Nude or Not Nude?
It depends on where you are coming from.
Text and photos by Mikkel Aaland (bio below)
At the International Sauna Congress in Haparanda, Sweden in 2018, I showed a clip from “Perfect Sweat”. The footage was shot in Finland, at an island off the coast of Helsinki, and it featured young men and women bathing together, naked. Oh my!
After my presentation, an older Finnish woman in the audience raised her hand and asked why I was showing men and women naked together in the sauna when that just didn't happen in Finland.
Sompa sauna in Helsinki, where men and women sweat together naked, oh yes!
What could I say? Obviously, as the footage showed, men and women sometimes bathed naked together in Finland. Still, she had a point. The fact is, in most cultures around the world, especially in public places, naked co-ed bathing is the exception not the rule. Russia, Turkey, Japan, southern Italy, and England, are a few countries I've visited that offer separate bathing areas for men and women. Rarely do I find co-ed nudity as a norm.
The exception, in my experience, is German-speaking countries, where nudity between men and women is not only socially accepted but actually encouraged. Go to just about any public locker room in Germany and you will see men and women disrobing casually together.
Naked bathers during an aufguss performance at Satama Spa, outside of Berlin, Germany. Satama was the site of the 2018 International Sauna Aufguss Championships.
In public saunas, which are mostly co-ed, if you enter wearing a bathing suit, odds are some bather will make a disparaging comment. At the International Sauna Aufguss Championship at a resort near Berlin, we filmed at least 200 naked men and women of all ages and shapes pour out from a single coed sauna. It's a sight you had to see to fully appreciate.
(For those of you wondering how we handled the privacy issue-a very real concern considering the proliferation of cell phones and stealth cameras-we asked all the bathers to sign waivers before we filmed them.)
What are my thoughts on co-ed nudity?
“I am more comfortable bathing naked, regardless of who I am with.”
Mikkel Aaland
Personally, I am more comfortable bathing naked, regardless of who I am with. I equate nudity with sensuality but not with sexuality.
I always bring a clean towel to sit on, but that's all. I also respect local customs and sensitivities and when necessary cover myself appropriately with a loose-fitting towel or sheet. (I avoid wearing synthetic bathing suits. They become uncomfortable in the heat, and the synthetic fabric doesn't breathe.)
It's just a fact that, for a variety of reasons, people in many cultures are more modest than others and I am not on a crusade to change that. I'd rather do everything I can to simply encourage people to sweat together.
On the other hand, over and over I've seen how the soothing heat of the sweat has a way of melting inhibitions. I've witnessed people who were initially body shy, relax in the womb-like environment, drop their modesty, and reveal their natural, glowing selves. The transformation is inspiring.
About the author:
Mikkel Aaland is an honorary member of Norwegian Sauna Society, pictured here during the ceremony at the Norwegian Badstue Conference in Oslo in 2026.
Mikkel Aaland is an honorary member of both the International Sauna Association and Norwegian Sauna Society, founder of Sauna Aid and a central contributor to ISC26 as member of the program advisory committee.
His book Sweat from 1978 has become a cult classic in sauna circles around the world, and a few years ago he followed up with the documentary series “Perfect Sweat”, which is available on streaming services and highly recommended for all sauna enthusiasts.
At International Sauna Congress in Oslo, Mikkel will launch a brand new book called Naked Sweat, and we are very excited to announce more details about this very soon!
