KAJ and their new craze "Bara Bada Sauna" have taken Swedes by storm and are now spreading sauna hysteria around the country. What could be better than booking a trip to the sauna capital of the world, Tampere? Here are five red-hot tips.
Two hours from Helsinki you will find the popular Tampere. The city is growing like crazy and is one of the Finns' favorite cities. But that's not all. Tampere can also boast that with its record number of sauna facilities, it has been designated the sauna capital of the world. The city has almost 70 public saunas (by far the most in Finland!) and is also home to Finland's oldest sauna, Rajaportti Sauna, which has brought together Finns of all ages since 1906. Tampere offers saunas for all tastes - there are floating saunas, traditional smoke saunas, saunas by the lake and even saunas in hotel rooms. Here, the sauna is an integral part of everyday life and if there is anywhere you should experience Finnish sauna culture, this is it.
Here are our best tips when the trip is booked:
1. Die and be reborn in a forest sauna
Sauna is a tradition with an almost sacred place in the Finnish folk soul; a place that is said to stand between the worlds of the living and the dead. This is something that sauna shamans Matti and Juha at Saunakonkeli take advantage of in a unique sauna ceremony in the forests around Tampere. In a guided symbolic ceremony of death and rebirth, you are surrendered to the power of löyly, simply translated as ”sauna steam”. The ceremony takes place in a wooden sauna by a small lake deep in the forest where the participant is cleansed, whipped and then blessed. The goal is to re-establish the connection between humans and fire, water, earth and air – all the natural elements found in the sauna experience.
Read more: https://www.saunakonkeli.com/
2. Sauna and hot tub at Kuuma
Why choose when you can have it all in one? Kuuma is a restaurant, bar and sauna in one. It offers both a traditional wood-fired sauna for beginners and a smoke sauna for sauna enthusiasts who want to take the experience to the next level. Visitors can alternate a while in the sauna with a drink in one of the bars and a dip in the cooling pool in the rapids. In other words, make sure to set aside some time for Kuuma, as it can easily become a full evening at this relaxation palace.
Read more: https://www.saunaravintolakuuma.fi/en/home/
3. Art and sauna in one at Serlachius
Art Sauna is a world-unique architectural sauna building that houses both art and design. The building is located in a beautiful lakeside setting right next to the Serlachius Museum Gösta and is Finland's only sauna where everything is a piece of design or art. We dare to promise that this will be your most beautiful sauna experience ever.
Read more: https://serlachius.fi/en/art-sauna/
4. The original since 1906 – Rajaportti Sauna
During a sauna weekend in Tampere, you can't miss Rajaportti Sauna. The sauna is Finland's oldest public sauna still in use today, and here you are guaranteed an experience you will remember for the rest of your life. Here, Finns have gathered, socialized and sweated together since 1906, and the premises have basically looked the same during the sauna's 120-year history. A visit here and you can almost touch the Finnish people's soul. And the spirit.
Read more: https://rajaportinsauna.fi/index.en.php
5. Authentic Finnish at Rauhaniemi
For the traditionalist who wants to try an authentic Finnish sauna, a visit to the so-called “public spa”, Rauhaniemi Folkbad, is recommended. The sauna is located by the beautiful lake Näsijärvi and has been open to the public since 1929. The first sauna was built in 1957 and ever since then the sauna steam has been wafting here. Finns make pilgrimages here, regardless of the season, and if you are looking for “the real deal”, this is the place to go.
Read more: https://rauhaniemi.net/en/
Bonus tip!
The latest addition to the Rauhaniemi area is Sauna Temple – a cozy so-called ”yurt-style sauna”. It is a public sauna, but we recommend that you stop by when the gang behind Saunakonkeli arranges their sauna ceremonies here.
According to the press release.
