Sauna Visitor

Interesting. JC Prestwich designed Leigh’s own public baths on Silk Street which opened in 1881, but they didn’t get a Turkish Baths until 1902.

As ever, your seat towel will get soaked so bring a second towel for drying off. I wouldn’t bother with flip-flops, you’d only take about three steps in them. Sauna hats not worn. Anyone looking for a true Finnish sauna experience in the UK should try the Finnish Church. Recommended.

Finnish Church is very much a no-frills sauna - no towels are available, there are no lockers and there’s no cold plunge or private showers. What they do offer is a genuine sauna experience where you can pour water on the rocks for löyly.

Apparently when there are 8 users people take it in turns. And to be fair there were only a few moments when all 6 of us were in at the same time - the cycles of sauna, shower and sitting upstairs didn’t coincide.

Sauna stove, water bucket and the legs of two men either side.

Find a spot. There are benches either side of the stove that each seat 3 people. Sit on your towel. No need to cover up. Enjoy.

A shower room with a door leading to the sauna. Two showers are visible, each with an overhead shower and handheld bit.

Hang your towel up and wash. These are good showers with a handheld wand bit. Get your towel and enter the sauna.

Steps towards the shower. I’m reflected in the door but am carrying a towel.

Strip off (swimwear is not required or expected) and go down with your towel a few more stairs to a communal shower room.

Door in changing area with reflection of me.

Check in at reception. If you’re early like I was you can wait in the cafe area or have a nosy around their little shop. There is free wi-fi. When it’s time for the session, go downstairs, past the toilets and you’ll find a small communal changing room.

The sauna is open Wednesday to Sunday with a mix of private sessions (£25 weekdays / £28 weekends 60 mins for up to 2 people, £10 per extra person with max capacity 8) and single-gender sessions (£10 for 60 minutes, £12 for 90). Nearest tube is Canada Water, 12 minutes walk. Entrance on the left.

This has been on my to-visit list for many years. Until fairly recently prospective attendees had to arrive and hope for availability. Now you can pre-book online - but sessions do book up quickly.

Exterior of Finnish Church.

Finnish Church, Rotherhithe, London. Visited 3-4pm 8th March 2025, public men’s session. £10 plus £1.80 tip, booked online 31st January. Max 8 attendees, 6 people present including myself, all nude.

Three shower gunk bottles branded Malin + Goetz. And a ledge for glasses.

The whole place is well thought out. It’s good value - the body wash, shampoo and conditioner in the shower seem decent. Arc does seem to attract a younger crowd but to fair I really wish this (and Fix) existed when I was 25.

An ice bath with handles

Four ice baths. There’s another set on the other side of the room.

There are 8 ice baths. The handles are quite useful - there is a way to hold them underarm so fingers are out of the water and raise feet out, if you need that. (It helps me. I’m definitely more a sauna head than an ice bather).

At a couple of points in the unguided session an attendant placed an fragranced ice ball on the sauna and wafted this to parts of the sauna with a towel. A mini aufguss.

Sat upright, over 30 people can easily sit while having space around them to swing arms. I believe the capacity is 65 which will get a bit tighter.

A massive stove in a massive sauna. No people are visible. There are towels on the floor.

The lounge leads to the sauna and open shower area. The sauna itself is massive. It has two doors, much like Fix, but the stove appears to take the whole space between the two doors, and the whole interior is just that little bit bigger.

Part of the lounge with no-one sat in it

After the change area, there is the lounge. This is a lovely circular area with padded seats. Outside the circle there’s the taps on one side and the DJ area on the other.

Hats are optional and even less used. So you could just turn up with your swimsuit. There are even ample cups for water - but the taps are great for filling your own water bottle.

You’re given two towels on arrival, both white fluffy towels. One is for sitting on and the other is for drying at the end. Sliders are suggested but I don’t think are necessary, probably under half of people used them.

It works well - except when the Saturday class of 30+ kicked out late and hit arrivals for the next session, when the queuing made it feel crowded. But that feels like a one-off mistake.

Some of the changing area. Cubicles to left. Lockers all around. Big bench in middle here but true middle of room is the big mirror seen on the right.

It seems common at Arc to arrive early to get changed. The changing area is vast. There’s a dozen fully private shower cubicles each with change area, and slightly fewer dry change cubicles. Plus lots of code lockers, shoe cubbies,
benches, hair dryers, a big mirror, a cossie dryer. All unisex.

Subscribing or buying in bulk can bring this down to £24 if you’re buying 20 at a time (a 6 month expiry), with other price points along the way. This is similar to Fix in Manchester, although that’s £29 for 90 minutes and recently added a £15 for 45 minutes class type.

At other times sessions run for 70mins and on many evenings there are 2hr party sessions. All termed as ‘classes’. While one class is £35, a newbies deal at £45 allows for 3 sessions within 14 days - although sadly no more than one per day.

Some daft man approaching his 49th birthday in a daft hat in front of a sign saying “arc community”

I visited Arc Community in Canary Wharf, London twice. First for a standard “Free flow” sauna/ice session 4:20-5:10 Friday, and secondly on Saturday for a “Lymphatic Flow” guided session, which was down as 12-12:50 but ran longer. Arc have the biggest sauna in the UK, taking the crown from Fix Mcr.

You can pay for a parenie treatment which takes place in the sauna in front of the main benches. Get hit with birches, both sides lay down and then sat up. One for next time.

Visitors to Banya No 1 are supplied a towel (I asked for a second and was not charged) to sit on and a hat. Sliders are expected and are available to buy. Lockers use a code entry. There is a cafe bit, order food on your phone via qr code to website. Portions are generous.

Banya No 1 Hoxton gets very hot. The attendants (mix of genders, clothed) just keep shovelling water in. On the top bench it felt like my tongue started to burn! But there was plenty space to shuffle down. A big cold dip barrel and bucket showers provide a cool down.

Banya No 1 Hoxton (men’s session, 1:30-3 Friday) - two guys in shorts voiced surprise at others being “bollock naked”. Maybe they’re used to the mixed sessions which don’t allow nudity. Personally I’m not interested in a men’s session unless it comes with the opportunity to skip swimwear.

I went to 6 different London saunas this weekend because I’m just loopy for sweat baths. 3 of them I enjoyed naked, 1 in a wrapped towel and 2 in a cossie. All had their pros and cons and I’ll start a new thread for each over the next day or so.

No, it’s just the sort of thing journalists coin for a “second mention” - instead of repeating the word sauna, another phrase is used for variety.