Steam Machines: Why is Dublin So Hot for Saunas

If there is one thing you can throw a stone in any direction and hit these days, it’s saunas in Dublin.

The heat spikes, and the sauna hisses like it’s alive. You’d think no one here is coping. But they are. They’re thriving.

To me, saunas seemed to have arrived out of nowhere via poshdom. In my head it was something you did if you had the money to pay for a fancy country club á la Richard and Emily Gilmore. But in this instance, I am all kinds of wrong.

Saunas, steam baths, and sweat lodges are baked into cultural traditions across the globe, from Native American sweat lodges to Korean jjimjilbangs to Scandinavian sauna rituals. And, as it turns out, Ireland has its own sweating history. Before we got our heads turned by Finnish cabins and TikTok trends, we had sweat houses: low stone domes heated by turf fires. They were rough, they were primal, and they were ours.

With this trend/renaissance, it’s like we as a nation are waking up a cultural muscle memory. Modern saunas are sleeker. The views are better, but the premise remains the same: sweat it out, cool it down. Wash, rinse, repeat as needed.

While the lifespan of wellness trends is increasingly fleeting, the sauna looks set to become as fixed a part of daily life as popping out for a coffee. Some saunas are even teaming up with cafes to offer a wholistic experience with locally roasted coffee and home made pastries. Like cafés before them, saunas deliver community in opt-in doses, and they offer something beneficial—physically, emotionally, viscerally. Some would even say spiritually. 

Then that trickles down to the normies. You see a friend post their flushed, blissed-out face post-dip, and suddenly you’re two clicks away from booking your own session. Like many wellness trends it’s a self-sustaining ecosystem of health and content. But unlike most viral trends, this one sticks. You do it once; you get it. You go back. Maybe you bring a friend to one of the many saunas in Dublin. 

Yet, despite their content-farming potential, saunas are literal phone killers. You can’t bring your phone in unless you want it steamed like a lobster. So you’re left with no choice but to exist in the moment.Albeit the moment before or after you capture, edit, or post your content. In that moment there's No scrolling, no notifications, no curated distractions. Just you, your breath, and the cadre of vagabonds doing the exact same thing.

“It’s a reset for your brain,” Burke says. “The heat forces you to be still. The cold shocks you awake. And for an hour, the only thing you’re thinking about is getting through the next round.”

For a generation raised on comfort and convenience at all costs, the sauna is a shock to the system. People who usually scroll for distraction and soften every rough edge are forced to confront their inner demons in a way that is more vulnerable than raw-dogging a flight. The sauna demands endurance, discomfort, and total presence. And somehow, that genuinely feels better than anything else.

So is the sauna the new pub? Probably not. Is it just another trend? Also, probably not. It’s here to stay and become it's own thing, and only time will tell is what that is.

Here's some saunas in Dublin if you wanna check it out for yourselves:

The Hot Box Sauna Village
Inchicore, Dublin 8
Opened in August 2024, this state-of-the-art facility features five uniquely designed saunas and three outdoor plunge pools at varying temperatures.

Helios Sauna
Dundrum Village, Dublin 14
Launched in 2024, Helios offers a Roman Baths-style experience with two outdoor saunas, an ice bath, and a hot tub in a tiled courtyard setting.

The Barrel Sauna
Dundrum, Tallaght, and Greystones
Known for their handcrafted barrel saunas, The Barrel Sauna has expanded to multiple locations, including Dundrum and Tallaght in Dublin, providing traditional sauna experiences complemented by cold plunge facilities.

The Outcast Saunas
Stoneybatter, Dublin 7
This venue focuses on community and wellness, offering outdoor saunas and cold plunge facilities in a modern, accessible setting.

Spir Sauna
Dublin
Spir Sauna provides a hot and cold urban experience with a handmade, bespoke wood-fired sauna complemented by chilled and filtered cold plunge facilities.

Saunos
Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
Located at Wanderers Football Club, Saunos offers an eight to ten-person wood-fired sauna and chilly steel plunge pools, providing a relaxing and rejuvenating experience.

Sandycove Store and Yard
Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin
After a dip in the Forty Foot, visitors can enjoy private sauna sessions ranging from 30 minutes to an hour, with group slots available for larger parties.