Wood-Fired Saunas in the US
26 wood-fired saunas in 12 US cities. Most are outdoor saunas by a lake, a river or the sea, and each listing shows the price per session and what the cold dip is.
| City | Places |
|---|---|
| Seattle | 6 |
| Minneapolis | 6 |
| Chicago | 2 |
| Milwaukee | 2 |
| Denver | 2 |
| Philadelphia | 2 |
| New Jersey | 1 |
| San Francisco | 1 |
| Portland | 1 |
| Austin | 1 |
| Tampa | 1 |
| Detroit | 1 |
Wood-fired saunas in Seattle
-
Bywater Sauna Alki Beach
Wood-fired barrel saunas parked on the Alki Beach boardwalk, just west of the Alki Beach Bathhouse, with Puget Sound a few steps away for a cold dip between rounds.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plungeSession $35
-
Bywater Sauna Golden Gardens
Wood-fired barrel saunas parked on the south beach at Golden Gardens Park, near the picnic pavilion, with Puget Sound a few steps away for a cold dip between rounds.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plungeSession $35
-
Good Day Sauna
A mobile cedar sauna with an iki wood-fired stove, parked at Lincoln Park in West Seattle with a big window toward the water and Puget Sound for a cold plunge.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plungeSession $35
-
Seattle Sauna
A double wood-fired cedar sauna floating in a houseboat community on Lake Union, with a rooftop deck facing the skyline and guided 90-minute social sessions for up to ten people.
Floating saunaTraditional saunaOutdoor saunaSession $49
-
Von Sauna
Kirkland
A wood-fired sauna on a barge in the Carillon Point marina in Kirkland, with lake views through the windows and Lake Washington itself as the cold plunge.
Floating saunaTraditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plunge195°F39°FSession $40
-
Wild Haus Floating Sauna
A wood-fired sauna boat that leaves from Eastlake with a captain and sails out onto Lake Union, with a rooftop deck and swims in the lake between rounds.
Floating saunaTraditional saunaCold plungeSession $150
Wood-fired saunas in Minneapolis
-
612 Sauna Cooperative
The member-owned co-op behind the Forge, a cedar-lined mobile sauna with a Kuuma wood stove, which spends each season in residence at Twin Cities parks such as Theodore Wirth Park and Silverwood Park.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaSession $38
-
FoxFire Breathworks Sauna at Lake Nokomis
A small wood-fired sauna on the shore of Lake Nokomis run by a breathwork studio, with hosted 80-minute sessions and winter plunges in the lake.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaCold plunge180°FNo plungeSession $30
-
Little Ember Co. Cedar Lake Sauna
Two wood-fired mobile saunas parked at Point Beach on Cedar Lake for the winter season, with hosted community sessions and a dip in the lake to cool down.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaCold plungeSession $35
-
PORTAL Minneapolis
A sauna and cold plunge social club in a former Jiffy Lube near the northwest shore of Bde Maka Ska, with two electric saunas, a wood-burning sauna and a 10-by-20-foot cold pool.
BathhouseContrast therapyTraditional saunaCold plungeHeat38°FSession $33
-
Sauna Camp
Excelsior
A winter sauna village at Camp Fire Minnesota on Lake Minnewashta with more than ten wood-fired cedar saunas, warming huts, bonfires and plunges through holes cut in the ice.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaCold plunge -
Saunable at Schulze Lake
Eagan
A Finnish wood-burning mobile sauna on the beach at Schulze Lake in Lebanon Hills Regional Park, with hosted 75-minute sessions, a fire pit and plunges in the lake.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaCold plungeSession $38
Wood-fired saunas in Chicago
-
Fire and Ice Sauna Experience
Two mobile wood-fired saunas run by Thunder Domes at North Avenue Beach each winter, the Chicago Park District's first winter sauna concession on the lakefront.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaSession $30
-
Oak St. Sauna
A seasonal wood-fired sauna in a converted shipping container at Oak Street Beach, with a cold plunge filled with Lake Michigan water and views of the Gold Coast skyline.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaContrast therapyCold plunge200°FNo plungeSession $45
Wood-fired saunas in Milwaukee
-
Hot Spell Sauna at Grant Park
South Milwaukee
A Nordic-inspired sauna run from Wulff Lodge in South Milwaukee's Grant Park, with two wood-fired saunas set among trees above the Seven Bridges Trail and cold showers between rounds.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaSession $37
-
Tuli Sauna & Plunge
Belleville
A wood-fired Finnish-style sauna on the banks of the Sugar River at Seven Acre Dairy Co. in Paoli, with big windows over the water and the river itself as the cold plunge.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plungeSession $39
Wood-fired saunas in Denver
-
Garden Sauna
A small wood-fired sauna in a hidden garden in Capitol Hill, with cold plunge tubs, a patio and an outdoor deck, entered through the Rooted Heart Yoga door.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaContrast therapyCold plungeHeat45°FSession $33
-
PORTAL Thermaculture Boulder
Boulder
A North Boulder contrast-therapy club in the Emerald City building with two wood-burning saunas and two ice-cold plunges, run by the same company as PORTAL in Denver.
Traditional saunaContrast therapyCold plungeSession $65
Wood-fired saunas in Philadelphia
-
Fiorst at the Schuylkill Center
A glass-walled, wood-fired Nordic sauna with a cold plunge at the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education in Roxborough, run by the mobile sauna company Fiorst and overlooking fields and woods.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaContrast therapyCold plunge190°FNo plungeSession $75
-
Fiorst Riverside
Conshohocken
A private wood-fired sauna and cold plunge on the bank of the Schuylkill River in Conshohocken, booked by groups of up to eight through the mobile sauna company Fiorst.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaContrast therapyCold plungeSession $300
Wood-fired saunas in New Jersey
-
King Spa & Sauna
Palisades Park
A big Korean jjimjilbang in Palisades Park with an oak-fired bulhanjeungmak kiln sauna, a string of themed mineral and clay rooms, an ice room, separate bathhouses and a Korean restaurant.
Korean spa
Wood-fired saunas in San Francisco
-
Fjord
Sausalito
Two wood-fired saunas built into steel shipping containers on a floating dock on the Sausalito waterfront, where the cold plunge is a ladder down into San Francisco Bay.
Floating saunaTraditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plunge190°FNo plungeSession $45
Wood-fired saunas in Portland
-
Guss Mobile Sauna
A wood-fired mobile sauna that parks beside the Willamette, usually at Sellwood Riverfront Park, so bathers can go straight from the heat into the river.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaCold plungeSession $30
Wood-fired saunas in Austin
-
Sauna House North Loop
A North Loop outpost of the Sauna House brand, built around an outdoor sauna garden with traditional Finnish and wood-burning saunas, cold plunge tubs and heated lounge benches, run as a phone-free space.
BathhouseTraditional saunaContrast therapyCold plungeCo-ed185°F45°F
Wood-fired saunas in Tampa
-
The Sauna Guys
A wood-fired outdoor sauna near Ybor City where two local friends run guided one-hour Nordic sessions that alternate between the hot sauna and a cold plunge under the trees.
Traditional saunaOutdoor saunaContrast therapyCold plunge
Wood-fired saunas in Detroit
-
Islandview Sauna Club
An outdoor sauna club on a wooded lot on Detroit's east side with three wood-fired saunas, including a barrel sauna and two converted livestock trailers, plus outdoor cold plunges and a bonfire.
Outdoor saunaTraditional saunaContrast therapyCold plunge200°F38°FSession $25
Why wood-fired
A wood stove heats the stones and the room in a softer, rounder way than most electric heaters, and the fire, the smell of wood and the crackle are part of the experience. In Finland many people consider wood-fired saunas the real thing.
Where to find them
Minneapolis and Seattle have the most, many of them by the water, and Denver, Chicago, Philadelphia, Portland and the Bay Area have a few each. Some run only in the colder months.
See also the traditional saunas and outdoor saunas pages, and read how Swedes use the sauna.
Frequently asked questions
Is a wood-fired sauna hotter than an electric sauna?
Not necessarily. Both can reach about 180 to 200°F. Many people describe wood-fired heat as softer. Where a sauna publishes its temperature, we show it on the listing.
Are wood-fired saunas open all year?
Some are, but many outdoor wood-fired saunas run mainly in fall, winter and spring. Check each listing and the operator's website.
Where can I do sauna and cold plunge in the US?
21 places we list have a cold plunge or cold pool next to the sauna, including Fjord, Bywater Sauna Alki Beach, Bywater Sauna Golden Gardens, Good Day Sauna and Von Sauna.