All About Finnish Sauna Etiquette
Getting invited to have a sauna bath is common in Finland, but you do need to
know the proper Finnish sauna
etiquette so that you don’t insult your host. The saying, “When in Rome,
do as the Romans do”, also applies to the Finns. Some of the reservations that we
have about sauna bathing do not exist in the Finnish culture because these
people have been enjoying the benefits of saunas for thousands of years.
We look at bathing in a sauna as a personal thing. For one thing, the etiquette
of North American culture makes it taboo to take off all your clothes in a sauna
when in the presence of strangers, meaning that many people leave on their
bathing suits when in mixed company. As part of Finnish culture, the sauna
etiquette requires that you do remove all your clothing. You shouldn’t be shy
about this because the Fins look at it as a normal part of fully enjoying
saunas.
In order to be polite and to adhere to the Finnish etiquette about using saunas,
you should always shower before you take a sauna bath. You only have to stay in
the sauna as long as you feel comfortable, but you can get out and get in again
as often as you wish. There is no specific time period and newcomers to bathing
in Finnish saunas may not be able
to stay in as long as the Finns who are more used to the steam and heat.
Although most people in Finland take a dip in a lake or even roll in the snow as
part of proper sauna etiquette, they do not mind if visitors simply take a
shower following bathing in a sauna. Another aspect of Finnish etiquette during
the summer months is to use a bunch of branches from a birch tree to gently whip
or beat the body following a sauna bath. This routine is said to both stimulate
the circulation of blood throughout the body and to give it an earthy aroma.
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