Nฤ, nฤ, nฤ, duลกa ir pirmais! ย These were the instructions given byย a Latvian grandmother in her birthday suit after I entered the bath complex and reached for the steam room door. Never mind that I was already clean. The Latvian sauna ritual always begins with a shower. Perhaps amused by my halting Latvian and my eagerness to learn her culture, this grandmother – with the trim and powerful body of a former Olympic swimmer – took me under her wing and literally walked me through the many steps of the sauna ritual.
If you can’t find a friendly local to adopt you for the day, follow these steps to look like a pro!
Haveย the Right Supplies
I showed up to the sauna empty handed and had to buy or rent the necessary accouterments (for a minimal cost). You will want to have: plastic sandals, towels, a washcloth, soap, a mud mask and/or exfoliating scrub, a dried birch branch, and a wood or plastic board to sit on. Many of the women present during my visit brought along their own buckets, and two had pumice stones for their feet which I thought was genius.
Hydrate!
It is critical that you drink plenty of water before, during, and after your sauna experience. I also recommend eating a light meal before you go. Both spas I’ve been to have had pitchers of fresh drinking water and apples on hand.
Get Comfortable with Nudity
This goes for your own as well as that of others. I brought a bathing suit with me but quickly realized that it would look strange to wear it when everyone else was without. I kept my towel wrapped tight around me until it became sopping wet and then gave up on any attempt at modesty. It was actually quite liberating! Note that some saunas have separate bathing areas for women and men while others are co-ed.
Watch and Learn
Assuming a fellow batherย doesn’t show you what to do, simply observe the other sauna patrons and follow their lead. Try not to be too creepy about it. Remember: you’re all naked.
Shower, Steam, Repeat
Begin your sauna ritual with a shower, making sure to work up a good soapy lather. Rinse off thoroughly, then enter the steam room. The temperature here is moderate and more gentle. Sit and relax for a while, then cool off with a shower. Repeat this process several times.
Scrub-a-dub-dub
Once your skin is warm, it’s time to exfoliate. My Latvian grannyย very cleverly eschewed expensive exfoliating cream in favor of used coffee grounds, and wasย happy to share her stash.ย In fact, I was made to brace myself against the wall while Granny vigorously rubbed the grounds into my back.ย She claimed it was for enerฤฃija. I did feel very much alive afterwards.
Another option is to give yourself a mud mask. But don’t just focus on your face – cover yourself from head to toe! Let the mud dry for a few minutes before rinsing it off to really deep-clean your pores. Head back into the steam room to warm up afterwards.
Sweat It Out
When you are acclimated to the temperature – and well hydrated – it’s time to enter the main sauna. The atmosphere here will beย extremely hot and dry thanks to a well-stokedย fire. Take your plastic board to sit on and protect your sensitive bits. There are usually multiple levels of wooden benches, with the heat intensifying as it rises. Diehard sauna aficionados will recline on the top benches and wear woolen caps to trap even more heat in their body. I politely declined one offered to me and stuck to the lower bench, as I’m a wimp. It’s important to know your limits.
Birch Branch Massage
Next comes the most interesting part of the sauna ritual. Soak your dried birch branch in warm water until the leaves are rehydrated, then take it with you into the main wood sauna. If you’re lucky, one of your Latvian friends will take your branch and work you over with it. Granny had me lay down on one of the benches while she “massaged” my back, legs and feet with the branch. This apparently loosens muscles while providing aromatherapy benefits and fanning the heat in the room. Win-win-win!
Take a Refreshing Dip
It doesn’t get more exhilarating than jumping naked into a pool of cold water! After several roundsย of extreme heat, your body (and mind) will be craving relief. Take a swim in the pool, if there is one, or dump a bucket of icy water over your head. This was Granny’s method of choice, which she claimed was good for your health. Veselฤซgs!
Tidy Up
Even if the sauna has a bath attendant, it’s still polite to clean up after yourself. Make sure your coffee grounds and mud are washed down the drain, pick up your errant birch leaves, and throw away your empty water cup. If you’ve rented any items, return them to the front desk and put your wet towel in the bin. Your neighbors will thank you.
Replenish Those Calories
You will sweat a lot throughout the Latvian sauna ritual and will need to feed your body afterwards. I was absolutely ravenous! Potato pancakes and a beer areย just what the doctor ordered.
Latvian saunas, or pirts, have been an important part of the culture for centuries. Traditionally the warmest and most sanitary areaย of the home, the sauna doubled as a smokehouse for meat and a birthing room for Latvian babies and mothers. Can you imagine entering the world in a haze of wood smoke and cured sausage? Those were some lucky babies!
Most Latvians will tell you that real saunas only exist in the countryside, ideally situated next to a pond or river for jumping into afterwards. But city dwellers can enjoy saunas, too. I recommend Balta Pirts in Riga, which has been helping locals relax since the early 1900s. A one-day pass costs between โฌ13-โฌ15 and you can stay as long as you like.
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Have you ever experienced a traditional sauna? Do you dare?
Would LOVE to try this one day! It seems quite similar to Russian and Finnish sauna (well, more Russian, though I didn’t try… I chickened out!) I’m torn whether I want to find a granny though… it would be grand to have someone walk me through the steps but I’m a bit shy about the whole birthday suit thing! haha. ๐
I was nervous about being nude, too, Nicole! But honestly once you get in there and start doing your thing, it just feels like business as usual. Aside from Granny and another helpful woman, none of the other ladies looked at me twice. Latvians are exceedingly polite, though. I imagine the experience could be less fun elsewhere. You should come to Riga and give it a go! ๐
So great! My husband used to manage a Russian style spa here in Seattle, so we try to go to baths in every new place we visit. Sadly, we didn’t make it to Balta Pirts in Riga – though we did go to Kalma Saun in Tallinn, which I imagine is pretty similar.
Nothing like a good shvitz!
I’ve only been to baths in Latvia, Hungary, and Japan. What have been some of your favorite experiences? I need to make this a bigger part of my travel repertoire!
Everyone says Istanbul, but I wasn’t super impressed by the hammam we went to there. The sulfur baths in Tbilisi were great, but my favorite ones are the crazy multi level baths in Korea. Could seriously spend days in there.
I love the onsen culture in Japan, but damn if the Japanese don’t stare right through you if you’re not Japanese…not the most comforting when you’re buck naked.
Yes! I thought the Japanese women were going to stare holes through my head! And not a single one showed me what to do. I found the onsen extremely uncomfortable. This place in Riga was much more fun, and the Latvian women put me instantly at ease. They didn’t stare in Korea?
Nah, wasn’t too bad – but in Korea they’re far more egalitarian and less high-horse traditional types of places than in Japan.
I think it would be too intense for me, plus I couldn’t do the nude thing. I liked the one we went to – more my speed. Glad you enjoyed it. Granny sounds like super special person!!
Granny was great! But don’t worry, you and I will stick to the fancy spa on your next visit ๐
I so enjoyed this post, even though I had heard a bit about it from you earlier. I love the onsens in Japan so the Latvian experience would be a fun variation, I think. Have you returned?
The Japanese onsens were good prep, but I thought this was much more fun. It was such an active experience! I haven’t been back yet, but I’ve put my sauna kit together!
Sounds like a fun experience! I would love to try something like that sometime!
It’s definitely a unique experience, Julie!
I agree with cleaning up. It’s always nice if saunas are nice and clean after each use. I’m glad you had such a great experience. Now I feel like having some sauna!! It’s so freezing in Amsterdam right now!
The sauna felt so good I didn’t want to leave! I think this will be a weekly habit for me in winter ๐
Just a small note – the woolen caps are actually used to protect your head and hair from the heat ๐
Thanks for the tip, Kristine! I was already so hot that I couldn’t fathom putting on a wool cap. But maybe I’ll try it next time! ๐
Great post, Heather! Amazingly, in my many visits to Latvia I’ve not done the pirts thing yet.
Oh, really? I figured you’d be a pirts pro, Daina! LOL.
The tip about coffee grounds is new to me! I’ve only done saunas in Finland so I ought to try Balta Pirts when I return.
And I need to try the sauna in Finland! I’m very curious to see if there are any cultural differences in the experience.
This post came just in time for my visit to Riga and Balta Pirts! I’ve grown more and more comfortable with the nudity thing since moving to Finland, so this experience was totally fun. Everyone was very nice and an older woman did kindly offer some suggestions. At home, I always chicken out with doing the really cold water thing post sauna, but jumping into that pool was AMAZING. So invigorating!
Thanks for sharing all these great tips!
I’m so happy you made it to the sauna! It’s an interesting cultural experience, to say the least ๐
Your experience with the Latvian grandmother sounds like a very hospitable one. Your thoughts on calorie replenishment are valid.