“It’s The New Irish Pub” – Inside Ireland’s Sauna Revolution

It’s rammed, we’re shoulder-to-shoulder in a small room in a coastal Irish town, luckily for me, I secured a window seat beside the stove, the best set in the house. It’s raining and windy outside, yet this room has an air of calm, presence and connection. Conversations flow between strangers like they’ve met hundreds of times. There is no alcohol present and everyone is in their swimming togs, sweating away their concerns in a 100-degree sauna.

Let’s set the scene

“We are trying to create a cultural change. We want going to the sauna to be as common as going for a cup of coffee or a pint with your friends” Steve Crosbie, the founder of Fad Saoil Saunas told us. Fad Saoil Saunas was the first professional mobile sauna in Ireland, established in the summer of 2019. Emerging out of the pandemic period we have noticed saunas popping up all over the country. Some of them at beaches, some at rivers and some offering ice baths or cold plunges in city centres. We want to find out why we are seeing this sauna revolution. So we talked to some of the owners of the country’s newest and longest-running saunas to hear why they think more people taking the time to sit in a 100-degree room regularly.

The History of Saunas in Ireland

Ireland has a history of sweathouses. These structures were used in ancient Ireland for purification, healing and relaxation. They began to be phased out with the advent of more modern medicinal practices, however, their legacy is being reborn in recent times they have been repopularised through the sauna revolution we are seeing in Ireland.

These low, stone structures would have a small entrance and domed roof to trap heat. A fire would be lit in the centre of the structure and stones would be heated ontop of the fire until they were red hot. Water would be poured on these stones to raise the temperature and produce steam. The intense heat was believed to cleanse the body of toxins and provide relief from various ailments.

Sounds very familiar doesn’t it?

Why are we seeing this cultural change?

1. People are more aware of their health

The pandemic resulted in people changing many of their habits. One such habit that changed was people’s relationship with swimming. People who would have previously swum in a pool began swimming outdoors, “offering people a sauna service after a dip in the cold Irish sea was in demand at that time.” The Sweaty Sanctuary Sauna team told us. The pandemic made everyone think much deeper about their health and the everyday things they can do to be healthier. Whether that is mental health or physical health. As we are starting to find out, the sauna does wonders for both. More on that later!

2. Social Media

It’s very Instagramable. For better or worse, humans love to share what we are doing, and for many of us nowadays, that means sharing images on social media. Going to a sauna beside the sea or getting in a cold plunge overlooking the mountains are all very sharable activities. For many of the sauna owners we have talked to, word of mouth is the ultimate marketing tool at their disposal. All it takes is one person to share an image from their sauna experience and many new customers will try out the sauna. Some will be one-timers and others will begin to factor it into their lives. The customers are the best marketers for mobile saunas. The result is an exponential increase in awareness and interest.

3. A shift away from alcohol

“The pub culture has changed. Friends get together in different ways now, and one of those ways is in the sauna.” – The Hot Pod. A 2023 survey from Healthy Ireland survey backs this up. Since 2018 the percentage of people that have consumed alcohol in the past 12 months has dropped from 75% to 70%. A 3% drop was also observed in people who drink once a week. However, the biggest drop was in the 25-34 age group, where the number of people who drink once a week decreased by 14%.

“For a long time, young Irish people have said there isn’t a huge amount of activities to be social outside of drinking-related activities.” Saunos. “Friends get together in different ways now, and one of those ways is in the sauna.” The Hot Pod

There is a reason that so many people compare their sauna sessions with pubs in Ireland. The lack of technology, the shared experience serving as a social lubricant and the desire to chat are very similar to the pub experience for many. Instead of stepping outside for a smoke, you step out for a steam and to cool down.

4. The Technological Cleanse

“No phones, no distractions and, if you want, just silence. So it’s a bit of freedom from modern life, and a jack into nature instead.” – Sweathouse.ie. There is something innately human about enduring an uncomfortable environment. Nowadays we exist in a world of comfort. The sauna taps into our primal brain, it gives us signals of stress in a calm environment. This is why true relaxation can be found in the sauna.

There are no distractions in the sauna. You can try and bring your phone into the sauna but it will overheat and power off within 5 minutes. All you have to entertain yourself are your thoughts, your company and perhaps a view out the window. The units of time devolve into “rounds” and you find yourself entertaining conversations with others or with yourself, that you would have ignored outside the room.

5. An Abundance of Information & Gamification of Health

There has been a massive increase in information about our health in the past few years. This is thanks to progress in science and our understanding of the human body but also is thanks to the abundance of wearables. Wearable technology, such as watches that track health metrics, has made people aware of the impact their habits have on their bodies, both positive and negative.

There is normally a pretty stark and obvious deviation from your baseline when you partake in something good or bad for your overall health. People can track progress, log streaks of “good scores”, and set goals, some wearables even offer badges for achieving a certain goal. This “gamification” of health incentivises people to keep up the habits that result in good scores and limit the habits that result in poor ones.

“The rise in social media fitness influencers and podcasters has increased the awareness and highlighted the many benefits of regular sauna use can offer.” – Tigh ‘N Alluis.

Top 10 Saunas In Ireland 

The Scientific Benefit of the Sauna

Dr Rhonda Patrick explores the benefits of the sauna in a video that is freely available online. In this video, Dr Rhonda Patrick shares the benefits of hyperthermic conditioning for endurance, strength and brain health.

Benefits of Sauna for Endurance Athletes

The sauna can benefit endurance athletes in several ways. One of the biggest benefits is that it increases blood flow to the muscles, which leads to enhanced nutrient supply. It can also reduce the reliance on local glycogen stores and lower heart rate at the same workload due to increased blood flow to the heart. Additionally, sauna improves sweating ability, allowing for better temperature regulation and performance. Lastly, it increases blood plasma volume and red blood cell count, which can help improve endurance and overall performance.

Benefits of Sauna for Strength Athletes

Strength athletes can benefit from using saunas as it increases the production of heat shock proteins that reduce oxidative stress and promote protein synthesis for hypertrophy. It may also increase growth hormone levels, which can further enhance performance and muscle growth.

Benefits of Sauna for Brain Health

Sauna increases Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), which promotes brain cell growth, survival, information retention, and muscle repair. It also releases dynorphin, which leads to increased sensitivity to endorphins and the potential for a “runner’s high”.

Benefits of Sauna for Mental Health

Dr. Jeffrey Lieberman, a psychiatrist at the University of Columbia in the United States, conducted two studies in which people with major depression were made to sit in a sauna. I one of these studies, he found that a single session caused a rapid and potent antidepressant effect, and the benefits lasted for six weeks. He concluded that whole-body hyperthermia, or sauna use, shows great promise as a safe, fast-acting, and long-lasting treatment for depression.

Discover the Nearest Sauna to You – Check Out Our Sauna Map of Ireland