An area couple are preparing an exciting new chapter for the DMV wellness scene. Steven Hu and his wife Kira are readying Sauna Jungle, an establishment that will bring the heat to Bluemont with its focus on Finnish style saunas.
Sauna Jungle has permits filed for its upcoming 5210 Wilson Boulevard location. Owner Steven Hu kindly spoke to What Now DC about this exciting new endeavor, describing a unique and memorable environment locals are certain to respond to. “The Arlington Sauna project (what we named it when we first started out) is coming to life, as we’ve have formally organized as Sauna Jungle, with the vision to design the space as an indoor plant jungle, introducing forest bathing concepts as a wellness environment, where the hot sauna is at the center of it.”
Hu adds that Sauna Jungle will distinguish itself through its emphasis on Finnish saunas. He explains: “ It adds a different retail experience to the retail contrast therapy studios that have emerged for personal care, where we hope to differentiate is through the Finnish saunas instead of red light therapy experiences. We encourage everyone to try contrast therapy anywhere they can and support small businesses!”
Hu and Kira are taking great care to ensure the facility provides a superior sauna experience. He states: “We will have two large saunas available for customers to book retail appointment for personal care, that will be at 175F and another one at 185-200F. It’ll purposefully be built by a builder we are flying in from Minneapolis (the sauna capital of the US), and they have deep experience building Finnish saunas all over.”
Sauna Jungle clearly has the heat covered, but what about the cold? Hu assures future visitors that they needn’t worry. “We will also have three commercial cold plunges built that will be cooled to 40F, 50F and 60F, along with fun bucket showers and rinse stations like you’d see at the beach for other cool down methods.”
Great care has been put into every aspect of Sauna Jungle-including its location. Hu explains: “We also purposefully found this place since it is right off the Bluemont bike trail as many of our customers have expressed interest in walking, biking or running the trail to get to their appointments and avoid the car to get a reset with fresh air and exercise.”
A definitive opening timeline isn’t presently available, however Sauna Jungle will hopefully be ready for customers by late this year or early next. The concept is certain to be a valuable new addition to the area wellness scene, particularly given the proprietors’ enthusiasm. Hu states: “It’s definitely a new concept, but Kira and I are excited to make progress and share this new cultural and wellness experience with everyone.”
