Finnish Sauna Culture

Beliefes and traditions 

Sauna might sound strange, people in a small space, bathing and throwing water  to the sauna stove. This can seem awkward for foreigners; it’s just a heated box where we sit undressed, and don´t necessary even speak to eachother.

But if you think about the beliefes and traditions of our sauna culture, where the sauna purifies both, the body and soul, this is the place we go to heal and relax, sharing a sauna is truly about friendship and honouring the ancient tradition. Think of it as a sanctuary.

In Finnish families it’s traditional to go to the sauna together, and there are no limitations agewise. Sauna builds the base of Finnish equality and ultimately the worldknown Finnish happiness.

Practical information

Even though we Finns go to sauna completely bare, because we believe there’s nothing to be ashamed of in naked human bodies, we totally understand if you want to wear a swimsuit or wrap a towel around you.

Finnish public saunas have separate spaces for women and men. If you’re planning a sauna trip with a mixed group, it’s totally fine to discuss beforehand who should go with who.

Even though many Finns have meetings in saunas and sauna is traditionally warmed to honour guests, sauna is nevertheless a place of peace, so to just sit silently and relax by yourself is just fine.

Finnish Sauna step-by-step 

• Finnish sauna begins with having a wash before going in to the sauna.
• The sauna is warmed to 60–70 °C if you are a beginner. By throwing water on the hot stones on the stove known as kiuas, a great amount of wet steam, known as löyly, is released within the sauna.
• Finnish people often use a bunch of leafy birch called a vihta to gently beat oneself, this relaxes us.
• After sauna we jump into a cool lake or river to cool down.
• The Finnish sauna experience continues after cooling down, and we go back into sauna and begin the cycle again.
• Usually we take at least two or three cycles, lasting between 30 minutes to two hours. In Lapland under the Midnight Sun the sauna might last well into the night.
• After enough repeating the sauna cycle, you have a thorough wash, and enjoy the refreshed sensation of a new kind of pure.

Finnish Sauna is a sanctuary

A traditional Finnish sauna is like Finnish food culture, pure and simple. At best, the only noises you’ll hear are the sounds of water being thrown on the stove, and the sounds of nature. Sauna is mostly combined with a refreshing swin in the summer and a thrilling ice swimming experience in the winter.

Tip: usually a refreshment drink tastes even better after sweating in a sauna.

The after-sauna feeling is magical, so pure an refreshed. We Finns do sauna to enjoy, relax and socialize, and to clear our minds of everyday worries. If you want to truly get a good sauna experience, try the wood heated sauna.

In Rovaniemi you will find many ways to experience sauna.