Sauna etiquette: the unwritten rules, country by country

Every sauna culture agrees on the basics and disagrees on the details. The basics keep the room clean and pleasant for the next person. The details, from swimwear to who holds the ladle, are where visitors get it wrong. Here is both, starting with what is the same everywhere.

The rules everyone shares

Shower before you go in. With soap. Every sauna culture starts here, and it is the rule most often broken by first-timers.
Sit on a towel. Sweat goes on your towel, not the wood. In Germany the rule extends to your feet: no bare skin on the bench at all.
Keep your voice down. The sauna is a quiet room. Conversation is fine in Finland, murmured; silence is expected in Germany and Japan.
Leave the phone outside. Heat kills it, and nobody wants a camera in a naked room. Sauna Metrics runs on the wrist for this reason.
Open and close the door fast. Every second lets the heat out.
Do not stretch out across the bench when others are waiting for a seat.
Drink water between rounds and skip the alcohol. The hydration guide explains how much.
Leave when you have had enough. Nobody is counting.

Finland

The sauna is a place for washing, resting and being together, and UNESCO lists Finnish sauna culture as intangible heritage. You go in naked. Mixed public saunas have separate hours or separate rooms for men and women; family saunas are mixed. A towel or a disposable seat cover goes under you. Anyone may throw water on the stones, but you ask first, and you throw small ladles, not buckets. The vihta, a bundle of birch branches, is for gently beating your own skin, and it is a summer thing. Between rounds you go outside, into the lake if there is one, and nobody hurries. Talking is normal; shouting is not. Business meetings in the sauna are real, and so is the rule that what is said there stays there.

Sweden and Norway

The bastu and the badstue are close cousins of the Finnish sauna, with one difference: public saunas in swimming halls are often mixed and swimwear is common, sometimes required. In private cabins and the sea saunas along the coast, nudity is the norm. Water on the stones is for everyone, with the same courtesy of asking. The cold plunge is part of the ritual, not an extra; see our guide to sauna and cold.

Germany, Austria and the Netherlands

The strictest and the most ritualised. Saunas are textilfrei: no swimsuits, and signs say so. Men and women share the room. A large towel is mandatory and must be under every part of you that touches wood, feet included. The centrepiece is the Aufguss: at fixed times a Saunameister pours scented water on the stones and fans the steam around the room with a towel, in rounds of 8 to 15 minutes. You join at the start, you do not leave in the middle unless you must, and you never touch the ladle yourself. Talking during an Aufguss is bad form. Between rounds, a shower, a cold plunge and a rest in the quiet room, in a bathrobe.

Russia and Ukraine

The banya runs wetter and often hotter, with a stove that holds a lot of steam. A felt hat protects your head, and wearing one is not a joke. The venik, a bundle of birch or oak leaves, is used to whip and press the skin, usually by a friend or a bath attendant. You do this in rounds, with cold water or snow between them. Nudity is usual in single-sex sessions; mixed sessions use sheets or swimwear. Tea between rounds is traditional.

Japan

Japanese sauna culture grew up inside the sento and onsen, and it follows their rules. You wash thoroughly at the seated showers before anything, you are naked, sections are separated by sex, and the small towel never goes in the water. The classic sequence is sauna, cold bath, rest in an outdoor chair, repeated three times. Silence is expected. Many places still refuse visible tattoos, so check first or look for a tattoo-friendly sauna.

Korea

The jjimjilbang separates the two parts. The wet area, with hot baths and a hot sauna, is naked and single-sex: scrub at the showers first. The dry area, with heated rooms of different temperatures, is mixed and everyone wears the cotton shorts and T-shirt handed out at the entrance. Lying down on the floor of a warm room is normal, and so is sleeping there overnight.

Gyms, hotels and spas

Rules are posted and vary. Most require swimwear, many ban water on the stones because the electric heater is not built for it, and the heat is often lower than in a Finnish sauna. The shared rules still apply: shower, towel, quiet, no phone, drink between rounds. If you want a proper session, the dose guide gives the rhythm, and the safety guide lists when to get out, whatever the custom around you.

Questions

Do you wear a swimsuit in a sauna?

It depends on the country. In Finland, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands the sauna is used naked, usually with a towel to sit on, and swimwear is often not allowed. In Sweden and Norway public saunas are often mixed and swimsuits are common. In Japan and Korea you are naked, in single-sex sections. When in doubt, copy the locals or ask at the desk.

Can I throw water on the stones?

In Finland, yes, but ask the people already in the room first, since the steam hits everyone. In German saunas the Aufguss is run by a staff member and guests do not touch the ladle. In most gyms and hotel saunas there is a sign; if it says no water, it is an electric heater that is not built for it.

How long should I stay in a public sauna?

Rounds of 8 to 15 minutes are normal, with a cool-down and a drink between them. Nobody times you, but leave when you have had enough: staying longer to prove a point is the one thing regulars never do.

Sources

General information, not medical advice.