Even more so than in Denmark and Norway, the Swedes go in heavily for “sauna”-that combination of steam baths, showers, massages, and frigid immersions that’s supposed to add ten years to your life. They claim, in Sweden, that two hours of sauna equal eight hours of sleep-and that is, in fact, how a roistering Swede-who’s been up until 4 a.m.-revives himself to begin work the next day. I tried it on our last trip to Stockholm-and everything they say is true!
There’s a steam bath in Stockholm for every purse. The most “luxurious” of the lot is the Sturebadet on Sturegatan, right at the Stureplan (the Sture Square), where a low payment will get you everything they have to offer, other than a sun-lamp treatment and a massage.
Actually, however, you can go in for a quick swim and one steam room -even at the Sturebadet. Slightly less expensive are the Centralbadet, at Drottninggatan 88 (near the skyscrapers), and the Forsgren ska Badet, in the Civic House at Medborgarplatsen (take the Tbahn to Medborgarplatsen.The least expensive bath-and the spot where the younger set gathers-is the Akeshovsbadet, at Bergslagsvagen 60, features an enormous swimming pool (indoors) and beautiful terraces for summer sunbathing, a cheap cafeteria, and charges few dollars for a full dose of sauna. To get there, simply take the subway (‘T-bahn“) to the Akeshov station, and you‘ll find the baths right outside.
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