Sauna or barrel hot tub – perhaps friends, not rivals?

Barrel saunas have won the hearts of many Estonians and they have made their way into our sauna culture. The ease and convenience of using a barrel hot tub have made it a good alternative to a hot Finnish sauna.

In fact, they are not mutually exclusive, and a traditional sauna and barrel hot tub can complement each other very well and offer even more pleasure and healing properties. A barrel sauna is based on hot water instead of hot air, making it special. It is safer for people with joint and muscle problems.

A barrel sauna can also be used to cool down, as the users can adjust the temperature. The 40–42-degree water of a barrel hot tub feels refreshing after a hot sauna session and quickly moisturises skin that has been exposed to hot air.

As not everyone can sit on a hot sauna stage and enjoy the steam due to their health issues, a barrel hot tub is a great alternative, because it has fewer health risks than a traditional sauna.

What could be better than a barrel hot tub installed in the sauna room? Thanks to the design, heaters and construction of the Lingalaid barrel hot tubs, the barrel saunas can also be safely installed indoors. People do not have to be separated from each other and can spend time privately inside.

In addition, it allows the possibility to combine two ancient traditions – the Japanese bath and the Finnish sauna – into one relaxing experience without leaving the sauna. In fact, a barrel hot tub can also replace a pond or another natural body of water if want some refreshment after sitting in the sauna. The temperature of the barrel hot tub can be adjusted according to your comfort level.

Naturally, a barrel hot tub cannot offer the body the same temperature and burst of hot air as a traditional Finnish sauna. The difference in temperatures is obvious and the body reacts to hot water and hot air quite differently. In addition, creating steam is not possible in a barrel sauna. This, however, is one of the main features of a sauna for many – the puff of hot air that suddenly and even painfully hits the body is what we are used to. At the same time, a Finnish sauna cannot provide the same safe and relaxed heating a barrel hot tub can. We can benefit from both. To each their own, but they work the best together.

Lingalaid believes that barrel hot tubs are not here to take over the traditional Estonian sauna culture and this is also not our goal. Rather, we love to see the two very distant cultures unite to provide the best relaxation and healing treatments for both the body and soul. Be it in the countryside or in the city, summer or winter, outdoors or indoors – a barrel sauna complements and adds diversity to the traditional Finnish sauna and gives sauna users a choice between two different experiences.