America’s Largest Sauna Festival Is Taking Over The Williamsburg Waterfront—17 Saunas, Free Public Programming, 3 Weeks

Grab your bathing suit and cancel your winter hibernation plans: NYC’s first-ever sauna festival is about to steam up the Williamsburg waterfront–and it’s arriving right on cue after weeks of brutally cold weather. From Thursday, February 12 through Sunday, March 1, Culture of Bathe-ing is transforming Domino Park into a glowing, open-air sauna village. We’re talking 17 architecturally distinct saunas, world-champion steam masters, and immersive art–all set against that iconic Manhattan skyline. Whether you’re a sauna-every-day devotee or just someone trying to survive the NYC wind chill, this three-week pop-up is basically a shared winter playground for the sweat obsessed. The Largest Sauna Village Ever Staged in the U.S. ------------------------------------------------- This isn’t just a couple of wooden boxes in a park. Led by Robert Hammond (the visionary co-founder of the High Line), this “unprecedented bathing experiment” treats heat as a cultural movement rather than just a spa day. Seventeen architecturally distinct saunas will line the East River waterfront, each hosting guided sessions led by internationally renowned Aufguss World Champions alongside practitioners from NYC favorites including Bathhouse, Othership, and the historic Russian & Turkish Baths. Over three weeks, more than 1,000 guided experiences will run–meaning you can sweat, reset, and repeat as many times as your heart desires. Beyond the sweat: art, sound, & performance ------------------------------------------- The festival spills far beyond the saunas. Programming curated with Pioneer Works transforms the park into a living cultural venue filled with live performance, sound, ritual, and immersive art under the guise *Hot Bodies*. The goal isn’t just relaxation–it’s connection. Heat becomes both medium and metaphor, creating a space designed to heighten awareness, presence, and shared experience. Hammond said: > Bathing is at the start of a cultural wave, think yoga in the ’90s or coffee in the ’80s. Bathhouses are going to be in every neighborhood. We want to make sure the cultural part of bathing isn’t washed away by the wellness trends. Why bathing culture is booming ------------------------------ As communal bathing gains momentum across American cities, Culture of Bathe-ing positions New York at the forefront of a global movement that blends ancient ritual with modern urban life. Rather than framing sauna as a luxury escape, the festival treats it as civic infrastructure –a collective space for restoration, conversation, and cultural exchange. “For centuries, bathing functioned as civic infrastructure,” said Therme Group founder Robert C. Hanea. “Today we’re rediscovering its capacity to support...wellbeing at scale.” In other words: this isn’t just about warming up. It’s about building community–one sweat session at a time. Know before you go ------------------ * 🧖‍♀️ What: NYC’s first large-scale immersive sauna festival * 🗓️ When: Thursday, February 12 – Sunday, March 1 * 📍 Where: Domino Park, 1 Domino Square, Williamsburg * 💲 Tickets : $60-$125 (with free public programming & complimentary ticket releases) * 👙 Bring: swimsuit–towels, robes, lockers, and changing rooms available onsite Source: https://secretnyc.co/americas-largest-sauna-festival-domino-park-williamsburg-culture-of-batheing/