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Finding a great sauna is not as straightforward as finding a great coffee shop. A lot of venues that advertise sauna access offer something that barely qualifies — an underheated box in a hotel basement, an infrared cabin in a gym changing room, or a steam room that gets cleaned once a week. These are not saunas in any meaningful sense.

The good news is that a genuinely excellent sauna is increasingly accessible in most European cities and many smaller towns — if you know what to look for and where to search.

Start With GoToSauna

The simplest starting point is GoToSauna, which lists verified sauna venues across Europe with detailed information about heat type, facilities, cold plunge access, pricing, and guest reviews. You can search by city or location, filter by type (traditional, infrared, public, hotel), and read descriptions written by people who have actually assessed the facilities rather than copied the hotel's marketing copy.

Beyond dedicated platforms, here is what to do.

Search Terms That Work

Generic terms like "sauna near me" return highly variable results — you are as likely to get a gym with an infrared cabin as a genuine Finnish sauna. More specific searches yield better results:

• "public sauna [city name]" — finds communal sauna facilities, which are typically more authentic than hotel saunas
• "Finnish sauna [city name]" — targets venues that take the tradition seriously
• "Aufguss sauna [city name]" — finds German-tradition venues with ceremonial steam sessions
• "sauna club [city name]" — often finds the newer, community-oriented urban sauna operations
• "floating sauna [city name]" — specific to coastal or riverside venues

What Distinguishes a Good Sauna

Once you have a list of candidates, here is what to evaluate:

Heat source. This is the single most important indicator of quality. A wood-fired sauna (kiuas) produces softer, more enveloping heat than an electric sauna. Electric saunas are not necessarily bad, but they are harder to do well. Infrared saunas operate on a completely different principle (heating the body directly rather than the air) and are useful for specific purposes but are not a substitute for a traditional sauna if authentic experience is your goal.

Ask or check the website: "Is the sauna wood-fired or electric?"

Temperature range. A proper sauna runs between 80°C and 100°C. Below 70°C and you are not really getting a sauna experience. If a venue does not advertise or cannot tell you their operating temperature, treat this as a warning sign.