Sauna is a sacred place for Estonians, the first written notes about Estonian saunas date back to the 13th century. Throughout history, saunas have been the place for healing both body and soul, connecting with ancestors' spirits, catching up with friends and family, welcoming newborns, and honouring the departed. They have also been used as smokehouses, which is where the smoke sauna tradition comes from which has since found its way on the list of UNESCO intangible cultural heritage of the world. Safe to say saunas hold a special spot in Estonian culture.
Sauna culture is still very strongly present in the day-to-day lives of Estonians, with new innovative and designer saunas popping up like mushrooms after rain! So I wanted to take you on a small journey through some interesting saunas that you might want to put on your to visit list! We’ll start in the north of Estonia with some more unique experiences, then go south for some traditional smoke sauna experiences and finally do some island hopping, because nothing beats the Estonian islands.
Image source: Silver Gutmann/Visit Estonia
Homepage / Location: Pillapalu village, Harju County
Remember that I mentioned designer saunas a few sentences ago? This is one of them. The igloo saunas at Sportland Kõrvemaa Hiking and Skiing Centre are 100% handcrafted, covered with spruce chips from the outside and aspen chips from the inside. The heat is equally distributed, which makes the sauna nicely humid. Thanks to its curved shape, the steam moves up to the ceiling and then falls slowly down, filling the entire room and wraps the relaxing guests softly into its embrace.
There are also similar igloo saunas in the Noblessner region of Tallinn, the capital city.
Image source: Silver Gutmann/Visit Estonia
Homepage / Location: Koppelmaa village, Harju County
Have you ever taken a sauna in a pine treetop? Now you can!
Treehouseestonia offers a great opportunity to enjoy the pleasures of a sauna 4 metres above the ground and take a warm shower in the open air. It is also possible to spend the night sleeping in the tighter conditions of the tree sauna's anteroom. In addition to the sauna, they also offer accommodation in their Sambliku, forest, and jungle tree houses.
The sauna is intended for everyone who is looking for special experiences and adventures in nature. For those who are afraid of heights, they strongly recommend that you first take a look at their photo material.
Image Source: Silver Gutmann/Visit Estonia
Homepage / Location: Kaurutootsi village, Valga County
Toidupada, eng. Food cauldron, has been operating between the picturesque domes of Otepää in the south of Estonia since 2010. Not only do they have a wonderful smoke sauna they also offer simple and genuine Estonian food, with a twist of the modern. The food is mostly cooked over live fire – in a cauldron, pan or coals. As a result, the flavour and aroma characteristic of living fire can be felt in the food. Products from their own forests, gardens and fields are used as raw materials.
As for the sauna! When you are in a smoke sauna, you will feel going back in time and understand how our ancestors, in addition to cleansing and exfoliating their bodies, also cleansed their souls and improved their mental balance. A smoke sauna is truly one of the most local experiences that you can have!
However, those who want an even more intense experience can, in addition to the smoke sauna, bathe in the outdoor barrel tub on the terrace or jump into the ice hole carved into the pond in winter. Which is even more local.
Image Source: Rauno Liivand/Visit Estonia
Homepage / Location: Haanja village, Võru County
Mooska farm is a typical lifestyle farm in Southern Estonia. The powerful location at the foot of Vällamäe hiking trail is amidst the beautiful nature and harmonically connects the farm life with nature. The Veeroja family are proud to share their life with their guests and introduce local heritage, the pride of which is traditional local food and the smoke sauna.
In addition to this, they also smoke and sell the traditionally smoked meat. Yes, the one made in the smoke sauna! They have a separate sauna for that, don’t worry.
Image source: Tatiana Metsala/Visit Estonia
Homepage / Location: Surve village, Hiiu County
Now hopping over to the second largest island Hiiumaa. If you are looking for something special, primaeval and unique, this ancient sauna hut is the perfect place for you. The hut is made from large logs and has a thick sod roof, so it’s a pretty special experience. Magical if you will.
Image Source: Alina Birjuk/Visit Estonia
Homepage / Location: Undva village, Saare County
And finally, to our last destination. The biggest island in Estonia (and my home) Saaremaa. Maali talu is an ideal place for relaxing in the middle of romantic nature. The family farm is located on the Tagamõisa peninsula surrounded by the sea with the nearest beach being only a kilometre away. There’s also some creative workshops held here, where you can paint and make sauna products. The coast surrounding the peninsula is wonderful, offering views from the banks or enjoying the leaning tower of Kiipsaare lighthouse, which is a sight to see in itself.
Fun fact, the bunch of leaves the person in the image is holding is called a sauna whisk. It is essentially a bunch of birch branches with leaves that we use to hit ourselves and each other in the sauna. It is usually made from fresh branches and soaked before use. It’s good for you, I promise!
It seems our sauna tour has come to an end. I do hope you’ve enjoyed yourself as much as I have. So how about this; I’ll leave you with a bit of tradition, which has sadly died out somewhat, and a short lesson of the Estonian language. When you enter a sauna in Estonia it is tradition to greet the sauna and what you say varies depending on where you are. You could go with a simple ‘tere saun!’ which means ‘hello sauna’. Some declare an even simpler ‘sauna!’ which you don’t need a translation for. You could go for a ‘Jumal sekka (siia, sisse)!’ or ‘jumal seltsi!’ which both essentially mean ‘God is among us’. One of my favourites is ‘mõru välja, magus sisse’ which means ‘bitterness out, sweetness in’ and I think that’s lovely.
So let’s go to the sauna! Don’t forget your sauna whisk!
Please share a comment in the form below, if you have input on this experience or if you know of other local experiences you would like to recommend.