Sauna Etiquette

[Byron]

LOL - thanks for the story - nearly six months but worth waiting.
(any recent conversions ?)

[jackk78]

It's interesting to come back to this after so long. The pool I frequent was purchased by a German family a few months ago. They've slowly been instituting a few changes. The first was to hire a new aquatics director. They've been doing some renovations to the spa area as well. It's been closed almost since they took over.

They recently sent out a letter to all members outline some policy changes. It's not at all what I expected. Some excerpts below.

What is Freikörperkultur (FKK)?
Growing up in Germany, one of life's greatest pleasures was a visit to the local swimming hole or therme. Here men, women, boys, and girls enjoyed the freedom of being uninhibited and free. FKK or Free Body Culture encourages acceptance of all bodies, young, old, big, or small. In our increasingly judgmental culture, we believe this to be an important value. As such, we will be implementing policies that encourage body acceptance. While we make this changes, we encourage you to come to us with any questions or concerns you may a have.

Spa
The spa area between the locker rooms will be reopening soon. We thank you for your patience during construction.

Dress Code
To maintain the cleanliness of renovated spa area, we require that members use the spa without a bathing suit (i.e. nude). A cleansing shower is required before entering the spa area. Please sit on a clean towel when using the dry sauna. Towels are not permitted in the steam sauna. A hose is available inside the steam sauna to cleanse the benches before and after use.

Age Restrictions
Children under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian while using the spa area.

Locker Rooms

Children in Opposite Sex Locker Rooms
We believe that it is up to parents to decide when their children are ready to go into their own locker room unaccompanied. Therefore, as long as they are accompanied by a parent, we do not restrict the age of children allowed to use the opposite gender locker rooms.

FKK Freedom Fridays
Beginning the first Friday in November (the 6th) the pool will be open for FKK Freedom Fridays. All day Friday, the pool is restricted to nude use only. No bathing suits are permitted. Members may also bring up to 3 guests free instead of paying the regular fee.

To answer any questions you may have and provide an introduction to FKK culture, we will be hosting an orientation Friday, October 30, from 8-10 PM in the pool area. This event is clothing optional, and we encourage you to undress to your comfort level.

[jackk78]

There was a bit of a backlash against required nudity in the spa area, so this pool relaxed their rules to avoid scaring away clientele. They reinstated the more typical swimsuits required rule every day except on Fridays. They're still trying to make that happen. I've been a few times, and it's mostly German and Russian families.

They did send out a notice about their "Nude Years Day" event next Friday, when the facility will be open to the public.

[jackk78]

I had to stay in a hotel for work. I was relaxing in the sauna wearing a speedo when a mom and daughter walked in. It was obvious they were talking about me when they sat down. After a while, the mom said, "I like your swimsuit."

"Mom!" said the daughter.

"What? I'm just giving him a complement."

"Your embarrassing me," said the daughter.

"Everything I do embarrasses you," said the mom.

"It's alright," I said. "Thanks for the complement."

"More men used to wear those when I was growing up," said the mom. "I think they're cute."

"And comfortable," I added.

"My husband is a shorts man," she said.

"You should get him a speedo as a gift," I suggested. "Sometimes men are just uncomfortable getting one for themselves."

She laughed. "That'd make a great stocking stuffer."

We chatted about what we were doing in town. Eventually, they had to leave. I wrote down my email for the mom before she left and asked her to tell me how it went. I got a message from her a couple of days after Christmas.

"He waited until the kids left, but wore it for me in the hot tub. Thanks for the advice."

[Mollyk]

bf wears his speedos or his jammers with a rashtop and I wear my bikini

[Schoolspeedo]

Originally Posted by MuscleSpeedo

I definitely prefer a speedo to nothing at all. I often visit the men-only steamroom & sauna when we are on a Princess Cruise and always wear a speedo....even though most of the other guys are wearing nothing or a towel. I think speedos are sexier and more fun.

I always try and wear the briefest speedo I can to a sauna. Got a lovely smile from a female staff member of a hotel in Romania once when she came down to fire up the sauna for me. I was in a navy string bikini.
That said if I get a chance to go naked then I take it. Was at a hotel in Netherlands on business a few years ago where the etiquette was no swimwear in the sauna, similarly at a spa leisure centre near Vienna when I took my wife. I absolutely loved it. However i wore a very brief black bikini in the main public area without any attention being paid.

[speedo_guy]

I always go naked in a sauna these days if it's acceptable. First time, I was staying in a German hotel which had a big spa area with a pool and a sauna. On my first day there I went down to the spa wearing a speedo but as most of the other people there were naked the next day I went naked too and loved it.

[wemabikiniguy]

I've gone to a spa at a CT casino a couple times. It's separate men's and women's locker rooms with a hot tub, sauna and steam room in each. First time I went all the guys were nude in the locker room and in the separate amenities, no big deal to walk around nude.. everyone else was. Last year went I went for the second time, I stripped, grabbed a towel, and went into the hot tub... within 10 minutes a group of guys who appeared to be all friends got in the tub drinking beer and having fun...all wearing board shorts!! So after a little while I had to get out of the tub...of course all their conversation stopped as the naked guy climbed out. I was a little embarrassed for a while and put on the only "swimsuit" I brought, a Joe snyder boxer, and wore that in the sauna and steam room, but after an hour or so more guys came into the spa that chose to go nude, so I lost the swimsuit. It seems more relaxing in a place like that to be nude.
In fairness to those guys who were in the spa in board shorts hanging out with their buddies, I have no desire to hang out naked with my friends either, nor will we ever go to a spa together.
I've never been in a co-ed sauna, but in a segregated sauna, as well as a co-ed sauna I think nude is the way to go. It feels so nice why deprive those parts of your body?

[BeachGuy]

I don't wear anything in the sauna (nude). I do however sit on a towel.

[Bullseye]

At my gym, the steam room, sauna, and hot tub are all coed and in the same area as the pool. Since I usually only frequent any of the first three when swimming, it seems perfectly natural to just wear what I am wearing to swim, my speedo (or, less often, jammers). While I am usually the only one wearing one, I think people don't think it is a big deal because they can tell I was just swimming (or will be.) I think otherwise it might raise a few eyebrows. BTW, I know that the heat and chemicals can damage my suits, but I am not going to change, so I just rinse them and wash them when I shower afterwards. That's one reason that I own so many pairs, and besides, it gives me a chance to buy more later!