This Finnish spa is opening in NYC for one weekend only
If you want to take a quick relaxing trip to Finland—allegedly the world’s happiest country—but can do without the uncomfortable eight-hour flight, the Finnish Long Drink canned cocktail brand is bringing a slice of the European country to New York City for one weekend only.
Starting today, June 27, until Saturday, June 29, you can indulge in an authentic Finnish sauna experience at 433 Broadway by Howard Street in Soho for free.
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First, visitors will get to sit inside a functioning dry sauna to improve blood flow, they will then move to an outdoor cold plunge area featuring a simulated landscape of the Finnish wilderness for full effect. The experience ends in a reconstruction of a Finnish cottage, called Mökkielämä, where you’ll finally get to sip on canned drinks from the activation’s sponsor, Finnish Long Drink.
For those unfamiliar with Finnish culture (myself very much included), the “long drink” is a staple of Finland’s booze landscape that was created during the 1952 Helsinki summer Olympics. The drink usually consists of gin and a mixer such as grapefruit soda, a concoction that the founders of the Finish Long Drink canned cocktail brand wanted to export to the U.S. and beyond.
Just in case you were wondering, the Finnish sauna experience is world renown for its health benefits. In fact, the very concept of a sauna was first invented in Finland and some estimate that there are more than 3.3 million of them in the country across homes, country cabins, gyms and all types of businesses. Finland is also a country with 187,888 lakes, which means that many sauna goers punctuate their sessions with dips in those bodies of water—hence the cold plunge tradition.
Although experiencing such an important aspect of another culture right on our territory is enough of a reason to head to Soho this weekend, we’d like to also remind you that it’s not often that you get to enjoy a quality sauna for free in Manhattan. Don’t miss out!