In Helsinki, 5 of the curated saunas fit this cut. See the full Helsinki guide for every venue, or keep scrolling for just the forest saunas.
Every forest sauna in Helsinki
Aalto-sauna
€€Helsinki, Finland
A small electric sauna on Itäinen Pihlajasaari, designed and built by architecture students and run by the City of Helsinki. Six people fit inside, it is used self-service, and the whole sauna is booked for a slot through the city's Varaamo service over the summer season. The island is reached by ferry from Merisatama or Ruoholahti.
Kuusijärvi Outdoor Sauna
€Helsinki, Finland
A lakeside sauna complex in the Sipoonkorpi forest, 30 minutes from Helsinki centre. A smoke sauna heated for hours, a frigid lake for plunging, and birch trees in every direction. The winter weekend smoke sauna sessions are as good as it gets: dark sky, snow underfoot, hot smoke.
Pihlajasaaren sauna
€€Helsinki, Finland
The City of Helsinki's wood-heated shore sauna sits on the south side of Länsi-Pihlajasaari, a ten-minute water bus from Merisatama or Ruoholahti. One group books it at a time for a three-hour slot, up to seven people, and heats it themselves with the firewood provided. The sea is a few steps from the door.
Poliisien kesäkodin sauna
€Helsinki, Finland
Three wood-fired saunas on the sea at Länsiulapanniemi in Lauttasaari, run by the Helsinki police summer home association but open to anyone. Public sessions are booked and paid for online in advance. A group can also hire the saunas privately and heat them itself, and a dock by the shore is used for swimming and winter dipping.
Saunasaari
€€€Helsinki, Finland
Two traditional smoke saunas on the northern tip of Vasikkasaari, with the Helsinki skyline across the water. Sea swimming and a hot tub sit beside them, and the RÖK summer kitchen cooks over open fire and smoke. A boat runs out from the Market Square on summer weekends, and the island is also let for private events.