Booking, what to bring, how the hot-cold rounds work, and the unwritten rules. A plain guide for anyone who has never been.
Most of Bristol's saunas are small operations run by two or three people, often in the corner of a city farm or a yard behind a shop. They are much less formal than a hotel spa, and that puts people off booking the first one. Here is what actually happens.
Booking
Almost everything is booked online in advance, and the good sessions go early. Community saunas like Bristol Community Sauna and Ardagh release slots weekly and fill up within a day or two in winter. A session is normally 75 minutes and costs £10 to £15.
Walk-ups sometimes work midweek in summer, but don't count on it. If you want a specific evening, book a week out.
What to bring
- A towel. Two if you can, one to sit on in the sauna and one to dry off. Some venues rent them for a couple of pounds, most don't.
- Swimwear. Nearly all Bristol sessions are mixed and clothed. Costume or trunks are the norm.
- Water. You will sweat more than you expect. Most places have a tap; few sell drinks.
- Flip-flops, if you mind walking on wet decking.
You do not need a robe, and you don't need to buy anything special.
How the session works
A session isn't 75 minutes sat in the heat. It's three or four rounds, and the cold part matters as much as the hot part.
A round looks like this: 10 to 15 minutes in the sauna, until you're properly hot and slightly bored of it. Then straight into the cold, whether that's a plunge tub, a cold shower, or in a few places a spring-fed pond. Ten to sixty seconds is plenty. Then five to ten minutes sitting outside doing nothing at all, until your breathing settles and you stop feeling cold. Then go again.
That last stage is the one people skip, and it's the one that makes you feel good afterwards.
Löyly, and pouring water
Most wood-fired saunas here run at 80 to 90°C with a bucket and ladle by the stove. Pouring water on the stones, löyly if you want the Finnish word, sends a wave of steam through the room and sharply raises how hot it feels.
Two bits of etiquette: ask the room before you pour, and pour a ladle or two, not half the bucket. Someone on the top bench is getting three times what you're feeling on the bottom.
The unwritten rules
- Shower before you get in. Every venue asks, not everyone does.
- Sit on your towel, not directly on the wood.
- Phones stay in the locker. This is close to universal and taken seriously.
- Talking is fine, but read the room. A Saturday afternoon session is chatty. A 7am one is not. Several venues run explicitly silent sessions if you'd rather not make conversation at all.
- Leave if you feel dizzy. No one is impressed by sitting it out, and the staff would much rather you stepped outside.
If it's your first time
Pick a community sauna over a spa. They're cheaper, the staff explain how it works without being asked, and the crowd is mixed enough that nobody is paying attention to you.
Bristol Sauna Yard in Redfield and Bristol Community Sauna in Brislington are both £10 and both used to first-timers. If you'd rather start outside the city, Wildplunge at Farrington's farm shop is an easy drive and has space to sit between rounds.
Go once, do three rounds properly, and you'll know within a week whether it's for you.
Find a sauna near you
29 venues in and around Bristol, mapped with prices and booking links.
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