BORLÄNGE (Sweden), May 5 — Deep underground in a disused iron mine and underneath the bluish glow of a flashlight, a small crowd emerges from a sauna, steam rising off their our bodies as they plunge right into a crystal clear turquoise lake.
In Sweden and Finland, some uncommon saunas have been constructed in current years, providing really singular experiences.
Nestled in the snowy forests of Bergslagen in central Sweden, hidden 90 metres (virtually 300 ft) under floor in this area recognized for its mines, lies this very particular sauna.
The outdated iron mine in the city of Borlange closed in 1968 earlier than reopening in 2022, redesigned to welcome guests on the lookout for a singular — and sweaty — expertise, Daniel Karlsson, the top of Adventure Mine, informed eNM.
“If you take a look at saunas at present, it’s extra like a luxurious expertise,” he mentioned.
But “down right here it’s not only a sauna. It’s additionally the expertise that you simply get with nature,” he mentioned, clad in a thick crimson parka to guard from the chilly and a helmet with a headlamp.
The house provides guests a second of respite from the busy, related world above.
“Because the sauna is down in the mine, there’s nothing that disturbs you from having fun with the sauna.”
“You don’t have cell phones, you don’t have the solar, you don’t have the wind,” he mentioned.
Heat on a excessive
Saunas are loved around the globe as a technique of rest, claimed by some to supply well being advantages.
Having a sauna has been a social and hygiene custom for greater than 2,000 years.
Now, sauna fans who need to increase their horizons can attain new heights in Helsinki.
In the Finnish capital, a large ferris wheel overlooking town provides a sauna in certainly one of its specially-built pods.
The sweat session may simply burn a gap in your pockets although, costing between €240 and €350 (US$255 to US$375).
“You can get a reasonably good steam and heat right here for those who actually need to,” mentioned shift supervisor Viivi Makelainen.
“Although it’s fairly small, you’ll be able to match fairly a couple of individuals in right here, 4 or 5. Also the views are extra enjoyable while you’re in the sauna.”
Saunas are an integral a part of day by day life for many Finns.
The nation of 5.5 million inhabitants is house to three.3 million saunas.
Traditionally thought of a sacred house in Finland, ‘a church of nature’, the Finnish sauna tradition was named a Unesco Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2020.
‘Intimacy with the environment’
But one particular sauna in the Stockholm archipelago is making waves — crusing on the waters of the capital metropolis.
The “Big Branzino”, a luxurious floating sauna measuring 30 sq. metres (322 sq. ft), was designed and constructed in 2022 on the request of a non-public individual.
The construction resembles a sq. picket cabin, that includes floor-to-ceiling glass home windows and an open-air wheelhouse on the deck.
Inside, a custom-made wooden range with scorching rocks is surrounded by picket benches and chairs, whereas exterior, a rooftop terrace options a big desk and seating space to take in the view.
An image taken on May 5, 2023 exhibits the within of the “Big Branzino”, a luxe floating sauna measuring 30 sq. metres, because it floats in the waters of the Swedish capital, Stockholm. — eNM pic
“A consumer got here to the agency and he needed a very extraordinary sauna that he hadn’t seen earlier than,” architect Johan Strandlund informed eNM.
“So we got here up with this form in order to essentially maximise the intimacy with its environment, and we additionally needed a very breathtaking presence on the horizon,” he mentioned.
Strandlund mentioned the floating sauna appealed to nature- and sauna-loving Swedes.
“I believe it’s the best way that we actually wish to benefit from the lovely nature that we now have round right here in Stockholm.”
And “even while you’re not utilizing the sauna, the hearth is a good supply of heat, for instance for chilly summer season nights.” — eNM
