Over a three-day trip to Helsinki, Finland, I experienced floating urban saunas, sea-fed cold plunges in the Baltic Sea, architectural temples to sauna culture, spiritual moments of löyly, and lots and lots of cardamom buns.

This episode is both a travel guide with practical tips on where to go and what to know before you book as well as a culture reflection.

In this podcast episode, we share:

• Public saunas to visit in Helsinki

• What to know before you book

• The difference between public versus private saunas

• Navigating Finnish sauna etiquette

• The understated magic of Helsinki

  
  

If you’re planning a trip to Helsinki, my hope is this episode will guide you to having a sauna-filled adventure.

And if you’re building or participating in sauna culture outside of Finland, my hope is that this episode offers some insight and perspective into Finnish sauna culture and tradition.

A detailed travel itinerary will be available soon for paid Badii Talk subscribers.

Okay, zäme, let’s go to Helsinki!

Other Badii Talk episodes mentioned include:

• Nordic Magic: Sauna Rituals, Wild Nature, and Finnish Culture with Moon Follower & Author, Meri Mort

• Bathing Naked: Reflections & Cultural Observations

• New England Spa & Sauna Road Trip, Part 2 (Reviews & Travel Tips)

• What is a Finnish Sauna? Badii Talk Shorts Bonus Episode

Have you seen those funny wool hats in the sauna? Want to get in on fun? And also protect your hair from the heat? Please please please skip Amazon. And instead I encourage you to check out Nordi. Nordi offers 100% wool sauna hats with no synthetic fibers or artificial dyes and they are handcrafted in the US. Badii Talk listeners can get free shipping with the code BADII.

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

💧Badii Talk has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

💙⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠ today and support an independently produced and funded podcast.The sauna and bathing industry in the US and UK is growing fast. Where there’s growth, money and big companies will follow. If you want to see a bathing culture that isn’t just led by the folks with the most cash, support a platform that is run from a grassroots level. A platform that can authentically prioritize a respect for culture, science, and community. 

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture. Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

At Badii Talk, we often talk about bathing not just as a wellness practice, but as a cultural practice—one that reflects a culture and a place’s history and values.  As sauna culture rapidly expands in the US and UK, a big question that we keep asking is: how do we grow without losing the heart and soul of the practice?

Today, I’m joined by someone who has thought deeply about this — not only philosophically, but practically — through the systems, spaces, and communities he’s built. 

Equal parts modern designer, sauna snob, and business owner, Justin Juntunen has nearly four decades of practicing and building saunas. Justin is the co-founder and Chief of Growth at Cedar & Stone Nordic Sauna, a leader in the North American sauna industry. His team designs, builds, and creates beautiful thermic bathing experiences throughout North America. Over the next decade Justin is committed to hosting one million people to sauna so that we can build more resilient lives. 

Together, we explore:

• Sauna as ritual: the full thermic cycle of hot, cold, rest, and rehydration

• How thermic practices can live both in public spaces and in-home—and why each serves a different purpose

• What it means to winter well and embrace the cold

• The future of the sauna industry, and how to scale without sacrificing soul, culture, or integrity

• Justin’s tips for founders in the sauna world

This conversation is an invitation to reflect on how bathing traditions are living cultures that deserve care and intention as they evolve.

Follow Justin on Instagram. Learn more about Cedar and Stone.

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

💧Badii Talk has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

💙⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠ today and support an independently produced and funded podcast. The sauna and bathing industry in the US and UK is growing fast. Where there’s growth, money and big companies will follow. If you want to see a bathing culture that isn’t just led by the folks with the most cash, support a platform that is run from a grassroots level. A platform that can authentically prioritize a respect for culture, science, and community. 

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture. Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠
Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

What can sauna, darkness, and the wild Nordic landscape teach us about embodiment, ritual, and presence?

In this episode of Badii Talk, I’m joined by Meri Mort — moon follower, author of Nordic Magic, yoga teacher trainer, and ritual practitioner — for a beautiful conversation on Finnish culture, sauna traditions, witchcraft, and living in rhythm with the cycles of nature.

Together, we explore what “Nordic magic” can mean: a way of relating to the land, honoring cycles of light and dark, and reclaiming intuitive, ancestral knowledge through everyday rituals. Meri shares how Nordic nature has shaped her witchcraft practice, her approach to yoga, and her deeply personal relationship with sauna as a somatic, feminine, and communal space.

As sauna culture grows globally, we explore what it looks like to share these traditions responsibly and how to honor their roots.

In this conversation, we cover:

• The meaning of Nordic magic and ritual culture

• Finnish sauna traditions as somatic and spiritual practice

• Nature, witchcraft, and ancestral wisdom

• Embracing darkness, rest, and seasonal cycles

• The feminine, gathering, and embodied ritual

• Honoring sauna culture

• Simple Nordic-inspired rituals you can practice anywhere

This episode is an invitation to embrace mystery and reconnect with the body, the seasons, and the spirits.

Meri’s publications:

• Nordic Magic

• Magical Knits From The North: 19 enchanting knitting patterns inspired by magic and mysticism

Follow Meri on Instagram.

Sources from today’s episode:

• Sauna by Viola Minerva Virtamo

• The Book of Nordic Self-Care by Elisabeth Carlsson

Where to experience whisking in the US and UK

• Northern Kin Sauna Co. in Vermont

• The Schvitz in Detroit

• Soul Water Sauna in Edinburgh, Scotland

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

💧Badii Talk has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

💙⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠ today and support an independently produced and funded podcast. The sauna and bathing industry in the US and UK is growing fast. Where there’s growth, money and big companies will follow. If you want to see a bathing culture that isn’t just led by the folks with the most cash, support a platform that is run from a grassroots level. A platform that can authentically prioritize a respect for culture, science, and community. 

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture. Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

In the Season One finale, we return to the heart of Badii Talk: global bathing culture. And why ritual, community, and cultural roots give sauna and bathing their soul.

This special episode is a reflection on the traditions, stories, and global rituals we’ve explored this season. Thermal bathing is more than a wellness trend. It is an ancient practice shared across the globe, and as we enter another bathing renaissance, we explore how to keep the soul and heart of bathing alive through a respect for its cultural origins. 

Join us as we reflect on Season One… and tease what’s coming next in Season Two!

What you’ll hear in the episode:

-How the journey began in Switzerland: discovering Aufguss and community thermal bathing in nature.

-A tour through the bathing traditions we explored across the world: Switzerland, Finland, Scotland, the United States, and beyond. 

-Some philosophical musing on why honoring cultural roots matters as sauna and thermal bathing enter a new renaissance in the US and UK.

-A sneak peek of what’s next for Season Two: new cultural stories, travel recommendations, “sauna essentials” education, magic, women’s voices, and more.

Featured Season 1 episodes include:

-Naked Bathing: Reflections and Cultural Observations

-Between Worlds: The Sauna Spirits of Finnish Folklore with Folklorist Dr. Victoria Stewart

-Scottish Wild Saunas: Adventures from the Isles and Beyond

-Aufguss Comes to America: Inside the First-Ever U.S. National Championship at Bathhhouse Williamsburg

-Somatic Aufguss with Denver’s First Sauna Master

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

What to shape our episodes for Season Two? Take our listener survey for a chance to win Badii merch. 

Support Badii this holiday season! Merch is now available in our new online sauna shop.💧

🎁 Give the gift of a Badii Talk Substack subscription. Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

Today’s episode was sponsored by Saint Lucie Sauna Serum. Shop the serum on Badii’s online sauna shop. 

Connect with us to learn more about our ad and media packages via our website. 

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture. 

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

Today’s episode is a special one: I recently joined The Truth Is podcast with Kathryn Flaschner—an inspiring show all about honesty, clarity, and finding your way forward. Kathryn, who has also been a guest host on Badii Talk, creates a powerful space for deep conversation, self-awareness, and personal transformation.

We’re sharing this episode here because we think you’ll love it. If you enjoy mindful storytelling, Kathryn’s podcast is full of insightful episodes and relatable guests who explore change, connection, and living more authentically.

Listen to more of the Truth Is. 

What you’ll hear in the episode

- The origins of “Badii” and the the Swiss thermal bathing culture that inspired Sarah, our founder, to bring it to America

- How to embrace anger and channel it for change

- How Sarah made the pivot from corporate to entrepreneurship and the resources she put in place to feel ready for the big transition

The intro and outro of this episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

Support Badii this holiday season! Merch is now available in our new online sauna shop.💧

🎁Give the gift of a Badii Talk Substack subscription. Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture.

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

Our guest today is Glasgow-based, Charlotte Belle. A freelance content creator and adventurer, Charlotte has experienced wild saunas all across Scotland, from Edinburgh to Glasgow to the Isle of Aran. I’m so happy to have her join us today to talk about the Scottish wild sauna scene, what makes a sauna a “wild sauna,” and share her most memorable Scottish sauna experiences.

Follow along with Charlotte’s “mini adventures” into wild swimming and wild sauna on Instagram @chartlottescotland. 

What you’ll hear in the episode

• Defining “wild sauna” and “wild swimming” and what makes it a unique wellness experience

• Some special Scottish wild sauna locales

• Scotland’s growing wild sauna culture and scene

• How sauna rituals fit into a holistic wellbeing routine —one that cultivates novelty, presence, and community 

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

💧Badii Talk now has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

📍⁠⁠⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠⁠⁠ today for access to our wellness travel guides, packed with wellness destination recommendations, restaurants, hotels, and routes.

Today’s episode was sponsored by Saint Lucie Sauna Serum. Shop the serum on Badii’s online sauna shop. 

Connect with us to learn more about our ad and media packages via our website. 

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture.

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

Today I’m joined by Jessica Spoto, the founder of Frugal Portland Maine—an Instagram community whose mission is to provide low-cost and free resources for the residents of Portland, Maine and nearby towns. Jessica shares budget-friendly adventures, hidden gems and useful resources to make Portland more fun, affordable, and accessible for all.

What you’ll hear in the episode

-Affordable wellness experiences in Portland and the Midcoast of Maine

-The importance of community in bridging divides, combating loneliness, and sparking hope.

- Practical resources for folks in Maine to experience enriching wellness experiences, no matter your budget.

Follow Frugal Portland Maine and Frugal Midcoast Maine on Instagram. 

Mentioned in this episode

One Longfellow Square

Mama Mia Making 

Portland Public Library 

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens 

First Friday Art Walk 

Mt. Joy Orchard 

Lasagna Love 

Scrappy Rat 

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

💧Badii Talk now has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

📍⁠⁠⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠⁠⁠ today for access to our wellness travel guides, packed with wellness destination recommendations, restaurants, hotels, and routes.

Today’s episode was sponsored by Saint Lucie Sauna Serum. Shop the serum on Badii’s online sauna shop. 

Connect with us to learn more about our ad and media packages via our website. 

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture. We share all this across many platforms, including: 

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

Today’s episode is dedicated to Finnish folklore and the spirits of the sauna. I can think of no one better to have this conversation with than Dr. Victoria Stewart, Assistant Director of the Humanities Center at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. I learned so much talking to her and it’s really given me a renewed sense of respect and passion for both Finnish culture and sauna culture. If you’re listening to Badii Talk, I know you’ve gotta be a sauna nerd too, so I think you’re going to really enjoy this one! And if you’re a sauna enthusiast, folklore lover, or curious about the deeper cultural roots of wellness traditions, I hope this episode will spark your imagination and deepen your appreciation for sauna culture.

Dr. Stewart manages the day-to-day operations of the center's Detroit Humanities Hub, a public humanities initiative that connects the interests and talents of Wayne State's humanists with those of the people of Detroit. She holds a PhD in Folklore and Scandinavian Studies from the University of Wisconsin, which led to a 10-year career as a professor of Finnish and Nordic Studies at a small, private university founded by Finnish immigrants before her move to Detroit and public work. Stewart shares her knowledge of folklore and cultural traditions in a variety of ways, including public lectures and talks, exhibitions, documentary films, and more. 

 Learn more about Dr. Stewart’s work at her website. 

What you’ll hear in the episode

• What folklore is and why it matters. And what it reveals about culture, community, and our shared humanity.

• How the Finnish sauna became a sacred, spiritual space for birth, healing, and even death.

• The sauna spirits said to inhabit the heat and steam and the stories that honor them.

• Ancient rituals, offerings, and taboos for showing respect (and avoiding angering) the sauna spirits. 

• How modern Finns and those with Finnish heritage continue to view these traditions today.

• Whether sauna spirits still travel with global sauna culture or remain rooted in Finnish soil. 

• How Dr. Stewart’s work in public folklore and the humanities brings these stories to life in Detroit and beyond.

  
  

Experience the work of Dr. Stewart and the Detroit Humanities Hub:

• Big Epic Read

• Edmund Fitzgerald 50th Anniversary Commemoration (Nov 7 - 10)

  
  

This episode was edited by Lila Woodbridge.

💧Badii Talk now has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

📍⁠⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠⁠ today for access to our wellness travel guides, packed with wellness destination recommendations, restaurants, hotels, and routes.

Badii offers passionate and curious bathers and spa-goers access to news, education, and recommendations about global bathing culture.

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠

Instagram:⁠ @badii.life

Today we have a spooky season bonus episode for you! We’re back with another wellness road trip. In the summer, my friend Jordan and I travelled across New England visiting some of the best spas, saunas, and bathhouses in the region. With only four days to our itinerary, we felt like we had so much more to see. Now, with the leaves changing, it’s sauna season… and spooky season. What better way to celebrate the temps dropping with a spooky road trip through the Northeast, stopping to experience unique wellness experiences along the way?

Starting in Connecticut, we visit Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. Perhaps the spookiest of the New England states. 

So what do you say, witches, ready for the Spooky New England Wellness Tour?

What you’ll hear in the episode:

• Energy Healing (Reiki) and Chinese Reflexology / Foot Massage: A brief history and cultural background to these two wellness practices.

  
  

• Wellness Experiences in New England: Highlights from Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine, including our honest reviews.
  

• Where to Eat & Stay: Our favorite restaurants, coffee shops, witchy shops, hotels, and “can’t miss” extras.
  

• Spooky Attractions & Activities: The best places in New England to celebrate the Halloween season.

  
  

Featured in this episode:

• Beijing Herbal Foot Spa (Salem, MA)

• Ash Alchemy (Portsmouth, NH)

  
  

Sources for today’s topics:

History of Reflexology

Acupuncture

History of Reiki

Where Does Reiki Come From?

Reiki Is Better Than Placebo and Has Broad Potential as a Complementary Health Therapy (PubMed)

💧Want the full itinerary? Badii Talk has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

📍⁠ ⁠Subscribe⁠⁠ today for access to our wellness travel guides, packed with wellness destination recommendations, restaurants, hotels, and routes.

Edited by Lila Woodbridge.

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠⁠ www.badii.life⁠⁠

Blog:⁠ ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠⁠

Instagram:⁠⁠ @badii.life

In today’s episode, I sat down with Nell Waters, an expert in water, heat, and people. We explore why analog spaces like saunas and bathhouses matter more than ever, how design and etiquette create belonging, and where technology fits—or doesn’t—in the culture of bathing.

What you’ll hear in the episode:

• What exactly is “bathing culture” and what “water + heat + people” have to do with it

• Why analog, human-centered experiences still matter in a world obsessed with AI

• Why bathing reveals something about place and community that museums never could

• How cold plunges create community and connection

• The subtle cues in design, etiquette, and atmosphere that create a true sense of belonging in a sauna and bathhouse

• A behind-the-scenes look at SOAK and Sweat Temples—Nell’s own podcast and blog devoted to bathing culture

  
  

Nell Waters is a former award-winning Somatic bodyworker, workshop educator, startup entrepreneur, and part-time experience designer. Nell builds communities around next wave ideas.

She is best known for being an early pioneer in bringing back the urban bathhouse when she commissioned her long-time friends and landscape architects to design an ecological anti-spa that could be built out of shipping containers that she called SOAK.  Today she is the founder of a communications studio called THIS NOT THAT where she also leads creative labs, and is the producer of Sweat Temples, a media platform dedicated to the rituals of  water+heat+people found in corners all over the world. 

Who Nell is Following:

-Tina Brown’s Newsletter on Substack

-Pod Save America

-Scott Galloway

Get in touch with Nell:

-Sweat Temples - Instagram and Substack

-Find Nell on LinkedIn

-This Not That Communications & Creative Studio - tnt-creative.com 

💧Badii Talk now has a Substack! Join us where wellness meets travel. We explore global bathing traditions, sauna rituals, and spa culture through the lens of place and community.

📍 ⁠Subscribe⁠ today for your free downloadable New England Spa & Sauna Road Trip Guide, packed with wellness destination recommendations, restaurants, hotels, and routes.

Edited by Lila Woodbridge.

Explore more bathing culture:

Website:⁠ www.badii.life⁠

Blog: ⁠Badii Talk on Substack⁠
Instagram:⁠ @badii.life