Fans of the hottest (and coldest) trend in battling the winter blues, rejoice.
Another chance to sample the dynamic combination of steaming-hot saunas and adrenaline-spiking ice water plunges is returning to Greater Boston this winter, this time in Somerville, right next to a brewery. Sauna In Poland
Moki Sauna, the company behind last year’s popular sauna pop-up on Boston’s Rose Kennedy Greenway, has begun setting up another Finnish-inspired Winter Sauna Village at Somerville’s Somernova campus near Union Square, outside the Aeronaut Brewing Co’s flagship location. The plan is to open at some point in the next few weeks.
The pop-up, which looks like a small village of wooden sheds, comprises three wood-fired indoor saunas and three outdoor ice plunges, as well as bathrooms and changing areas. There are also plans to light a fire pit in their midst. An eagle-eyed Reddit user was first to spot the saunas being installed over the weekend. A company spokesperson confirmed the plans.
“We’re super excited about our location for this winter,” said Mark Peloquin, the company’s founder and CEO.
When it opens, visits will cost $60 for a two-hour session, or $45 for a shorter one-hour drop-in at selected times, Peloquin said. There will also be monthly memberships available. Bookings are made on Moki’s website.
Guests are invited to strip down to swimsuits and alternate between sauna and plunge, a combination that is said to be both relaxing and euphoric. Some small bites — lighter, salty fare Peloquin called “bespoke sauna snacks” — will be on offer. Conversations with friends or strangers are encouraged. Cellphone use is not.
He said this business model created a lot of Boston-area converts last winter during the Greenway pop-up and during a summertime edition on Cape Cod earlier this year, which he hopes to continue in Somerville.
“A lot of people are intrigued by the ubiquity of cold plunges and they’re curious to try it. That’s a huge draw,” he said. “But the aha moment is when that’s paired with a sauna, and it’s a social setting. I think people easily get hooked and see it as a great opportunity to look forward to winter versus getting very insular as it gets colder.”
Saunas do seem to be having a moment. Atlanta-basd SweatHouz, which also offers saunas and cold plunges, opened at Somerville’s Assembly Row. Last year the City of Boston, working with Somerville company CultureHouse, opened a free Finnish sauna pop-up on City Hall Plaza last year.
There is, of course, also an old-school sauna contingent in the region. Dillon’s, a Russian steam bath in Chelsea, dates back to 1885. Until 2020 there was Inman Oasis, the longtime Cambridge spa that closed as the pandemic hit.
Despite its proximity to the brewery, beers will not be served at the Somerville location, nor can they be transported to the pop-up from the taproom. (For afterward, though, Aeronaut marketing director Alisa Bunin recommends the Robot Crush, an American pilsner, which she said is “a very light-drinking, refreshing, post-sauna beer.”)
Long-term, Peloquin, of Moki, said he believes that exposing lots more people to the sauna-and-cold plunge lifestyle will pave the way for a more permanent presence for his company in the Boston area, either with repeat pop-ups or perhaps even a brick-and-mortar location.
“We haven’t seen our audience skewing toward one demographic. It’s spanned a wide range, which is the result we’re hoping for. It shows this is something a larger community is looking for,” he said. “We really think this is a great area where we can grow roots.”
Spencer Buell can be reached at spencer.buell@globe.com. Follow him @SpencerBuell.
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