Sea and sauna movement

Wood‑fired saunas specialising in contrast therapy with cold‑water immersion are springing up around the South West. Selena Young got the low-down on this Finnish sauna culture from The Saltwater Sauna in Dorset and found a lifestyle movement going full steam ahead

On the surface, contrast therapy looks to be just the latest element of culture we’ve pinched from northern Europe, like Scandi‑style coffee shops, Nordic bakes and hygge home environments. However, a deeper dive reveals that the growing number of saunas offering the Finnish‑style practice feeds into more than just an appetite for a slice of Nordic cool.

From the explosion in cold‑water swimming and recovery ice baths to the popularity of places offering digital detoxes and alcohol‑free socialising, there are a lot of cultural currents rippling beneath the sea and sauna movement. Let’s take a dip.

The Saltwater Sauna story

If you regularly hit the coast you’ve probably spotted a steamy wooden sauna on the shoreline, while those who are devout sea dippers or surfers have likely already roadtested one.

The Saltwater Sauna, located on Sandbanks Beach in Poole, was one of the first wood‑fired saunas in the UK and was launched by husband‑and‑wife team Sam and Arlene Glyn‑Jones in 2021. The duo started Saltwater out of a desire to combine Arlene’s Finnish heritage (she describes authentic sauna culture as ingrained in her DNA) and passions for cold‑water immersion, nature and surfing with Sam’s doctorate in the wellbeing sphere.

The idea for the sauna formed during their time at Resurface, a non‑profit charity Sam founded in 2017. The charity offers lifestyle programmes of surfing, yoga and cold‑water swimming for people experiencing mental ill-health.

‘Sessions often saw a large group going for a sea dip, then settling on Moroccan rugs on the beach around a firepit and watching the sun rise. We started out with around 30 people but that soon grew to 150,’ says Sam.

‘Arlene would come and guide people through the cold‑water immersion. As a Finn she had the experience and would often say things like “My goodness this is really begging for a sauna”. She was used to having saunas in natural environments and couldn’t understand why we didn’t have the same in the UK.’

Sam and Arlene took the step of hiring a sauna for Resurface participants to use after their morning dip. They knew they were on to something special and so The Saltwater Sauna was born.

Such has been its success that the duo recently opened a second site in Christchurch, while other businesses have joined the movement: ‘When we started three years ago we were one of four beachfront saunas in the UK. There are now over 150.’

Wood‑fired sauna experience

You may be wondering how a mobile sauna differs from what you find in a hotel or spa, but Sam finds them incomparable.

‘If a Finn, Swede or Russian visited a sauna in the UK that didn’t have rocks exposed to pour water over to create steam, they would find it laughable. It’s not an authentic sauna experience,’ he says. ‘Without being able to pour water on the steam it sucks out all the humidity and makes the air very dry. It’s not meant to be 90 degrees with scalding-hot benches. You want to be able to create steam and a soft humidity.

‘The other difference is that you’re right there in nature and that’s what Finnish sauna culture is about. It’s about experiencing changing natural environments like storms on the beach – you can’t do that in a hotel sauna as it’s the same every time.’

A typical experience at The Saltwater Sauna consists of a 65‑minute private or communal session, in which attendees are briefed by one of the hosts trained in the Thermalist Method (more on that later) before they take a sea dip. This could simply be 20 seconds of splashing water over the body or up to five minutes of full immersion. Then, it’s back to the sauna where guests usually sit for seven to 15 minutes, before repeating. It’s a pattern that involves four dips and four stints in the sauna: ‘The official term for this back-and-forth process is the Nordic cycle,’ says Sam.

At the end of the Nordic cycle, guests are encouraged to take a cold shower. Afterwards, Sam and Arlene recommend guests go out for food and drink. Sam says: ‘Even though this is considered a wellness thing, personally I like to end the experience with a couple of pints and a meal in a pub. In Finland you would rarely find someone without a beer – if not after the sauna then in the sauna! It speaks to how social the experience is supposed to be.’

At The Saltwater Sauna, they also work with resident sauna master Jane Witt, who curates 90‑minute guided rituals which take guests through a sequence exploring the elements of air, water, fire and earth. The ritual includes homemade salt inhalations and scrubs to cleanse and detoxify, steam aromatherapy infusions, thermal leaf whisking and a honey moisturising mask to nourish and tone skin.

‘For those unfamiliar with thermal leaf whisking, it’s basically being beaten with a whisk made from birch or oak leaf – it’s much nicer than it sounds! It’s great for circulation, makes the sauna smell incredible and helps move the steam around the room.’

The science

The Saltwater Sauna credits Dr Susanna Søberg for providing the science‑backed benefits of contrast therapy. Susanna is a renowned expert in cold and heat therapy and founded the Søberg Institute, a platform that documents her research into metabolism and her self‑developed Thermalist Method.

The method explores the minimum threshold for reaping the health benefits of heat exposure and cold immersion, confirming it as 57 minutes of heat and 11 minutes of cold per week – ideally alternating between the two – and dividing it over two to three days. It’s something Jane received training and accreditation for and she was the first person in the UK to receive this stamp of approval (numbers are now growing).

The physical benefits are reportedly numerous. For heat exposure, they include reducing inflammation and acute and chronic pain, improving heart health, increasing metabolism and recovery after workout.
In terms of cold exposure, benefits range from better resilience and reduction in stress and anxiety to the prevention of lifestyle diseases and the ability to find comfort in the cold.

Mind, body and soul

A lot of the science around contrast therapy is in agreement on the benefits regarding improved mood and happiness levels (lest we forget that Finland and other Nordic countries are consistently ranked the happiest countries in the world). It’s also the benefit Sam feels most strongly about.

‘Being in a sauna in a natural environment is really good for mental health, as is being involved in this unique social experience that gets you talking and pulls you out of your comfort zone,’ he says.

‘Everyone is stripped down to their swimwear and equal in the sauna. Some sit there very peacefully and want a tranquil experience, but I find 90 per cent of the time that it’s an incredibly social time that’s full of chatter.

‘When people go into the cold they get a rush of endorphins and that high feeling continues in the sauna. It connects them and leads to much deeper conversations.’

Sam believes that this, and their role as a non‑alcohol‑related place to spend time, is why saunas are booming. He links his reasoning to the ‘third place’, Ray Oldenburg’s concept in which home is defined as the ‘first place’, the workplace as the second and the third as a social setting – considered the most important for civil society and social engagement.

While ‘third places’ were typically religious establishments and pubs, that notion is broadening as people turn to saunas and coffee shops to socialise.

Fad or future?

‘It’s not a fad,’ insists Sam.

‘Saunas have been around in Europe for centuries and, historically, once sauna culture has landed in a country it hasn’t gone away. Now that it’s been discovered in the UK I think it will soon become mainstream and ingrained in daily life. I could be wrong, but what I’m seeing from our customers suggests it isn’t temporary.

‘Our sauna fits eight people but our dream is to have a large bathhouse that fits 50‑100, so more people can access it, enjoy the benefits and experience blue space throughout winter.’

Sauna etiquette

Trying a wood‑fired sauna can be daunting if you’re unsure of the social norms. Sam’s advice means you can jump straight in.

‘Nudity is an obvious no‑no, so wear your bathers. We do get Europeans coming who expect nudity but this is a public space, so it’s not allowed,’ Sam says.

‘You don’t want to be hungover, have drunk too much or had a big meal beforehand. It can really ruin the experience.

‘Lastly, always ask before you pour water on the stove. If you poured water for steam (in Finnish culture this is called the löyly) and then left, it would be bad etiquette. This isn’t necessarily embedded in UK sauna culture but do ask others if they’re ok with you pouring. If they say no, they’ll jump out and you can pour. If they say yes, everyone should sit with it for at least a minute and let the steam settle, otherwise it ruins the löyly.’

Ready to take the plunge? Here are seaside saunas in the South West to try

Blackpool Sands Sauna – Dartmouth, Devon
Campwell – Bath
Escape to the Sauna – Hayle, Falmouth and Carlyon Bay, Cornwall
Halogi Sauna – Brixham and Plymouth, Devon
Kernow Springs – Wadebridge, Cornwall
Kiln Sauna – Falmouth and Flushing, Cornwall
Löyly Health Recovery + Resilience – Redruth, Cornwall
Mor Holan Sauna + Wild Spa – Porthleven, Cornwall
Motts Sauna – Torpoint, Cornwall
Ocean Soul Sauna – Bude, Cornwall
Olla Hiki Sauna – Newquay, Cornwall
Revive Wild Sauna – Weymouth, Dorset
Rising Embers Sauna – Penzance, Cornwall
Saunas by the Sea – Polzeath and Padstow, Cornwall
Saunassa – Newquay, Cornwall
Saunton Sea Sauna – Saunton, north Devon
Seaside Sauna Haus – Bridport, west Dorset
Soul Sweats – Porthtowan, Cornwall
The Island Sauna – Portland, Dorset
The Somewhere Sauna – south Devon

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