Bath in a tent, stable, or whiskey barrel—15 extraordinary Finnish saunas

1. A firewood stack—no, it’s a sauna!

This family from Ilmajoki built their unique sauna from stacks of firewood. What began as a simple a pile of firewood in the prime spot of their garden evolved into an innovative design. They harvested aspen trees from their forest, sawed, dried, and split them into firewood, and arranged the logs around an insulated frame. The result is a sauna that, when heated up with patience, provides the sauna-goer with gentle steam and warmth that lasts for days.

2. A study in curved elegance

Behind a 1980s house in Keuruu stands an elegant barrel sauna finished in dark wood. Its arched gable window offers bathers a serene view of the adjacent forest. The light-colored roof creates a striking contrast against the black-treated walls and benches.

3. Forged in iron

In Rantasalmi, there is a remarkable small sauna made of iron from 1969, built from a big repurposed barrel. The grandfather who built the sauna forged the stove from iron and fashioned the benches from juniper and aspen, carefully heat-curved into shape. The stove requires only fifteen minutes of heating before you can jump on the benches.

4. The artistry of the axe

An experienced carpenter, having built thirty log cabins, created this sauna from wind-felled trees and construction site materials. The weathered logs feature a meticulously carved light brown pattern on their interior surfaces. While the decorative pattern is consistent, each axe mark bears its own unique character. The logs vary in height from 18 to 35 centimeters.

5. Shingle-clad innovation

This 150-year-old hewn log sauna combines historical charm with modern design through its landscape windows and distinctive shingle walls. The shingle surface, crafted from treated dry aspen shavings, is mounted on a support wall in an overlapping pattern reminiscent of traditional shingle roofing.

6. Nature’s embrace

Known affectionately as the “Troll Sauna,” this smoke sauna seamlessly merges with its surroundings at the field’s edge between two guardian trees. Its fireproof concrete frame is ingeniously cast underground, topped with a turf roof. Inside, rough-sawn boards line the walls, creating an atmosphere of timeless authenticity. The stove, accessible from outside, incorporates stones from an old barn foundation.

7. Heritage reimagined

In Joensuu, the father of a family of ten dedicated eight years to building this smoke sauna made of an old log frame atop the foundation of an old barn. The structure sits naturally against a traditional moss-covered stone wall, appearing as if it has been there for generations.

8. Enduring legacy

Built in 1979 by a war veteran, this dugout sauna’s robust construction and excellent ventilation have required minimal maintenance over the decades. Its exterior features traditional red ochre paint. The design draws from wartime experience, where saunas were constructed using unpeeled logs and built safely deep into the ground. The window offers a view of the passing river.

9. Spirit of the barley fields

On an ancestral farm in Ilmajoki, a family of six enjoys their unique sauna built in an old whiskey barrel, used at the state alcohol monopoly Alko’s Salmisaari factory until 1999. Instead of storing ten thousand liters of spirits, it now accommodates up to seven bathers. The benches beautifully follow the barrel’s natural curvature.

10. From horses to hot steam

Since the 1960s, this former horse stable in a 1945’s barn has served as a sauna, drawing water from a natural spring. In winter, the owner shovels a path to the sauna and places small spruce trees along its edges, collected from the forest, and adds lanterns for ambiance.

11. Where fire meets ice

Drawing on their igloo-building experience, a couple constructed this ice sauna on a frozen lake in during a cold spell in January. They cut thick blocks from steel-hard ice with a chainsaw and bound them together with slush mortar. To preserve the ice walls, they heat the stove outside before placing it in the sauna. The melting ice walls create exceptionally soft, misty warmth.

12. Sauna on waves

This innovative cottage raft merges the best of lakeside living and nautical adventure. Measuring 12 by 6 meters and supported by six pontoons, its 72 square meters are evenly split between the indoor areas and terraces. The sauna features a stove the owners got as a wedding gift and handcrafted benches.

13. Glamping sauna

This family with children camps in a campfire hut on their own forest plot in Lohja and bathes in a tent sauna with an adjoining changing room. They carry water from a nearby lake and heat it on the stove. The sauna’s framework is made of trees left on the plot after thinning the plot out. Come winter, they store away everything except the wooden structures and brush walls.

14. Carved from stone

This smoke sauna in Leppävirta truly blends into its surroundings, as it’s partially built underground. The carpenter who built the sauna started the project by excavating clay soil and positioning large natural stones as the foundation. The walls grew up gradually with cement and natural stone, requiring sufficient drying time between layers. This masterpiece of stone craftsmanship took a decade to complete.

15. Magical steam in a shaman sauna

In rural Satakunta, this mystical sauna preserves ancient folklore, with traditional Finnish spells recited during bathing and one carved near the ceiling. The clay sauna features logs splits from old timber, traditionally insulated with moss. Rough-sawn birch forms the sturdy, peat-treated benches, while the handrail supports are made of branches from a fallen apple tree. The log walls, twice-burned and steel-brushed, exhibit an ethereal patinated glow.