Flagship community sauna to open on the Dorset coast in Spring 2026

The award-winning Nordic bathing company The Saltwater Sauna will open its flagship site in Boscombe, Dorset, in Spring 2026 — marking a full-circle homecoming to the beach where its story first began.

The Saltwater Sauna, co-founded by Arlene and Sam Glyn-Jones, has become one of the UK’s leading names in authentic coastal sauna culture, recognised for its handcrafted wooden saunas, stunning seaside settings, and inclusive sense of community. From the beginning, the journey has always been about connection, to the sea, to tradition, and to each other, and about helping more people experience the wellbeing and life-affirming benefits of authentic Nordic bathing.

The new Boscombe site will be the brand’s largest and most purpose-built yet, designed to host 30+ people at a time in a communal sauna and social space overlooking the sea.

Born in Boscombe

Years before their first mobile sauna opened at Sandbanks in 2021, Sam Glyn-Jones founded a not-for-profit sea-swimming group on Boscombe Beach. What began as simple shared moments - dawn dips, fire pits, and breakfasts by the sea - evolved into a thriving cold-water community named Resurface.

It was during this time that Sam met Arlene, a Finn whose upbringing was steeped in sauna culture. For her, the link between cold water and heat was instinctive, two halves of the same ritual.

Founder Arlene Glyn-Jones explains: “Standing on the shore at Boscombe after every group swim, I’d often say - we need a sauna! In Finland, heat and cold belong together - the sauna completes the ritual and offers space to restore, connect, and share with others. We wanted to bring that same spirit home to Dorset, and more broadly to the UK, where community spaces focused on wellbeing are far less common.”

So, together, Arlene and Sam set about making it happen. Arlene quickly became the brand’s creative mind, while Sam, with his background in community projects and a doctorate in wellbeing, worked on the network and logistics. In July 2021, after months of hard work, The Saltwater Sauna officially launched its original mobile sauna at Sandbanks Beach. 

From Idea to Flagship

The response to The Saltwater Sauna at Sandbanks was overwhelmingly positive; the sauna was fully booked across the first two years, with coverage in local and national press, and partnerships with community groups, yoga collectives, charities, and local businesses. 

The Saltwater Sauna was soon recognised as one of the leading operators in the UK seaside sauna movement, but more importantly, regular guests shared again and again how transformational and enriching their visits were - both in terms of community wellbeing and mental and physical health. 

Over time, The Saltwater Sauna has opened in Avon Beach and Lulworth Cove, with plans underway for Southbourne, each location drawing new communities to the positive benefits of sauna. But from the very beginning, the dream was always to return to Boscombe with a purpose-built community sauna. This is where the original Saltwater Sauna community was born, where Arlene and Sam spent their early mornings surfing and swimming together. 

Now, after much persistence and patience, their vision has finally become reality: The Saltwater Sauna’s new flagship site will open in Boscombe in Spring 2026.

A Third Place

Founder Sam Glyn-Jones comments: “We’ve been working towards this from the very beginning. This flagship sauna will embody our mission of fostering community, hosting 30+ at a time in a purpose-built sauna and social area. There’s a concept called the ‘Third Place’, which is very important to us - it highlights how informal social environments between work and home are vital for better personal health and a sense of belonging. That’s what we want The Saltwater Sauna at Boscombe to represent: a living third space where warmth, conversation, and nature come together to nurture wellbeing. A place that belongs to everyone.”

The new flagship sauna will feature full changing facilities inc. lockers, curtain pods for privacy, hot and cold showers, hairdryers, mirrors, a swimsuit dryer, cold plunge bucket shower, and a dedicated social area with sea views. There will also be guided communal rituals to blend authentic Nording bathing with Dorset’s coastal calm.

Arlene Glyn-Jones adds: “The Saltwater Sauna journey has always been about helping people to slow down, reconnect with their surroundings, and forge new connections with each other within their communities. We truly believe in the wellbeing and life-affirming benefits of sauna, and want as many people to experience it for themselves as possible. Boscombe is a special kind of homecoming for this mission, and for us personally, and we can’t wait to share it with you”. 

www.thesaltwatersauna.com