Sauna Trip to Sweden and Finland

Most people consider relaxation and fun time to be a time with friends out there, having our favorite drink and listening or dancing to our favorite music. Or rather, a time spent in a quiet and peaceful place with our loved ones around us. Or even more, sitting at home in the quiet and watching our favorite movie clip. Well, all this is good, really good. You will be happy to know what people in Sweden and Finland consider fun. The fun here could mean sweating away in a smoke sauna only to come out several minutes or hours later with the smell of smoke stuck to your skin. The fun here could also mean spending time in a sauna sipping away on your favorite champagne. Better still, fun in these places is when you leave work with your colleagues and decide to bond in the sauna as opposed to having drinks at your local bar. So what really happens in Sweden and Finland Saunas?

Sauna Time in Sweden

Before you learn about the Swedish love for the sauna, be prepared to know that they would gladly turn down a meal at their favorite restaurant for a session at the sauna. Here, it is even more enjoyable during the off-peak season; it essentially means fewer crowds and more privacy.

Swedish saunas are separated depending on gender. Male saunas are set separately from female saunas. Saunas are everywhere around you, and this includes on the ferry! Ferries have both public and private saunas. For the public saunas, you can check in and out anytime while you are on board. But for the private saunas, you will need to do prior booking before boarding. This can be done online on the website of the ferry company.

The public saunas are great and spacious, able to hold up to six people at a go. There are more extensions for changing rooms coupling up as the dressing rooms; these are pretty comfy, complete with nice couches. The saunas are fairly priced with professional staff around to greet and welcome you inside, not forgetting that they have private extensions for people or couples that desire more privacy. The private sections are still fairly priced, and you can have food and drinks served directly to you.

The common area in the sauna has three fairly large Jacuzzis, a steam room, and a bar extension. Travelers spend the evenings relaxing away in the saunas and Jacuzzis while enjoying the blissful nature around them and watching the sunset. Sauna sessions here can last up to two hours, after which you can enjoy a cold bath before retiring for a long, calm, and relaxed night. Everyone who has been here would tell you that the feeling they have the following day is simply amazing.

Sauna Time in Finland

Finland has both extremes of saunas, and both are enjoyed with the same enthusiasm. First, there are the old-age smoke saunas that are said to have originated way back in the eighteenth century. Here, interacting with the locals who have used these saunas over the centuries, you will get to learn a few tips on the dos and don’ts in the smoke saunas, as well as how to best light them. They say that one wrong thing could result in poisoning from carbon monoxide, but this should not worry you because the Finnish people have been doing this over and over again since time immemorial.

Smoke saunas have their own disadvantages which are so well manageable, though. For a first timer, lighting the sauna may be hectic but once you are accustomed, it gets easier and more manageable. You can spend up to two hours in these smoke saunas, yes, but the best part is the smoky smell that your skin sustains long afterward. The smell is not only ecstatic; it also leaves your skin feeling so fresh, soothed, and with a nice minty feeling to it. Everyone who has used the smoke saunas knows that from the preparation to the lighting, to the session, all you look forward to is the soothing feeling in the afterward.

The other extreme is the modern high-end sauna, which is equally enjoyed with the same energy. This time around, it is slightly different since the lighting is much easier, and the smoke is gone, not forgetting that there are no risks of carbon monoxide accidents. The contemporary sauna has gained a lot of popularity in Finland, and people have adopted them as their primary relaxation exercises. They bring people together; couples and colleagues and the sight of people seated together; male and female, by a fire, could not be better. It is one of the most wonderful ways of spending time together.

For these contemporary saunas, you have to be a perfect timer, or else you risk missing a ticket. So many people go for them, and it gets worse during the peak seasons. But either way, both saunas bring the peaceful moments close and it gets better with good service from the staff.

Sauna Trip to Sweden and Finland

From the makers and avid users of the saunas; traditional or modern, the secret to an amazing sauna experience is how it is operated. The operators definitely know how to go about it, but in a nutshell, there is a hatch that should be opened in the right way to make the experience worthwhile. If for instance, the hatch is left open too long, it would feel too hot and dry in there. And if it is closed too long, it gets too humid with the heat a little bit on the lower side. Basically, the operators have mastered the skill and for you, it might feel like just walking in and sitting down while losing it all away with a glass of your favorite champagne in hand. Another thing that matters in making your sauna session worthwhile is what you do afterward. Most people would take a cold shower to seal in the soothing feeling, others would take a dive in the pool to complete the feeling, and other would run into the sea to let the heat drown away. Whatever it is, the feeling remains the same; amazing and soothing.