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From converted seaside coach houses to woodland hideaways, saunas have become the UK’s hottest new wellness trend. Deep sea swimmer Laurel Ives knows the joys of a cold shower, but she also wondered if she could cope with the heat…
It’s Sunday morning and the fashionable crowd in King’s Cross are going about their business while I watch them sweat in the sauna, dressed in a swimsuit and sauna cap.
After a while, my friends and I jumped back into the ice bath, rushed back to the sauna, and did it all over again. The open-air cityscapes are a bit comical, but the combination of heat, cold, and friendly conversation is refreshing.
Slow Motion Sauna is the brainchild of DJ, Bestival founder and promoter Rob da Bank and his wife Josie. Last summer, he first opened a mobile Lithuanian-style wood-fired sauna on Freshwater Beach, near his home on the Isle of Wight.
“It started as a hobby and grew into an addiction, and then King’s Cross contacted me about running the Mind Your Brain campaign. It seemed like the right thing to do to bring a bit of warmth and wellbeing to Londoners during this grey month,” he said.
Saunas in London will remain open until mid-February, reflecting the growing popularity of ‘hot’ saunas. Saunas can be found everywhere from seaside coach houses to woodland hideaways and trendy city hangouts.
Gabrielle Reason, secretary of the British Sauna Association, has documented the emergence of new ‘real’ steam rooms across the UK, which are different from those found in gyms and spas.
Last year, there were 45 saunas on the list, but this year that number has doubled to 90. In 2018, only one “new wave” sauna made the list: Beach Box Brighton, a pioneering sauna converted from a horse-drawn carriage and located right on the beach.
Beach Box Brighton co-founder Katie Bracher now runs Wo Wo’s Wild Spa sauna in Woodland Clearing, Sussex.
“I went to a sauna at a festival and then went into an ice-cold lake and felt refreshed, so I kept looking for that experience but never found it. We started with one wagon room that held seven people, and now we have four saunas that hold 12 people,” she said.
Beach Box has sparked a craze for mobile saunas that can be easily installed without the need for permanent planning permission. #
Gabrielle Reason is leading the urban trend in 2022, co-founding Hackney Wick Community Sauna Baths in east London. “We started small, just one day a week, but quickly filled up, so we expanded our opening hours to include weekends. We now have seven saunas and are open six days a week,” she said.
While sauna use was pioneered by celebrities such as David Beckham, Guy Ritchie and David Baddiel, in many ways the growing love for saunas is a natural extension of the cold water swimming craze.
“The first to arrive are usually the cold water swimmers who have trained their bodies to cope with stress, and heat stress is the same thing. The combination of heat and cold creates a wonderful release of endorphins,” explains Gabrielle Raison.
It’s also a deeply relaxing and enjoyable experience. “Think of it as a new bar,” Da Bank said. “It’s a social place where you don’t have to wear too many clothes, but you don’t feel vulnerable. You don’t have your phone with you, and you can just chill. I challenge myself by taking a warm, ice, or sea bath, and afterward I feel great physically and emotionally — mentally, I feel a little bit uplifted.”
Science backs up many of the health claims of sauna bathing. Much of the recent research has been conducted in Finland, where sauna bathing has a tradition dating back thousands of years. Research by Professor Jari Laukkanen of the University of Eastern Finland shows that saunas have significant benefits for the heart: people who regularly use saunas have a lower risk of dying from heart disease, as well as a lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
The reason is that when you start to heat up in a sauna, your body responds by sending more blood to your skin to dissipate the heat, and you sweat. At the same time, your heart rate will increase to improve circulation, just like during exercise. Under conditions of heat stress (which also happens when swimming in cold water), heat shock proteins are activated to help repair damaged cells.
I’ve tried saunas at festivals and then soaked in an icy lake and felt completely reborn, so I was looking for an experience like that, but it just doesn’t exist.
Sauna temperature is a very subjective concept. Some people prefer temperatures around 75/80 degrees Celsius, while others prefer a higher temperature of around 95 degrees Celsius. The amount of time people spend in the sauna also varies greatly, but many sauna enthusiasts choose to stay in there as long as possible, measuring their heart rate to determine whether they are in the high-intensity zone.
Because saunas raise your heart rate, they may also have some of the benefits of low-intensity exercise, although Tom Cullen, associate professor of applied physiology at Coventry University, cautions that it’s not yet clear that saunas are a weight-loss aid.
What excites him most is evidence that saunas can reduce chronic inflammation over time by stimulating the immune system. “Inflammation is now recognized as a major cause of a number of diseases, including heart failure and depression,” he said.
Research by American psychiatrist Charles Raison also shows that reducing chronic inflammation is an effective way to treat depression.
Interestingly, regular sauna users report that sauna use helps relieve stress and improve sleep. “Saunas release beta-endorphins, which promote group cohesion and make us feel connected and belong to others. People with a strong sense of belonging to a group feel more well-being,” said Gabriel Riesen.
At the Hackney Wick sauna, Leeson hears plenty of stories of health transformation. People say saunas have helped them cope with arthritis, but for most people the appeal of a sauna is that it’s a fun, relaxing experience, where you can come with friends or chat with strangers. “There’s a real camaraderie in a sauna, bringing people of all ages together and forming a real bond.”
For her new book, Sauna: The Power of Deep Heat, Emma O’Kelly travelled thousands of miles across Scandinavia and the Baltic region to research the history and cultural significance of this ancient tradition. Back in the UK, she was delighted by the country’s burgeoning sauna culture.
“Because we’re not bound by any traditions, we’re free to mix and match, just like with food. From Lithuanian and Estonian whipping rituals to German Aufguss ceremonies and Hackney’s Sadness Sauna, we’re all about experimentation, and that’s what makes British culture so exciting.”
After the journey to King’s Cross I felt refreshed and invigorated. We went round the corner for a coffee, which cost about the same as the sauna, only £6, which was a great deal. I slept very well that night; I’m already planning my next trip.
This was the original mobile sauna and there are now many more around the UK. From the sauna coach to the events they host and the gentle feminine energy that will leave you feeling pampered.
Two saunas overlook the tidal pools, where you can take a dip or soak in a bucket of fresh, cold water. There is also a new electric sauna, which offers views of the famous Margate skyline and legendary sunsets.
A traditional upmarket Russian bathhouse in Belgravia, London. It’s pricey, but the experience is pleasant and refreshing, complete with traditional treatments and Russian snacks. Lie here for a while and you’ll be sure to get a good night’s sleep.
The sauna aims to provide affordable sauna and wellness experiences for the people of Hackney and has proven extremely popular since opening in 2022. It is located in an old public bathhouse built in the 1930s and has 10 saunas of varying sizes. Due to the sauna’s popularity, the team have opened a new branch in Stratford.
Scotland is home to many wonderful saunas, and the Elie Seaside Sauna is one of the most stunning. It’s set in a converted log-burning car on the sand dunes of Ely Harbour, with stunning sunset views.
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