10 Best Hotel Saunas Around the World
Saunas are having a moment. In the US, we’ve finally cottoned on to what the Finnish have known for centuries—that sweating it out makes you feel good. Sauna-stocked spas and wellness clubs (like Othership) keep popping up all over major cities, and ads for at-home saunas can be spotted on social media pages across the country.
But plenty of wellness hotels worldwide have been doing the sauna thing excellently for years. There are high-tech offerings, such as RXV Wellness Village in Thailand, which has a hyperbaric chamber for skin and tissue regeneration, an infrared sauna, and a cryo sauna for extra-speedy muscle recovery. Then there are the Finnish hotels, many of which have suites with in-room saunas, like Hotel Kämp in Helsinki. In the UK, plenty of lovely hotels are revamping their offerings: Soho Farmhouse in Oxfordshire recently expanded its spa to include various onsen tubs, three infrared sauna cabins and an ice hut, while at the Lake District’s Brimstone Hotel & Spa, you’re taken on a thermal journey around a sequence of Finnish, lava, and herbal saunas, before settling in for a blast in the Himalayan steam rooms.
Touted benefits of a sweat session include pain relief, deeper sleep, improved circulation and a glowing complexion, so working a few stints into your vacation is a no-brainer. For the top places to soak, steam and sweat yourself happy, see below for our editors’ picks of the best hotel saunas in the world to visit in 2025 and beyond.
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How we choose the best sauna hotels in the world
Every hotel on this list has been selected independently by our editors and written by a Condé Nast Traveler journalist who knows the destination and has visited that property. When choosing hotels, our editors consider properties across price points that offer an authentic and insider experience of a destination, keeping design, location, service, and sustainability credentials top of mind.
James BedfordhotelPreidlhof, Italy
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Readers' Choice Awards 2020, 2021Near the picturesque town of South Tyrol’s Merano under the Dolomites, and within the Texel Group National Park, this is a region deeply steeped in the culture of wellness and outdoor sports. Preidlhof draws both die-hard German hikers, who use the thermal waters and saunas post mountain forays, and guests (like me) in residence for one of the transformational wellness retreats, who barely leave the premises. Owned by a private family, the hotel has become famous for not only its easy access to activities like hiking and biking, with the Dolomites as the backdrop, but for the property’s intuitive 360-degree approach to health and beauty using both Eastern and Western treatments, as well as those invented within the South Tyrol. In addition to the spa itself, the seven-floor sauna tower is the property's centerpiece, with multiple saunas, a steam room, a rooftop pool, and a relaxation area. —Ondine Cohan
Alex MolinghotelEriro Alpine Hide, Austria
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Hot List 2025In an area where wellness still means herbalism, contrast showers, or hay baths, the Eriro balances tradition and metropolitan sophistication. The spacious spa area in the basement is home to a Finnish sauna, an herbal sauna, three warm-water pools based on Japanese onsen, a meditation pool, and an outdoor pool. The spa leans into regional touches with herbal tea, a sound room with hay walls, and massage loungers made of Swiss stone pine. To round it off, I took a shower with water sourced from nearby natural springs. There is no spa menu; each guest receives a unique therapy plan. Still, guests can expect herbal oil treatments, private yoga and meditation sessions, singing bowl ceremonies, and forest bathing on the docket. —Lea Dlugosch
Benjamin Zibner/Severin's Resort & Spa, SylthotelSeverin's Resort & Spa, Germany
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Gold List 2025The best thing about Severin’s is its orchard, filled with lots of old apple trees and, among them, tables that are set for meals. Traditional Strandkorb wicker chairs and chaise lounges invite guests to relax and admire the white and pink blossoms in the spring, and enjoy the shade that the trees and parasols provide in the summer. In the winter, when the temperatures drop, the trees look like they are frosted with sugar. Yes, there are many reasons to visit the northernmost of Germany’s islands even in the cold season. Another one of them is Severin’s spa, with its saunas, hammam, and swimming pool complete with a fireplace. The interior, in pleasant neutral colors, is bathed in warm light. You won’t find anywhere on Sylt more relaxing after a long walk on the beach. If you are looking for absolute privacy, Severin’s is a perfect choice, with 23 studios and apartments as well as five houses and villas measuring up to 4,300 square feet. The emphasis is on spaciousness, not mere excess. The two-story, thatch roof resort blends in harmoniously with the charming village of Keitum, on the edge of the Wadden Sea. —Dennis Braatz
Courtesy Lefay ResortshotelLefay Resort & Spa, Italy
$$$ | Readers' Choice Awards 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022If you want a detox that doesn’t feel like denial, this eco-chic resort provides an elegant solution. Tapped into a mountainside overlooking Lake Garda, Lefay offers an intelligently tweaked version of la dolce vita, so it appeals as much to smart Euro couples on a “proper” holiday (whom you'll find hogging the pool) as supermodels preparing for cover shoots (you’ll see them cloaked in bathrobes heading for the results-driven treatments). It manages this sleight of hand by bridging the ancient and the innovative with an ethos that is rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) but embraces cutting-edge science. The people in white coats here really are qualified doctors rather than wannabes, but they’re not going to treat you like children if you decide to go off-piste from your customized menu. —Susan D'Arcy
hotelThe Well Spa, Norway
$$Water worshippers who understand the uncomplicated healing properties of H20 come to this adults-only spa to luxuriate in every version of the stuff. The saunas, steam rooms, plunge pools, and meditation rooms attract Oslo day-trippers and weekend visitors for sessions that ease joint and muscle pain, alleviate sleep problems, or simply help relax. With largely “Adam and Eve attire,” the aim is to let oneself go through relaxation of the natural kind. —Noo Saro-Wiwa
hotelSoho Farmhouse, UK
$$ | Gold List 2019 Hot List 2016 Readers' Choice Awards 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022Whatever you’re looking for—from cocktail-fueled fun to a soothing wellness reset—Soho Farmhouse offers the ultimate country bolthole for city dwellers. The spa has just expanded its collection of beauty and wellness offerings that are absolutely worth exploring. Relax inside on a soft bed after a treatment, or find a white- and mint-striped lounger overlooking the newest addition to the wellness offerings, The Lazy Lake. The concept was inspired by the rising popularity of sauna culture and ancient wellness practices. At first glance, The Lazy Lake looks slightly underwhelming—but once you’ve dipped one toe into the water, it all makes sense. Wooden hot tubs inspired by Japanese onsen baths are sunken into the lake, with tub-service drinks to deliver a picante or kombucha right to you. Once you’re sufficiently warm (it’s 100 degrees Fahrenheit), move to the next steps of the therapy-inspired circuit: an ice hut, steam room, and three infrared sauna cabins, all aiming to boost circulation and lower inflammation. Retreat back to your tub, slather on the organic clay face and body mask waiting for you, and finish with a rolled oshibori (chilled towel). —Jane Walker
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Hotel KämphotelHotel Kämp, Finland
$$$ | Readers' Choice Awards 2024, 2025Along the bustling Esplanadi Park, this hotel can be found nestled amongst the market square and many design shops. The only hints toward modernity in the elegant, neoclassical-inspired accommodation are the fixtures and fittings—plus a collection of Finnish contemporary graphic art. Otherwise, you will be wrapped in classical comfort, with marble bathrooms, plush furniture, and dark wood headboards. The Executive Suite has its own sauna—of course it does—as does the expansive Presidential Mannerheim Suite, which has its own office and kitchen areas, as well. For a more communal experience, there is also a spa offering Finnish, hammam, and Turkish saunas (plus other spa treatments such as massage), and a gym.
Michael Huber Photography/Mount Med ResorthotelMount Med, Austria
$$$This resort stylishly bridges the gap between luxury resort and high-class medical clinic and has created a concept that is effective and easy to maintain long term. Mount Med’s 360-degree approach begins with a round of advanced integrative diagnostics and imaging tests to determine each guest’s biological age and constitution. The doctors devise a program based on the test results and the guest’s personal aims. The overall design feels more like a luxurious lifestyle than clinical chic—a knack that few spas have achieved so successfully, which means this is a much more relaxing place than many rivals. The spa facilities are next level, too. There are significantly more lounging options than in most medi-spas, and the pools and thermal suite cover a whopping 37,675 square feet. The attention to detail even extends to creating individual ambiences for each of the five steam and sauna rooms, including the forest-clearing steam room, which feels like sitting in a fairytale glade. —S.D.
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RXV Wellness VillageRXV Wellness Village, Thailand
This hotel is all about integrative wellness, with a medical and holistic approach to anti-aging and preventative healthcare using therapies, exercise, nutrition, rest, stress management, and family bonding. Inside the wellness center adjoining the hotel, there are clinics, gyms, and treatment rooms offering diagnostic testing, such as the 60-second 3D Styku scan, to determine body composition of fat, lean and bone mass; and the Mobee spine analysis, using a rolling sensor on the spinal column measuring curve, symmetry, and posture. There are traditional Chinese medicine approaches, such as acupuncture, and Ayurvedic treatments, such as Shirodhara, as well as colon hydrotherapy and IV vitamin infusions. A cryosauna helps for speedy muscle recovery, plus there's an infrared sauna, a steam room, a hydrotherapy circuit, and a hyperbaric chamber for skin and tissue regeneration.
Lee John Mann PhotographyBrimstone Hotel & Spa, UK
The Langdale Valley, just a 15-minute drive from Ambleside, has some of the best walking in the Lake District—and that’s saying something. Brimstone Hotel & Spa is one of the more contemporary hotels in the area, crafted rather like a chalet from slate, wood, and colors inspired by the landscape around. It shares its wood-lined spa with The Langdale Hotel, set on the same estate, but this calm, well-designed space, scented with dried flowers and herbs, rarely gets crowded. Highlights include the thermal journey around the sequence of saunas (Finnish, lava, and herbal) and steam rooms (including mineral and Himalayan). An open fire helps heat the indoor/outdoor pool space; for those here on a romantic stay, there’s a private bubble spa built for two and couples treatments, while the spa deli serves up vegetable mezze and smoked fish. The menu ranges from short, 25-minute facials to longer massages designed for those recuperating after surgery or illness and even longer body rituals using a variety of herbal- and floral-based ingredients.
This article was originally published on Condé Nast Traveller UK.
