Help with sauna etiquette please!
 

I believe there will be saunas in many of the hotels we have booked for an upcoming trip to Scandinavia, as well as on the ship between Stockhom and Helsinki, what is the etiquette involved in a public sauna in this part of the world? Are they co-ed? Does one wear a bathing suit? Do you take the bath towel from your room? Any advice will be appreciated! Thanks!

Saunas are not cp-ed, and at least in Finnish saunas you are always naked. No bathing suits or towels. We are grown up with nakedness, so nobody will stare your body or care if you are bony as a stick or round as a meatball. So you can forget all body-conciousness. You can take the towel from your room just in case there are no towels in sauna, but usually there are. (I don´t know about the boat, though)<BR><BR>Usually there is a free morning sauna in hotels, an hour or so for women and then an hour or so for men. Or vice versa. And if you want, you can reserve it just for yourself later in the day (there is a fee), and go and bathe with your husband or manfriend or children or whoever you are travelling with.<BR><BR>First take a shower, and after that go to the steamroom. If there are some Finns, they usually take care of throwing water to the stones. But if there is just you, throw water regularly, so that the air stays steamy and moist. The worst thing is a dry sauna. Then just relax and enjoy. Afterwards take another shower. If there is a swimmingpool, jump from hot sauna into cool water. Then go back to sauna and repeat. The hot-cold-hot-cold makes you feel like a queen afterwards.<BR><BR>

Not cp-ed, I meant public saunas are not co-ed.

I forgot to give the address to sauna society´s home page. Check this, and you´ll know all:<BR><BR>http://www.sauna.fi/pages/

elina said <BR><BR>"The hot-cold-hot-cold makes you feel like a queen afterwards."<BR><BR>I'm not sure that's exactly what I'm looking for !<BR><BR>Peter<BR><BR><BR><BR>

Peter dear! I was talking to Helen.

Just had to comment on this "x" person's comment -- hmm, who do you think is the miserable one here?! (I hope you're not a US Postal employee!) MY impression was that Peter said this with a sense of humor.

Oh dear, I did not intend to become involved in controversy when I posted this question. <BR><BR>Elina, thank you for your helpful reply, I am grateful. I will look for the website you sent. <BR><BR>If there are others out there with information about Sweden, Norway and Denmark sauna etiquette I would appreciate your input.<BR><BR>Thank you.

Hi<BR><BR>So did I !<BR><BR>Peter<BR><BR><BR>Author: Diane ([email protected])<BR>Date: 05/09/2002, 04:11 pm<BR>Message: Just had to comment on this "x" person's comment -- hmm, who do you think is the miserable one here?! (I hope you're not a US Postal employee!) MY impression was that Peter said this with a sense of humor. <BR><BR>

Hi<BR><BR>seems like the offensive mail was censored ?<BR><BR>Peter<BR>