German Spa Experience Report

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German Sauna Experience Report

September 2002

Having just returned from a week in Germany on business, I wanted to share a glimpse of the German Nakt Kulture.

We enjoyed the sights, shopped, had some good German meals, and generally had a good time. However, my favorite experience was the opportunity to bake, soak, steam, swim and sunbathe at the "SchwimmHalle" or "Hallenbad". I definitely recommend it if you a ever get a chance to travel to Germany. Pause to relax your mind as you imagine taking a trip to a typical German swimming pool/sauna complex.

Here's a full description of the experience, based on several complexes I have visited over the years. You enter through a large lobby, often with a restaurant just off the main entrance. You pay at the desk and receive an electronic ticket for your desired timeframe -- perhaps a 2 or 3 hour time block (often including an extra half hour for undressing and dressing), or you might get an all day pass. If you're not familiar with that complex, ask if your admission includes the sauna. Using the ticket to get through a turnstile, you proceed to the undressing cubicles (either single or "family" sized). As you go through the turnstile, it timestamps your card with the expiration time of your visit -- be sure you know when you need to leave, or you will have to pay extra at the end.

In the cubicle, you strip off and put on your swimsuit (or, if you are going directly to the sauna, a towel wrapped around you will suffice) and your shower shoes. Leaving the cubicle through the opposite door, find an empty locker for your clothes, use the electronic ticket to withdraw the key and proceed to the swimming pools. Note -- some sauna complexes have separate locker rooms in the sauna area, and when you pay, you specify that you will be going to the sauna -- you will get a different colored wristband. These locker rooms are commonly divided into two sections for days when the sauna suite is segregated into "Women and Families" (Damen und Familien) and "Men" (Herren). If you go on a "Mixed Sex" (Gemischte) day, the whole sauna locker room will be open for your use. You may find yourself undressing next to another man, woman or a full family -- a very liberating experience if it is your first time! If you plan to swim first, you shower and go into one of the numerous cold, cool, warm or hot pools. If you plan to spend most of your time in the sauna area (like me ...*s*), you proceed into the "Saunabereich" through doors marked "Textilefrei Zonen", or "FKK Zonen".

As you enter this area, you will find people of all ages wandering nude (or in just a towel, or maybe a robe) through a modern, spacious, warm, sanitary, light and airy space connected to an outdoors sunbathing area. Entering the "(un)dressing area", you'll find an open box shelf to place your spare towels, book, water bottle, shampoo, conditioner, glasses or anything else you brought into the area. Alongside these things you drop or hang your now unnecessary swimsuit and head into the showers for a thorough, soapy shower (bring your own soap).

After showering, you can choose from a variety of saunas and/or steam baths. There are different temperatures (ranging from about 65 degrees C to 95 degrees C -- 149F to 203F). Some of the cooler ones may have aromatic/aromatherapy herbs over the heat, or multi-colored lighting designed to stimulate your senses. Some saunas have scheduled "Aufguss" times when an attendant comes into the sauna and ladles water onto the hot stones to generate super-heated steam. During the "Aufguss" and for five minutes afterwards, there is a lighted "Bitte Warten - Augguss" sign inside the sauna and just outside the door -- when this sign is on, you DON"T OPEN THE DOOR!! -- even if feel you are boiling, you can stick it out for five minutes. After spending 10-20 minutes in the "box", you MUST SHOWER -- either a warm shower in the shower room where you previously cleaned up, or more commonly, in an adjacent shower cubicle where there are a variety of relatively high pressure (but only COLD) showers to stimulate your skin and quickly cool your (over)heated body. After showering, you can take a cold water plunge in a small pool, sit and soak your feet in a cold or hot footbath or even highstep through artificial streams of cold and hot water -- take your pick.

At this point, about half the people stay nude, and the rest don towels or fluffy robes -- but it is your choice -- there is no pressure to dress. After the shower, another choice is one of a series of "Ruhe Raums" (rest rooms) where chaise loungers are available to lay back with your feet up. Still another choice exercised by many of the hardy regulars is to go to the outside coutyard or open air sunbathing terrace where you stroll nude in the cool air while your heated body gives off steam (especially in winter). There is usually a bucket of ice chips available, or if you go in winter, there may be a convenient snow drift to grab some handfuls of snow to rub into your body. VERY stimulating! Depending on the weather and/or your degree of hardiness, you can find a bench or chair to sit and cool off, or lie on outside loungers as you cool off. If you are lucky with the weather, you can lie in the sun for some allover tanning. Or, you can slip on your suit and return to the pool area for a swim, hot tub soak or other watersports. Usually, there will be a Massage room available within the Sauna area or near the pools -- check at the desk if you want an appointment with the therapist.

At some sauna complexes, you may be able to buy a beer or soft drink, or even a full meal, either inside the Saunabereich or in an adjacent area. Some also have fountains featuring the local mineral water which often proves the old adage: "...if it tastes bad, it's probably good for you..." ....*L*.... You should observe the 'regulars' to determine a location's specific rules or habits, but there are a few universal 'taboos' that, if violated, will get you into trouble with the 'regulars', so follow these traditional rules:

- ALWAYS sit or lie on a towel where ever you go -- in the sauna, you need two towels or one towel long enough for both your butt AND your feet to be off the wooden sitting surfaces. It's a good idea to bring a small hand towel or two to sit on in the steam rooms so your main towel(s) don't get saturated by the condensed water on the benches. - Don't wear a swimsuit into the sauna! -- it's considered unsanitary (this may be relaxed for children). If you are 'shy', keep a towel loosely wrapped around your 'private' bits. - Don't wear your shower shoes into the sauna! However, the steam rooms are more flexible on this point.

- ALWAYS shower after a sauna or steam! -- don't EVER jump into the plunge pool in a sweaty state. - Go in and out of the sauna/steam rooms as quickly and expeditiously as possible -- don't leave the door open as you remove your towel or shoes. Finally, when your paid time period is up, you reverse your path and head for the locker room. If you desire, plan enough time to shampoo and condition your hair, and apply a body moisturizer before you dress. All the dressing areas have hairdryers. Afterward, it's nice to stop in the restaurant for a meal or just to have a drink as a transition point back into the normal world -- refreshed, cleansed and content.

How does all that sound?... *G* ....Ready to take a trip to Germany now?

A Naked Man

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