Goal Met: Banya 4+ times

I’ve been to the Banya (Russian hot sauna) a few times in the past and every time I felt like it really helped my sore back/shoulders and gave me a really overall relaxed feeling. Every time I left I’d say to myself “Man, I can’t wait go back” then, for reasons unknown, I’d never go back. I’ve read up on the plentiful health benefits of using the saunas as well as some health warnings (it is, after-all, a process for shocking your body into a reaction)

I didn’t really start up going until the fall – as going to a hot sauna in the summer just doesn’t feel right. Once the temperature outside started to cool I started making some plans to visit some of the saunas around me to see how they compare to one another.

I started with bear and birch which is a relatively small Banya – the steam room barely fits 8 people and the few times I went I had to wait outside the hot sauna for some space to open up. The first time I went the Banya was a nice temperature but the second time someone ramped it up so hot that I felt like my skin was burning and I couldn’t stay very long (in fact, they opened the door and vented a bunch of heat to try to bring the temperature down to more reasonable levels). The staff was very friendly and helpful and the people there were all very chill and talkative which was nice. I didn’t try the food – but the few dishes that came out of the kitchen looked and smelled awesome.

Second up was BRC in Fair Lawn NJ. This is the Cadillac of Banya in the area. There saunas are huge and there’s a pool, massages, infrared saunas, cryo-tanks, a salt room (all extra of course). The Saunas are always hot and the plunge pool is always absurdly cold. I’ve been here quite a few times and always have a great experience. The food is delicious and they offer free water (a godsend as I don’t need to lug around a gallon bottle with me) – the price keeps creeping up but with all that they offer i still think it’s a great value. It gets very crowded nights and weekends (especially over the winter holiday break) but there’s so much space it’s rare you need to wait for a spot – if the main Banya is full one of the other two saunas is probably available.

Thirdly was the Marlboro Banya – smaller than BRC but bigger than Bear and Birch it had two hot saunas and a more mild traditional sauna. The steam room was kind of small and struggled to keep the steam up (I suspect from the door constantly opening to let people in and out) I really liked the outdoor patio – it was a cold day so I walked right from the sauna outside into the 30 degree weather which was a very fun experience. They had a fire pit going which was nice to chill towards the end and chat with some people.

I can’t rate the Banya at Southampton in PA – I drove all the way out there but there was a power outage and they weren’t admitting anyone so I had to turn around and go back home (ultimately ending up at Bear and Birch since I already had the day off an wanted to make is a sauna day)

So after visiting all these Banya – the question remains, do they work? Sometimes it get a bit uncomfortable as my heart is racing due to the heat but once I cool off I feel much better. I usually sleep like a baby after Banya so there’s that at least. I feel like it really relaxes my muscles and my injuries and various aches and pains are lessened so yes, I feel like it does make a difference and plan on trying to keep up my quarterly visits.