Passion for saunas

I have a passion for saunas from ever since my early years. Saunas are a part of the culture, something that we have grewn up with and learnt to love. They are a piece of our heritage. Even more importantly - a sauna is a great place of relaxation, fun and socializing!

It makes you feel good after a hard day at work or a pleasant day in the countryside. As a youngster, we did not have a sauna ourselves, since we lived in the city (saunas in apartment buildings were not that popular back then). But we frequently visited close relatives and friends. The crown of the evening often was a good healthy sauna with snacks and drinks. These were good saunas - some were electric, some were wood burning, but the fun atmosphere always came with them.

In the middle part of my teenage years, I started differentiating between an ok, a good and a great sauna. We had many sauna parties with friends back in those days and I got to experience many different steam rooms and the facilities that came with them.  Despite having been to a great many saunas, I can count great ones on the fingers of one hand. Among them is a sauna at the house of my former classmate, the sauna of my great uncle and the sauna of a family aquaintance. There are many things that make a sauna good. I could give an almost comprehensive list of options, but in the end it also comes down to personal preferences and choosing between those options. Leaving out the basics (covered in detail on other pages of this site) that are apparent to all seasoned sauna fans, the important preference choices I would make, are:

- woodburning stove,

- clearly separated rooms for steam, washing/dressing and socializing,

- proper ventilation in the steam room,

- a good vihtaa.

In Estonia, there are saunas all over the place. You have them at your home, your friends have them at their home, your parents have one, relatives and even your workplace may have them. They are a part of your weekly plan.