Bathing has an unmistakable influence on body and mind, bringing an opportunity to step out of your everyday. But what about the culture of augmenting a bathing high with alcohol or psychedelic zing? To counter January’s usual diet and detox narrative, Sauna Times’ Glenn Auerbach takes a look at the past and future of “hedonistic wellness”.
Text by Glenn Auerbach
Take a look at recent articles on the bathing boom, and there’s one theme that crops up again and again: you booze, you lose. Saunas are the perfect “full-body detox,” claims Vogue; a trendy, “sober-curious” alternative to bars and clubs, swoons The Sun. Yet there’s long been a culture of social bathing with an extra high. Alcohol, cannabis, and psychedelics are already a big part of gathering spaces like clubs and concerts, what part do they have to play when it comes to bathing?
While the supposed “sauna detox” is more myth than reality (detoxification is primarily driven by your liver and kidneys, not by sweating), there’s little doubt that bathhouses offer a great environment for sober socializing. Korean jimjilbang and Japanese onsen are famously alcohol-free, while many next-gen bathing concepts, from Othership in New York City to London’s Community Sauna Baths, are proudly sober as well. Even rehab clinics are incorporating contrast therapy to give their patients a safe and natural high.
The surge in sober sweating has been exciting to see, particularly in places like the UK, with a strong pub-forward drinking culture. But I think there’s also potential for bathhouses to craft new norms of responsible consumption – of alcohol, cannabis, and even psychedelics.
Why? Well, first of all, it’s ill-advised to get smashed or stoned when you’re half-naked and surrounded by strangers, hot surfaces, and bodies of water. That’s why so many boozy bathing cultures exert a special form of peer pressure in the bathhouse. Whether it’s a Finnish Long Drink at the sauna, a pint of Heineken at the therme, or a shot of Stoli at the banya, everyone knows that too much of a good thing can quickly turn bad. Often, booze is the prize that comes after the bathing.
‘Whether it’s a Finnish Long Drink at the sauna, a pint of Heineken at the therme, or a shot of Stoli at the banya, everyone knows that too much of a good thing can quickly turn bad. Often, booze is the prize that comes after the bathing.’
Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, contrast therapy already gets you high, limiting the need to pile on other substances. The hot-cold combo triggers a powerful neurochemical cocktail – part endorphin rush, part dopamine spike, part cardiovascular workout – that leaves your mind and body glowing. When you’re steam drunk, you think twice about getting real drunk. Instead, you can use psychoactive substances to strategically brighten and extend the glow. Call it hedonistic wellness.
Centuries ago, the temazcal and sweat lodges of Mesoamerica prototyped this kind of physical-mental-spiritual journey. The intense heat was a way to soothe the body and prepare the mind for the even more intense psychological effects of chanting, breathwork, and, in some cases, hallucinogens such as ayahuasca and psilocybin. Today, practitioners of psychedelic therapy (and proselytizers like Michael Pollan) might refer to these preparatory rituals as the critical set and setting – or mood and context – needed for a safe psychedelic journey.
Few spaces are as physically and psychically nourishing as a bathhouse. So it’s perhaps no coincidence that the modern psychedelic movement was founded at Esalen, a hot spring resort in northern California that continues to host cultural and academic gatherings advancing psychedelic research and practice. Perched over the Pacific, Esalen’s seven iconic sulfur baths have hosted everyone from Hunter S. Thompson to Kesha for clothing-optional hot tub happenings.
These experiences might sound niche, but cannabis and psychedelics are now rapidly growing, multibillion-dollar sectors of the US economy. As social bathing continues to grow in popularity, and alcohol sales continue to sag, bathers will no doubt explore other elixirs to enhance their immersions (indeed, this kind of “self-serve” drug use is already a tacit feature of the Colorado hot spring circuit).
Whether commercial saunas and bathhouses explicitly embrace psychoactive bathing is another question. Facing already sizable risks from slipping or drowning, operators are likely to take the path of least liability. Bathing under the influence may be under the radar for a little while longer. So when it comes to boozing and bathing, the doctrine to “listen to your body” is more important than ever.
Our favorite destinations for healthy hedonism
Secular Sabbath
An experimental music collective founded by a child of Esalen, Secular Sabbath hosts psychedelically-inflected ambient concerts at bathhouses and hot springs across California and around the country (as well as a podcast in a hot tub). They also sell some very svelte sauna hats.
Therme Erding
The big daddy of German bathhouses (and the largest spa in the world), Therme Erding has a conscious approach to alcohol, with five swim-up bars serving up beer and cocktails morning, noon, and night. An ingenious, wristband-driven payment system restricts bathers from drinking more than four alcoholic beverages per visit.
Craft brew houses
Several craft brewers have opened their side parking lots to mobile saunapreneur collaborations around North America and beyond. For example, Pryes Brewing near downtown Minneapolis hosts a year-round sauna village programmed by Superior Sauna and Steam. Beers aren’t actually allowed in the sauna, for safety and sanitation reasons, but once you step out you can sample Kallio, a specialty “sauna beer” brewed with Nordic yeast.
Glenn Auerbach is the founder of SaunaTimes.com and author of Sauna Build, From Start to Finish, a book about how to build your own sauna.
Sauna Circuit: Chicago
Culture of Bathing is a sponsor of Sauna Circuit! First of several dozen planned self guided tours is Chicago. It features eight of the Windy City’s hottest thermal bathing facilities: including the historic Russian-style Chicago Bathhouse, the Asian inspired King Spa, the deep heat at Chicago Sweatlodge, and the new Kiln floating sauna. Each Sauna Circuit is curated by a "scout" who lives in or is well familiar with the area. For example, the Chicago Sauna Circuit is curated by International Disciples of Sauna Tent founder Kev, a longtime thermal enthusiast. He also provides a few “adjacencies” - cool hikes, breweries, galleries, or restaurants where, between sessions, “people like us can do things like this.”
News
A Kiss of Madness While Bathing, Tang Dynasty-Style at Othership
CULTBYTES, January 6, 2026
The coolest ice baths for cold water therapy at home
The Times, January 1, 2026
Icelandic pool culture confirmed on Unesco’s list of intangible cultural heritage
National World, December 26, 2025
Fancy a Sauna? No Thanks, We’re British
YLE (Finnish Broadcasting Company), December 23, 2025
One last thing
When it comes to hedonism and hot tubs nobody does it better than Austin Powers.
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healthy hedonism! A wonderful concept.
Lest we forget SPARTY at Széchenyi Thermal Baths 🛁 🎊