bathers can enter the water slowly via a tiny beach. The designers placed a small bubbling boulder water feature there for tranquility.
9. Wild Swim
This Austrian natural pool uses the same principles as the South London one above, with the regeneration zone featuring pond plants including reeds and water lilies.
The owners asked Kugler & Trinkl Gartengestaltung landscape designers to create a naturalistic family yard with water at its heart. The minimal stone edge between the pool and pond allows swimmers to be immersed in the plantings. On the opposite side, terraced beds filled with a mix of grasses and perennials rise up to create a softly colored backdrop and a sense of tranquil seclusion.
The stone steps and boulders at the base of the slope connect the planted area with the stone-edged pool, while an adjacent patio offers space for play and relaxation.
This Austrian natural pool uses the same principles as the South London one above, with the regeneration zone featuring pond plants including reeds and water lilies.
The owners asked Kugler & Trinkl Gartengestaltung landscape designers to create a naturalistic family yard with water at its heart. The minimal stone edge between the pool and pond allows swimmers to be immersed in the plantings. On the opposite side, terraced beds filled with a mix of grasses and perennials rise up to create a softly colored backdrop and a sense of tranquil seclusion.
The stone steps and boulders at the base of the slope connect the planted area with the stone-edged pool, while an adjacent patio offers space for play and relaxation.
10. Water Wonderland
On what was originally a basic lawn, CLC Landscape Design created this magical pool in a New York backyard. The surrounding trees were existing, but the team added several extensive flowerbeds so plantings could be enjoyed from the pool area.
Several varieties of long-flowering pink and white hydrangeas frame the water, including ‘Limelight’ panicle hydrangea trees (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’, zones 3 to 8), which create another level of flowers.
The pool itself invites maximum relaxation. A sun shelf in the shallow end of the pool is perfect for low lounge chairs, from which swimmers can enjoy the naturalistic waterfall and watch the sun go down.
On what was originally a basic lawn, CLC Landscape Design created this magical pool in a New York backyard. The surrounding trees were existing, but the team added several extensive flowerbeds so plantings could be enjoyed from the pool area.
Several varieties of long-flowering pink and white hydrangeas frame the water, including ‘Limelight’ panicle hydrangea trees (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’, zones 3 to 8), which create another level of flowers.
The pool itself invites maximum relaxation. A sun shelf in the shallow end of the pool is perfect for low lounge chairs, from which swimmers can enjoy the naturalistic waterfall and watch the sun go down.
11. Desert Dip
AM Interior Design refreshed this hacienda home in Indian Wells, California, making the inviting pool a focal point. Large windows frame water views from the main living spaces and the primary bedroom, with shady zones on the flagstone terrace tempting residents outside.
Feathery trees and tall grasses grow on the house side of the pool, softening the strong lines, while a rustic stone wall marks the property’s edge. The wall is low enough that bathers can take in the view across greenery to the mountains in the distance.
AM Interior Design refreshed this hacienda home in Indian Wells, California, making the inviting pool a focal point. Large windows frame water views from the main living spaces and the primary bedroom, with shady zones on the flagstone terrace tempting residents outside.
Feathery trees and tall grasses grow on the house side of the pool, softening the strong lines, while a rustic stone wall marks the property’s edge. The wall is low enough that bathers can take in the view across greenery to the mountains in the distance.
12. Hidden Haven
Tucked into the bottom of a large Washington, D.C., backyard, this inviting pool by Bethesda Garden Design nestles behind tall trees and large shrubs, creating a tranquil, forest-like retreat. Bluestone paving separates the water from clipped lawn on one side and a strip of feathery grass on another.
A fire pit lounge creates a peaceful spot to relax away from the house. The garden room, painted in a complementary olive green, features floor-to-ceiling windows that let you enjoy the play of light on the water whatever the weather.
Tucked into the bottom of a large Washington, D.C., backyard, this inviting pool by Bethesda Garden Design nestles behind tall trees and large shrubs, creating a tranquil, forest-like retreat. Bluestone paving separates the water from clipped lawn on one side and a strip of feathery grass on another.
A fire pit lounge creates a peaceful spot to relax away from the house. The garden room, painted in a complementary olive green, features floor-to-ceiling windows that let you enjoy the play of light on the water whatever the weather.
13. Expansive Depths
The yard of this rowhouse in a leafy area of Berlin is relatively small, yet designer Sarah Feucht incorporated a dining area with a grill, a shed, a lawn and this peaceful pool.
The pool features an easy-to-activate counter-current system, which allows swimming in place for a serious workout. Turn it off for contemplative floating.
Feucht surrounded the pool with plants that sway in the breeze, such as airy grasses and long-flowering white hydrangeas, for a soothing break from everyday stresses. A wood deck leads to a secluded lawn and dining area, gently separated by lush perennials, grasses and shrubs that make the yard feel bigger than it is.
The yard of this rowhouse in a leafy area of Berlin is relatively small, yet designer Sarah Feucht incorporated a dining area with a grill, a shed, a lawn and this peaceful pool.
The pool features an easy-to-activate counter-current system, which allows swimming in place for a serious workout. Turn it off for contemplative floating.
Feucht surrounded the pool with plants that sway in the breeze, such as airy grasses and long-flowering white hydrangeas, for a soothing break from everyday stresses. A wood deck leads to a secluded lawn and dining area, gently separated by lush perennials, grasses and shrubs that make the yard feel bigger than it is.
14. Drift Away
The owners of this lakeside property in Sonoma, California, wanted an outdoor space they could enjoy with their children and grandchildren. Roche+Roche Landscape Architecture designed a dining area under a shady pergola and a stone fire pit with seating, as well as this inviting pool for exercise and play. Ornamental grasses soften the pool’s edges while shrubs green up the fence.
Swimmers can gaze at the sky through mature oaks or look at a boathouse fringed with pink waterlilies and yellow irises and across the lake to Sonoma Mountain.
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The owners of this lakeside property in Sonoma, California, wanted an outdoor space they could enjoy with their children and grandchildren. Roche+Roche Landscape Architecture designed a dining area under a shady pergola and a stone fire pit with seating, as well as this inviting pool for exercise and play. Ornamental grasses soften the pool’s edges while shrubs green up the fence.
Swimmers can gaze at the sky through mature oaks or look at a boathouse fringed with pink waterlilies and yellow irises and across the lake to Sonoma Mountain.
More on Houzz
Read more landscape stories
Browse outdoor photos for ideas
Find design and remodeling pros
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This stainless steel hot tub immerses you in the surrounding woodland, with trees cocooning the water on two sides. The tub was part of a sensitive addition to a historic midcentury property in the Six Moon Hill neighborhood of Lexington, Massachusetts.
Flavin Architects took advantage of the sloped lot to build the tub into the forest, level with the tree canopy. A small deck offers a perch for post-dip lounging, while floor lanterns stand ready to cast a gentle glow over evening bathers.
Plantings soften the side near the steps to the newly built studio, while a boulder cuts into the bluestone paving, reinforcing the sense that the tub has been gently slotted into the landscape. Because of the greenery, the house and lawn virtually disappear from view while in the tub, adding to the sense of seclusion.
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