A new social wellness experience is coming to Northern Virginia, thanks to local couple Steven Hu and Kira Self. The pair are the founders of Arlington Sauna, which plans to bring relaxing Finnish saunas to the Arlington area.
Saunas have historically been an important part of Scandinavian wellness culture; they’re known for their relaxation benefits as well as for being friendly, social spaces. And the phenomenon has been growing in the U.S. in recent years. One study from TechNavio forecasts that the U.S. sauna market will grow by $151 million from 2025 to 2029.
“Finnish saunas are kind of an amazing experience. And if you think about it, big picture, they’re really at that center of this bigger wellness and social movement happening in the U.S.,” Hu says. “Imagine in less than 15 minutes, getting that physical feeling of being warmed up, and also feeling that nice steam and mist enveloping the body, and kind of really wiping away the stress mentally.”
Hu’s website, Super Saunners, helps people find saunas in their area. But in DC and Arlington, he says he saw limited sauna opportunities. “I didn’t really see an option that blended both a communal social space to be able to really hang out or have a conversation with family and friends, along with a world-class Finnish-design sauna.”
Coming Soon to Arlington
Hu and Self launched Arlington Sauna with the mission to bring relaxing, social sauna facilities to the Falls Church or downtown Arlington corridor. Hu says he envisions this as an indoor-outdoor retail space with two to three Finnish-style saunas, cold plunges for contrast therapy, and a space where they can host classes like yoga, Pilates, or sound bathing.
“Think indoor-outdoor third space for the community that brings that social wellness activity together with a set of Finnish-style saunas where an individual — either through a guided or do-it-yourself experience — can get into that warm room, throw water on a ton of sauna rocks or sauna stones, and really generate that steam,” he says.
The plan is to offer memberships for “serious sauna bathers” for around $100 to $125 per month per person or $200 for families. They will also offer day passes for about $45 per session or $120 for four sessions. Plans for this facility are still in early stages and could take several months.
But residents could get their first taste of Arlington Sauna in the first half of 2026. In addition to the planned permanent space, the founders are working on a seasonal pop-up sauna village to bring mobile, wood-powered saunas to the area in a temporary capacity. They’re working in coordination with “an Arlington institution” and Arlington County to finalize a location and plans for that concept. More information is coming soon.
In the meantime, anyone interested can join a waitlist and fill out a feedback form. The community has already shown support for the concept — the Arlington Sauna waitlist currently has more than 1,500 names.
Feature image of Steven Hu and Kira Self with their children, courtesy Arlington Sauna
