Our first stop during our trip up to Norway was to Oslo, the gorgeous capital city, before we ventured up north above the Arctic Circle to Tromsø and Sommarøy.
I reached out to a friend of mine based in Oslo and asked for some local tips on the best things to do during a weekend here. Many things were recommended - check out my complete guide to Oslo to find out - but something he really encouraged during these cooler autumnal days was to make our way down to the harbour and find a floating sauna.
Not only as these saunas beautiful, and not only are they floating on the harbour, but the best thing about them is that after you've roasted yourself in 90° wood-stove-fueled heat, you pad your way across the dock and dunk yourself for as long as possible in the icy cold waters of Oslofjord! Because that's what the Norwegians do, and you must do as they do when in Norway, of course.
There are loads of these little floating saunas all along the harbour. It's recommended to book in advance as there's a limited number of spots per session, and they're as popular with locals (who often have monthly membership passes and go daily before work!) as they are with tourists.
We booked at the Oslo Badstuforening for a 90-minute sauna session - a quick Google search of Oslo's floating saunas will bring up lots of options to suit your location, taste and budget.
Bring your swimsuit, a towel and a water bottle. Fresh water was available for us to refill our bottles, and we could use a hot fresh water shower to rinse off the salt after our session. There were also lockers and you can bring your own padlock to secure your belongings while you're using the sauna.
