Saunas
of the World
Three civilisations. Three distinct heat philosophies. Unified at Maji as the foundational phase of the thermal journey — each one a different pathway to the same destination: deep physiological transformation through heat.
Heat has been used to heal
across every culture that survived the cold.
From the birch forests of Karelia to the marble chambers of Constantinople, cultures across the globe independently discovered the same truth: concentrated heat applied with intention produces physiological states unavailable through any other means. Maji preserves three of these traditions with fidelity — not as a museum, but as a functioning recovery arsenal, each delivering distinct benefits that build toward the full thermal circuit.
Dry heat.
Deep stillness.
The Finnish sauna is the world's oldest and most extensively studied heat therapy — a tradition practised continuously for over 2,000 years and central to Finnish cultural identity. Maji's Finnish sauna operates at 80–100°C with low ambient humidity (10–20%), producing the characteristic dry, enveloping heat that penetrates muscle and connective tissue with a directness that other heat forms cannot replicate.
At these temperatures, the body's sympathetic nervous system — the seat of the stress response — begins to yield. Heart rate elevates to a cardiovascular training equivalent, heat shock proteins are expressed in force, and the deep musculature releases tension accumulated over weeks of physical or emotional load. Regular Finnish sauna use is clinically associated with a 40% reduction in all-cause cardiovascular mortality in long-term cohort studies.
Temperature
80 – 100°C
Humidity
10 – 20%
Session
10 – 20 min
Humid ritual.
Mastered steam.
The Russian Banya is not merely a steam room — it is a ceremony. Operating at 60–80°C with humidity elevated to 40–70% through controlled steam generation, the Banya creates a saturated heat environment that envelops the body and opens the respiratory system simultaneously. Maji's resident Steammaster — a trained specialist in the traditional Russian parilka practice — presides over every Banya session.
The signature ritual of the Russian Banya is the venik massage: fresh birch, oak, or eucalyptus branches are used to beat, sweep, and press against the skin in rhythmic strokes. This traditional technique simultaneously exfoliates dead skin cells, stimulates peripheral blood flow, activates the lymphatic system, and delivers the essential oils of the branches directly into opened pores. The aromatic steam generated by soaking veniks in hot water deepens the respiratory benefit of the session, clearing bronchial pathways and calming the central nervous system.
Temperature
60 – 80°C
Humidity
40 – 70%
Ritual
Venik
Stone, steam,
and the bones warm slowly.
The Hammam — or Turkish bath — is among the world's most enduring wellness institutions. The Ottoman tradition refined the concept of communal bathing into a sophisticated therapeutic ritual centred on the slow, deep warming of the body through heated stone and steam-saturated air. Maji's Hammam recreates this environment with marble and tile surfaces that absorb and radiate heat evenly, delivering temperatures of 40–55°C across the whole surface of the chamber.
Where the Finnish sauna delivers rapid, intense heat, the Hammam works through slow infiltration. The low-to-moderate temperature and near-100% humidity allow guests to remain in the chamber for extended periods, allowing heat to penetrate from the skin surface through the fascial layers and into the deep connective tissue and skeletal structure — a process of thermal warming unavailable at higher temperature exposures where the body begins actively resisting thermal load. The Hammam session culminates in a full-body kese (exfoliating mitt) scrub, removing the accumulated dead skin cells loosened by the steam.
Temperature
40 – 55°C
Humidity
~100%
Ritual
Kese scrub
Heat opens the circuit.
Cold and hydrogen complete it.
Any of the three sauna traditions at Maji serves as the first and most essential phase of the thermal journey. The physiological state created by heat — elevated core temperature, open vascular channels, primed HSP expression — is the ideal foundation for the contrast pool cold plunge and the subsequent hydrogen bath restoration.
Every great recovery begins
with deliberate heat.
Reserve your preferred sauna tradition at Maji — Finnish, Banya, or Hammam — and let our team guide you through the full thermal circuit.
Reserve a Session