Sauna Festival Arrives in Tallinn
Text Timo Raussi Photos MTÜ Rakvere Maraton / Martin Piir
The large Ülemiste shopping centre and the surrounding Ülemiste City office district have recently hosted an increasing number of events aimed both at local employees and other residents of the city as well as visitors to Tallinn.
Following the Lego exhibition open from February until the end of this year and the Night Run competition held in April along the corridors of Ülemiste shopping centre’s second floor, where the winner covered nearly 38 kilometres in three hours on a 552-metre circuit, Ülemiste City will now host Tallinn’s first Sauna Festival on 4–5 June.
The driving force behind the festival is Marko Torm, who organised similar events in Rakvere in 2019, followed by Narva and Narva-Jõesuu last spring. In Estonia, he has also been known for the past 15 years as one of the organisers behind the Rakvere Night Run.
The event will bring a festival area to the Ülemiste community park featuring around a dozen different mobile saunas and hot tubs open free of charge to everyone. Among them are two large tent saunas, one black and one white, where visitors can not only enjoy regular sauna sessions free of charge, but also participate in six overlapping paid sauna rituals scheduled daily.
Thanks to sponsorship from a mineral water company, the Ülemiste Sauna Festival promotes itself as alcohol-free and supportive of the so-called “silent sauna” concept.
“The sound and aroma rituals in the large black tent sauna can accommodate around 50 people at a time. During the ritual, only the sauna master is allowed to speak,” Torm emphasises.
In the even larger white tent sauna, which can host up to 80 guests, the sauna master introduces visitors to the art of whisking and, later in the evening, to hotter sauna sessions.
Perhaps sauna etiquette in Ida-Viru County has been somewhat unique during previous festivals, as the writer has personally observed visitors in spas in Tallinn, Tartu, and Rakvere naturally quieting down during rituals even without special instructions, usually no later than after the sauna master casually mentions it at the beginning of the session.
The Sauna Festival will take place in the Ülemiste City community park at Valukoja 11. The saunas will be open on Thursday 4 June and Friday 5 June after the working day, from 16:00 to 20:00. Changing, washing, and storage facilities will be available in the nearby Community Building. Sauna bathing takes place in swimwear, and towels can be purchased on-site. Visitors may walk around in sandals and wear bathrobes brought along for cooler weather.
It is worth noting in advance that only the maximum number of guests will be admitted to the rituals held every half hour and on the hour. If the festival proves popular, participation may require waiting in line for 15–20 minutes before the ritual begins.
With a day ticket, visitors may participate in as many rituals as they wish or can access by queueing. Advance tickets purchased online before 31 May cost €10; afterwards or on-site the price is €15.
An online family ticket priced at €15 is also available, allowing two adults and up to three children aged 17 or under to participate in the rituals.
To learn more about this and similar topicsalcohol-free family event events sauna bathing Sauna Festival sauna rituals Tallinn Ülemiste City
