Tampere - the Sauna Capital of the World

If you visit Finland without going to Sauna, you probably miss a lot! A Sauna is typically a room heated to between 70° to 100° Celsius or 158° to 212° Fahrenheit. Traditional Finnish Saunas usually use dry heat, with a relative humidity between 10 and 20 percent. While in Sauna the skin temperature rises and heavy sweating occurs. To international visitors and tourists, Sauna is an important attraction in Finland. Going to Sauna is an important part of the Finnish lifestyle. According to estimates, 99% Finns go to Sauna regularly. Regularly means once a week, usually on Saturday evening. However, many go to Sauna twice a week: on Saturday and Wednesday. I have even met Finns who go to Sauna on a daily basis. Native Finns cannot imagine missing Sauna on Xmas and Midsummer eves. 

There are 3.2 million Saunas in a country of 5.5 million people, which almost equals the number of private cars on Finnish roads. For foreigners who settle in Finland, including Bangladeshis, Sauna becomes very quickly an important part of their life. Though Saunas have existed in Finland for thousands of years, the Sauna is not an exclusively Finnish invention – a variety of sweating baths can be found in other parts of the world, including India. When in other nations, going to sweating baths is on decline, in Finland going to Sauna is flourishing. Consequently, visiting the Sauna is considered a national hobby in Finland. 

There are different types of Saunas in Finland; smoke Sauna, steam Sauna, infrared Sauna, wooden Sauna, electric Sauna, mobile Sauna, floating Sauna, Sauna restaurant and public Sauna. The Sauna culture is gradually changing in Finland as the number of visitors to public Saunas is on rise. Tampere, the second largest city in Finland, has been given the title of Capital City of Sauna in the world. Tampere and the surrounding area have a total of 22 public Saunas. The public Sauna Rauhaniemi alone has 70,000 Sauna goers yearly. 

For people of the old days, Sauna was the cleanest and most hygiene place, where mothers gave birth to their baby even until 1930s.  Many children also originated in a Sauna, an intimate meeting place for men and women. The dead were also washed and dressed in the Sauna. Many chores were done in the Sauna. The laundry was washed, flax, hemp and straw dried, talcum powder, sausage, malt, firewood, beer and curds placed, seed potatoes germinated, slaughtering done, soap and yarns dried and liquor burned there. So one can easily think of how pervasive the contribution of Sauna was to the everyday life of people in the old days.

However, the contribution of Sauna has changed in the daily life of Finnish people in the modern days. Nowadays, Sauna is considered as a place to relax; refresh and warm up; discuss daily issues with family members and friends; and make decisions on critical problems. If visiting a home and your host/friend invites you to Sauna, it is a sign of honour. Remember to drink enough water after visiting Sauna as sweating dehydrates you a lot. 

Clothing in Sauna varies. In public Saunas, people wear a swimming costume. In private Saunas at home or summer cottages, family members with some exceptions go to Sauna nude. However, there is always an option to wear a swimming costume or use a towel although you can find Saunas especially in swimming halls with instructions not to use any costume. In this case, the Sauna is divided gender wise; separate Saunas for men and women.

Sauna has immense health benefits. There is an old Finnish proverb “if Sauna, tar and booze do not help, the disease is deadly.” The proverb exposes the curing power of Sauna. The same proverb also refers to the statement that "Sauna is a pharmacy of poor people". Personally, after visiting Sauna I feel very relaxed, lighter and have a very good and long sleep in the following night. It has been observed that regular Sauna visits have a positive impact on the functioning of our heart and people who often visit Sauna have fewer illnesses than people who visit Sauna seldom. Due to its huge health benefits some international hotel chains, sports complexes and gym facilities have incorporated Sauna in their premises. 

Writer: Teacher and researcher