What to wear to sauna? Complete etiquette to Finnish sauna

April 1, 2024

Have you been invited to a Finnish sauna? And wondering what to wear?

Maybe they are all nude? Help, I don't want to be all nude! How to handle that situation?

What to bring along to be prepared for sauna?

Let's explore the options to this relaxing haven of warmth - Finnish sauna etiquette!

What to wear to sauna?

First we need a bit more information. Is it a public sauna, for example with a common swimming pool or someone's private sauna?

For a public sauna visit in Finland, you'll need:

Flipflops or other sandals (so you don't get fungus to your feet in the showers, flipflops are left outside the sauna, you don't want to slip or fall in the sauna!)
Your own towel (the rentable ones are expensive, if there are some)
A small towel to sit on in the sauna, note: there usually are some one-time-use ones also available
A swimming suit, if you are going swimming or to a jacuzzi
Your shower products like makeup removal tissues, shampoo, soap, sponge or washcloth if you use those, skin lotion, hair brush/comb and of course makeup, if you wish, to apply it after sauna.

Usually public sauna facilities in Finland are equipped with a hair dryer, so you won't need that. Some even have a soap option, but don't count on shampoo being there.

Inside the public saunas in Finland, swimming suits are often prohibited for being unhygienic and everybody is naked. But if you want to keep yours on, you will probably not get noticed, or they will guess you are from another country!

Don't try to wear your towel to sauna - it will be all wet and how do you then use it to dry after washing yourself in the shower?

Public sauna facilities have usually always separate men's and women's saunas.

But maybe you have been invited to visit your friend's sauna. It could be

Sauna evening (saunailta) that usually includes going to sauna various times and some beer or your favorite refreshments
Lakeside sauna that allows you to refreshen yourself by swimming in the lake (also wintertime, there could be a hole cut to the ice) that often includes also some grilling and beer
Rented sauna, that might have a hot tub outside, a small swimming pool or pier next to the sea or a lake.

For a private sauna event you will need:

Flipflops (you should leave them outside the sauna)
Big towel for drying yourself
Small towel to sit on (there might be some available)
Swimsuit if there will be some swimming possibilities (some also go skinny dipping!)
Usually there are shampoo, conditioner and soap available, you can check from the organizer.

Usually men and women go to sauna as 2 different groups in private events in Finland. This happens if there is only 1 sauna available. Only very close family and friends usually go to sauna without a swimming suit if it's a mixed sauna

How to sauna - the Finnish sauna way

You leave the clothes to the dressing room and take your towel(s), shower accessories and put on your flipflops (or go without shoes).
If it's a private sauna event, you'll take also your drink of choice along to sauna. Remember that cans get hot in there, so a glass or plastic bottle is nicer.
You'll go to shower, most people get their hair wet too (actual washing happens after sauna).
You'll go to sauna with the small towel (and the drink, if a private event) and sit on the towel.
If you are afraid of the heat, take your seat far away from the stove (kiuas) or on the second level (high up it's always hotter)
Someone usually is throwing water to the heated rocks quite frequently. If you would like to add steam, throw some cold water from the bucket with the sauna ladle to the stove. Add water to the bucket if it runs out.
Add some cold water to the back wall of your sitting place to cool it down, sit on your towel and enjoy. Notice your skin starting to sweat. If you are not sweating, sauna might be too hot or you have not been yet long enough there.
If you are lucky, you might have something called "vihta" or "vasta" in the sauna. This is a bouquet of leafy birch twigs and these are first soaked in water and then used to beat your back, thighs and all over to cleanse the skin. It does not hurt and feels good, and you usually do it yourself so you can decide how to do it.
Usually people sit in the sauna for 10-15 minutes at the time. You can try for less minutes, especially if someone is throwing too much water to the stove, just wait a bit, it will cool down after them. Remember your drink!
You can go to refresh yourself in the shower, or go outside in a towel, go throw yourself to the snow to make snow angels or just take a small dip to the lake.
And then back to the sauna when you get cold. Repeat as many times as you wish!
Then go wash your hair and body and put some body lotion if your skin is often dry.

After sauna you will notice a healthy glow in your cleansed skin, you might even look red for all the blood circulating well! You will feel totally warm inside and muscles are relaxed too.

Sauna rules - what to do and not to do according to Finnish sauna etiquette?

Go naked if you dare. It is best for getting the skin pores open with the warmth and steam of the sauna.
If you need to wear something, a swimsuit/bathing suit is a better option than a towel. Because who would want a sweaty towel?
Take a one-time "towel" called pefletti to sit on, if you don't have a separate hand towel for this. If it's your sauna, you can be without this.
Don't go to sauna if you have low blood pressure. Sauna lowers blood pressure.
Don't go to sauna if you are ill or have fever, very high blood pressure, heart failure or coronary artery disease.
You can talk in the sauna, but if there are strangers, try to keep your voice down, noise is not appreciated in this relaxing place.
In Finland, also kids go to sauna, usually from the age of 4 to 5 onwards. They can go when they can sit calmly and not fall down. Sauna stove is dangerously hot!
Families go to sauna with their kids, all together. If/when the teen shyness appears, then girls can go with mom and boys with their dad.
Even some pets want to go to sauna in Finland. That is cats and dogs.
Nobody wears a sauna hat in Finland. A hat or a cap can be useful when going ice-swimming, so that your head does not get cold.
There is nothing "sexy" in sauna. It's a place to get clean, not to have sex. If you have tried, you might have noticed that it's too hot anyway.

Sauna accessories - What is vihta and vasta?

These are the same thing. It's a sauna whisk, the green thing in the picture above! Finns in Western Finland call it vihta and Finns in Eastern Finland call it vasta.

It's about 12-16 inch bouquet of fresh, leafy birch twigs from silver birch. The twigs are tied tightly together, leaf-side outside, for comfort of course, we are not trying to make us suffer in sauna! The leaves are removed from the handle area.

In sauna, you dip the vasta (yes my roots are in Eastern Finland) to a bucket of cold water and then gently lashing it to your skin in a good rhythm. Start with your back and keep dipping it to water, vasta must not be dry!

Lashing your skin with vasta will make a great blood circulation boost and it feels very good. It also removes the dead skin cells, so you get a nice glowing skin.

No hair products in Finnish hotels or saunas?

I recently noticed that tourists were wondering why there is no shampoo or conditioner in Finnish hotels, usually only liquid soap in the shower - well we Finns always bring along our own products, because we don't want to get a bad hair day because of wrong type of shampoo and conditioner.

Do you have some questions about Finnish sauna? Ask me in the chat or leave a comment!

Note: Pictures in this blog post are with people having towels on, because my blog could get banned in the internet because of naked people in the pictures! 😂

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