Top Wellness Center: Dahn Germany

Sauna Village and Swimming Pools in Dahn (Palatinate)

Aug 13, 2008

The Scandinavian-inspired sauna in Dahn, Southwest Germany, is a relaxation oasis in a natural setting. The sauna village is one of the most attractive spas of its kind.

Dahn is a small town of 5000 between Karlsruhe and Pirmasens, just North of the French Alsace. Dahn's sauna village (Saunadorf) draws sauna enthusiasts from all over Germany and nearby France. When the impressive indoor-outdoor pool Felsland Badeparadies - Red Rock Country Swim Paradise - was built in the 1980s, it had a classic indoor sauna with several beautifully tiled steam baths and a shower imitating a heavy downpour in a rain forest. The sauna became so popular that it was expanded into an impressive outdoor sauna and relaxation landscape.

Classic Sauna Experience

One of the main outdoor attractions is a Finnish blockhouse sauna built of ancient silver-pines, the so called kelo-wood. The pines dry out while standing, and the wood from those snags hardly ever contracts or warps. The sauna house offers the traditional pouring of water onto hot stones - "Aufguss" in German and "Loyly" in Finnish, meaning 'scorching breath'.

After guests gather in the sauna, the saunamaster enters and pours water enhanced with essential oils onto a crystal stone oven. The steam evaporates and the humidity instantly increases. The Saunameister uses a towel to circulate hot air through the room and the sauna-bathers experience an additional heat stimulation on their skin. An Aufguss usually lasts up to 10 minutes and the air temperature reaches up to 90 °C. Cold showers and exposure to fresh air after the sauna are a must. A special treat is the honey rub followed by a salt cleaning under cold water. The procedure leaves the skin remarkably clean and very soft.

Biothermium: Rest on Warmed Granite Blocks

The fact that subterranean sweatlodges have been known to exist 5000 years ago, inspired Jürgen Keller, a local engineer, to built a contemporary equivalent. The sauna village's newest attraction is its biothermium, a subterranean circular sweatlodge lined with adobe tiles. Guests spread their towels on huge granite plates which are heated from underneath to 45°C . The body is warmed in the most gentle and relaxing way. Differently from the steam sauna the air is not heated at all, while the body absorbs heat from the natural stone. After resting and heating up, a cold rinse is appropriate. This routine strengthens the immune system and decreases stress. The enclosure allows natural air circulation and the humidity in the biothermium is about 30-50 % .

Ultimate Relaxation with Ayurvedic Massage

During all four seasons guests lounge on lawnchairs around a freshwater pool, meander from the Finnish blockhouse sauna into the waterhouse, enjoy several balconies and a cafe. Heavenly quiet is the dream room, where people rest in huge hammocks swinging ever so lightly with a nudge of the foot.

The outside area is nicely landscaped with wooden sculptures and huge pieces of red sandstone, found so abundantly around Dahn. The bright green lawn and the dark green pine trees create a relaxing ambiance for the eye. Dahn's bizarre rock formations surround the idyllic sauna garden and allow the feeling of a remote oasis.

A team of trained massage therapists offer various Ayurvedic treatments to complete the spa experience. Facials, foot and arm massages as well as whole body oil treatments are available. A popular package including a day pass to the facilities, a 60-minute whole body massage (Abhyanga) and light refreshments amounts to Euro 70,00.

Sauna Culture in Germany

It is customary for Germans to visit the sauna naked. Women, men and children use all the rooms together and seem very comfortable. People don't talk much to each other, unless they come with friends and family. The sauna is clearly a space for quiet time and relaxation. Guests do carry towels to cover the wood or the stone before sitting down. While visiting the bar and the restaurant sauna guests put on a robe.

Pool and Sauna -Felsland Badeparadies (German only)- are open every day except for 12/24,12/25, 12/26, 12/31 and 1/1. A day pass for the sauna costs Euro 13,00.

The copyright of the article Top Wellness Center: Dahn Germany in Germany Travel is owned by Christine Welter. Permission to republish Top Wellness Center: Dahn Germany in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.