The Peat Ritual: My Deeply Relaxing Sauna Experience at Tupaswilla in Central Finland

Written by Laura Hokka, photos: Tupaswilla

I attended a women’s peat sauna evening at Tupaswilla, a traditional heritage estate located in Laukaa, Central Finland, near the city of Jyväskylä. This wasn’t a regular sauna visit – while we relaxed in the heat of the sauna, the dark peat applied to our skin worked to draw out impurities.

A large sauna by a pond

Tupaswilla has a nostalgic, old-time courtyard. The sauna is enormous – could it even be the largest sauna in Finland? It’s located by a small pond, and next to it there’s a sheltered outdoor terrace where you can sit and cool off by the fire.

The sauna is heated using peat collected from Tupaswilla’s own bog. The wash water, which has a brownish tint, is pumped from the nearby pond. Drinking water is brought separately, so it’s always clean and fresh.

Monthly peat sauna evenings

Peat sauna evenings are held once a month, and you need to sign up in advance. You’ll need to bring your own towel, washing supplies and a water bottle. A seat towel (“pefletti” in Finnish) is also useful, but disposable ones are available at the sauna. Swimwear is not needed during the session.

Changing and warming up

When I arrived, I left my clothes – and even my towel – in the changing room, as towels can easily get stained. The changing room has benches and hooks, as well as lockable lockers for storing valuables.

I started by showering, and then moved to the sauna for a light warm-up. On both sides of the sauna there are washrooms, each with a door leading into the lower section of the sauna. From there, wide steps lead up into the dim but atmospheric sauna. There is seating on both sides of the stairs – one side is for sitting, the other for walking.

The purpose of the first sauna session was to gently warm up the body until sweating began. After that, it was time for another shower to rinse off the sweat. I left my water bottle and seat towel in the sauna to reserve my place before continuing.

Applying the peat

In the washrooms there were large tubs of moist peat, which we applied to our entire bodies by hand. You could also apply it to your face and hair, but if your hair is freshly dyed, peat is not recommended: it absorbs impurities and may fade the color. Peat is also hard to remove from very light hair. If you have high or low blood pressure, it’s advised not to apply peat to the chest area. Otherwise, you’re free to apply it wherever you like. The treatment felt good and cleansing.

20 minutes in the sauna with peat

Once I felt properly covered in peat, I returned to the sauna. The sauna hostesses told us the latest time we needed to leave – the peat session lasts a maximum of 20 minutes. If the heat became too intense before that, you could move to the steps to cool down, or leave the sauna entirely. I personally moved to the steps after ten minutes, as it was too hot for me. I don’t like very hot saunas – but this varies from person to person.

I kept my water bottle with me the whole time, and the sauna hostesses made sure everyone had enough to drink. The sauna atmosphere was quiet and calm – people only spoke in whispers, as is customary in Finnish sauna etiquette. The idea is to relax – too much talking would disturb that.

Guided and supervised sauna experience

There was hostesses in the sauna, which might feel unusual especially for Finns. The sauna hostess took care of bringing water, keeping time, throwing water on the hot stones, and letting out heat through the washroom doors if it got too hot.

Washing off the peat and taking a dip

When the 20 minutes were up, we returned to the washroom to rinse off the peat. You could also wash it off in the pond – peat is a natural product and won’t harm the water. I first showered and then took a dip in the pond. It was a refreshing way to end the sauna.

Afterward, a small salty snack was served in the nearby building. After the sauna, I felt relaxed, clean, and in a very peaceful state of mind. All in all, it was a wonderful sauna experience and I would recommend this for anybody who is not scared to get their hands dirty.

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