Experience Finnish Sauna Culture in Saaristo
The sauna has been a place of relaxation, wellness and tradition for the Finns for centuries. With over 3 million saunas for 5.5 million people, the sauna is as Finnish as it gets. You can experience it too — here in Saaristo, the Finnish archipelago.
The Finnish coast and its 40,000 islands are a hotspot for unique sauna experiences: here you can try everything from sauna boats and smoke saunas to saunas inside rocky hills, and private saunas for rent on secluded islands.
Most houses and even rentals in Finland have their own sauna!
How to Sauna Like a Finn
It’s not complicated at all! Just follow the lead, and feel free to ask questions — the Finns are happy to help.
- It's okay to wear whatever you want to a sauna — but Finns never go to a sauna fully clothed. A swimsuit or towel is perfect, like you would dress to a spa for example.
- Leave your stuff (phone included) in the dressing room, and shower before entering!
- Bring a water bottle or soft drink, but leave snacks for later.
- Sit on a small towel or pefletti for hygiene. Usually sauna's offer these, but you can also bring your own.
- Speaking is optional. Sauna can be a place to feel comfortable with others in total silence. Try it!
- Respect other sauna goers — sauna is not a group activity by default.
- And last but not least: relax! You'll get what the hype is about.
The Finns have known of the sauna’s health benefits for thousands of years, and today some of them are backed by science. Sauna for example improves circulation and cleanses the body.
Saaristo businesses offer authentic sauna experiences combined with forest bathing, whisking, or massage.
As the sauna reaches the right temperature, you step into the steam. When you relax in the silence, you experience a tradition that has taken place for millennia.
The world-renowned Finnish poet Eino Leino once wrote;
"A steaming sauna, a barking dog, a crowing rooster, and a meowing cat – those are the true signs of a good home.”
by warming up the sauna
– many in Saaristo
are wood-warmed.
Feel the time slowing down while the sea and an abundance of islands open in front of you,
the droplets of sweat
running through your back,
hear the gentle hiss of the water hitting the stones emanating with heat,
and feel the edge of the rocky cliff beneath your feet as you jump into the dark, cooling sea.
