A holiday to Cornwall with my partner early on in our relationship, lead us to sauna nestled in a quiet cove (Baby Bay in Polzeath). This was one of my first experiences of a sauna immersed in nature, the Atlantic ocean acting as its own personal ice bath.
I’d been to a sauna tent on my local beach in Tynemouth a few times with a friend, but there was something more romantic about the black wooden structure of Saunas by the Sea that stood out against the sand.
I’ve been obsessed with cabins and small builds since I was a teenager, and as my partner builds cabins and saunas for a living, we took advantage of the opportunity to check out the craftsmanship of the box sauna, and each other in swim wear.
Since this trip and over the past year especially, we’ve become a bit sauna mad, hunting out new ones and making special journeys just to try them out. We’ve grown quite a collection, each defined by its character and the experiences we had there. In Amsterdam we visited a quiet sauna on the edge of a dock close to the city centre.
We met an American woman, in search of a moment of tranquility away from her family and their hunt for a suitable European university, one that would allow her daughter to study abroad and escape from the current political situation at home. We chatted about what a fantastic trip we’d had so far, sharing with her some of the great spots we’d already stopped to eat. It was mid March but the weather was serving us well. Through the steamy glass of the sauna you could see a beutiful spring morning unfolding. We admired the tall ship that was docked nearby and to our suprise we got more of a view than we had bargained for when a group of older local men and women arrived for a swim and, in true European fashion, stripped off and dove into the cold water before us.
Being a little more prudish in the UK, that’s not the sort of thing you’d expect to encounter in a sauna here. As one women I got chatting to in a sauna in Northumberland recalled, she’d once visited a sauna near Bath, where one man clearly hadn’t got the memo and sat proudly next to two women and discovered his error only when they scremed.
If you’re thinking of visiting a sauna, we’ve done the ground work for you. From the saunas we’ve visited so far, here are my top 8 saunas in the North of England and Scotland.
Wyld Sauna remains one of my favourites. There is something unexpectedly calming about floating amid towering office blocks, hotels and apartments. On a windy Monday morning in mid-February, it was busier than anticipated, a buzzing mix of sauna enthusiasts, tourists like ourselves, office workers and students. The three ice baths of different temperatures and the option to dive into the icy waters of Liverpool Docks, meant even the most cold-adverse could enjoy a refreshing dip at a milder temperature. The changing rooms were a particular treat, with driers to wring out swimsuits and Dyson hair dryers, meaning you could slip back into the office seamlessly after a lunchtime moment of wellness.
Pool Bridge comes in at a close second. The lakeside setting of their five saunas is beautiful. You’re plunged into tranquility as you make the walk around the lake to find your sauna. The lake is turquoise blue, reminding me of the lakes in Switzerland we’d visited only two months prior.
The changing rooms aren’t as upmarket as Wyld but they provide a warm dry space to change and keep your bag which for most wild saunas is a rarity.
3. HotBoat Floating Sauna, Loch Tay
What a birthday treat our visit to Loch Tay was. My understanding is that the floating sauna is now no longer docked but transports you around the loch until you’re hot enough to hurl yourself from the driving board into the refreshing water. I’ll be rebooking a trip for next year.
4. ‘Hot Fox’ Sauna at Foxlake Adventures, Dunbar
There is something so wholesome about a morning of stenious activity followed by a moment to rest and recovery before a nutritious meal. Foxlake is home of a big floating obstacle course and wakeboarding park. After our wakeboarding lesson, from the section of the lake cornered off for wild swimming, we enjoyed watching the pros overshadow our attempts to remain standing, carve through the water and take on the jumps we tried to avoid crashing into.
5. Spear Sauna at Lost Shore Surf Centre, Edinburgh
Similarly to Foxlake, Spear Sauna gave us an opportunity to properly warm up after our surf session. If you love surfing and watching other people surf this is a perfect spot. The fresh slices of oranges provided a nice touch and opened up my stomach to the idea of the delicious 15 inch pizza from the food court that followed.
6. Escape Sauna, North Berwick
Escape Sauna sits on a cliff above North Bewick with amazing coastal views. A mooch around North Berwick and then lunch at Drift café beforehand made for a memorable day out. The food at Drift is fantastic and the floor to ceiling windows of the converted shipping container host dramatic views of the North Sea.
7. The Sauna at Hewn, North Yorkshire
Tucked away on private farmland sits this cute sauna overlooking a field. You can hire the whole unit. The only other people we saw were the next couple arriving for their moment of calm once our session was up. We made a bit of an afternoon of this one and headed to Kip & Nook for game of pool, ping pong and pizza before we made our journey home.
8. Wild Scottish Sauna, St Andrews
This really ticks the box as being a wild sauna. Found amongst the reeds on the rugged coastline north of the town of St Andrews. I’d been to St Andrews once before. This embodied a different kind of trip to my first. Once a teenager visiting her older cousin at university and getting drunk for the first time, now a women seeking to improve her wellbeing and try out all the quirky saunas the UK has on offer and maybe build her own one day.
Find out the benefits of using sauna and cold plunge for wellbeing here.
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