You can enjoy a sauna and cold plunge without having to dive into the waters of the HarbourA sauna boat from Skuna BoatsA sauna boat from Skuna Boats(Image: Skuna Boats)

The UK’s first sauna boats are paying Bristol’s Harbourside a visit for just four weeks this winter. Skuna Boats will be bringing its pop-up experience, along with a host of water-based wellness activities to the West Country between Friday, November 21 to Sunday, December 14.

Said to be inspired by Scandinavian traditions, visitors will get the chance to ‘unwind in an electric stoved sauna while gliding along the city’s iconic harbourside’ in an all-electric sauna boat. The experience takes place across two sauna boats which feature wood-clad interiors and panoramic harbour views.

One of the boats will be open as a community sauna permanently docked at Bristol’s Amphitheatre, while the other will be available for public and private hire to sail up and down the Harbourside. The boats will be open Thursday to Sunday each week from 12noon to 8.30pm. You can book a spot or a boat via the website here.

Each session lasts approximately 75 minutes, including time for registration, changing, refreshments, and the sauna experience itself. Visitors are encouraged to bring swimwear and a towel to sit on in the sauna. Each Sauna Boat can host up to six guests at a time.

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Inside you’ll find comfortable changing areas, towels available to purchase, and the option to enjoy the experience by yourself or socially. Having gained popularity in London with its flagship site at Canary Wharf, Skuna Boats has also boasted fleets of floating hot tubs and igloo fondue boats, as well as BBQ boats, in recent times.

Commenting on the new immersive experience for the city, CEO and founder Stuart ‘Tommo’ Thomson said: “We’re thrilled to bring Skuna Boats to Bristol. This city’s vibrant culture and love for the water make it the perfect home for our floating saunas.

“We’re excited to offer a new way for people to relax, recharge, and connect with the harbour in a new way. Our sauna boats blend novel fun with genuine wellbeing benefits, and there’s something truly special about stepping into the heat of a sauna while drifting through the heart of a city. Bristol feels like the ideal place to take our sauna boats to next.”

Bristol is already no stranger to saunas, with several of them having opened or popped up in the past 12 months alone, in what has been dubbed a ‘community sauna boom’ – at city farms, charity-run community hubs, and even by the likes of Bristol Bears rugby players.