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THE UPPER MIDWEST (AND ESPECIALLY MINNEAPOLIS) IS FIRED UP OVER SAUNA CULTURE. HERE ARE 10 WAYS AND PLACES TO GET YOUR STEAM ON.

- JULIA SAYERS GOKHALE

It's late January in Minneapolis, and there's a sea of people in bathing suits. Outside. Armed with beanies and boots, folks shuffle through a cluster of mobile saunas. Some watch the action from barrel saunas while others join guided experiences in larger cedar structures. Many emerge steaming and head straight for an icy dunk tank. The Sauna Village is part of The Great Northern, an annual arts and activism festival dedicated to celebrating winter. But in ways, this is business as usual in Minnesota.

The Nordic custom of sauna has always been a part of the state's identity. (Its oldest operational public sauna, the Ely Steam Sauna, has been open since 1915). Over the last several years, interest in thermic bathing has grown significantly as folks discover its potential health benefits (reduced blood pressure, muscle recovery, increased circulation). And recently, Minneapolis has cultivated its own take on the culture a little more social, a little more lively. It ignited, you might say, with John Pederson, who launched the 612 Sauna Society, a community-owned start-up, and subsequently Stokeyard Outfitters in 2017. That year, Stokeyard launched a Thermaculture program at the Hewing Hotel, featuring rooftop saunas and cold plunge tubs; the first Sauna Village at The Great Northern was held in 2023.

Pederson who now works with Superior Sauna and Steam, a sauna supplier and showroom-worked with the city to secure permits for pop-up and permanent experiences. Now, Minneapolis has more quality public sauna experiences than any other city in the country.

"The Twin Cities has a wonderful combination of traditional Nordic sauna influence supercharged with urban newbie curiosity and enthusiasm," Pederson says. "It's uniquely positive, innovative and kind-yet very understated and still largely under the radar. It's uniquely Midwestern in that way."