Medley

Well, I have taken the first steps towards setting up an overview of all sauna's / wellness facilities my partner and I have visited in Europe over the past years. 

Quite easily by adding a figure denoting how the experience was valued of past postings. 

But there are still many facilities left to review, which due to reasons that these places are not geothermal related, have not been merited with a posting. 

So I'll start off with a review medley. 

The first medley will concern the Flemish part of Belgium. 

This part of Belgium has a peculiar mix of sauna set ups. Currently in vogue are three types of wellness setups: private small rental sauna's, smaller sauna's in (often in need of renovation) and blinking new spa walhalla's.

I have never had any experience with renting a private sauna; seems to defeat the purpose: public wellness places which due to their bigger size simply offer more facilities to enjoy as well as additional catering.

Rituals

So concerning slightly older (the majority) public and / or smaller sauna's. Starting with the province of East Flanders:

The Asanti wellness complex is located in Destelbergen (east of Gent). It's a mid-size public facility (3-4 sauna's, indoor/outdoor swimming pool, hammam, smaller jacuzzi); the overall set up is not too bad. As I remember the Aufguss ritual was also pretty good. Reasonable size outside pool. And catering was quite good. 

Somehow I had the impression that quite a bit of concrete has been used, which is not helped by the outside area also being able to hear the nearby motorway.

For comparison purposes I'll include more objective reviews (where available). Note all references to reviews are from the beginning of November 2022.

Concerning Asanti with no specifics to add: Google: 4.3 stars (239 reviews), Facebook: 4.4 stars (139 reviews) and Tripadvisor: 3.5 stars (28 reviews).

Figure to be given for my 2019 visit: 7

Not far away from Destelbergen, in Nazareth (south of Gent) the Saunate sauna is behind a tall wall on an industrial park. Roughly same size and facilities as above (5-6 sauna's, hammam, indoor heated pool (outdoor not), a jacuzzi).

Again the Aufguss was very good, but the set up and way the sauna's and baths are set up, renders this to a six (point five?); also visited 2019.

Other reviewers highlight the slightly tired facilities (I have to agree), in general the reviews of Saunate vary wildly; so maybe expectations are different? Google: 4.2 (232 reviews), no Facebook reviews and Tripadvisor: 3.5 stars (75 reviews).

Projected

Heading to West-Flanders.

A bit off the scale, the larger Thermen R is a big=beautiful sauna outside of the city of Roeselare. Six sauna's, large indoor / outdoor pool, two hammams (and assorted). The changing rooms were cramped (and seemed a bit weary), hopefully this has improved since (2018). The indoor sauna facilities themselves were quite special: a sauna overlooking a pool with beyond on the wall nature documentaries which were being projected. Good catering, large Himalayan salt grotto. I'd give it an 8.

Reviews Google: 4.1 (470 reviews), Facebook: 4.5 stars (318 reviews) and Tripadvisor: 4 stars (510 reviews).

A more special loaction, a former grainery named Sileau, near the small village of Snaaskerke, itself part of the local Gistel community (just behind the Flemish coast). The canal lined grainery has been neatly restored with industrial touches remaining. A sauna and hammam inside and two sauna's outside. A cooler indoor pool. No catering beyond a drink or two.

Reviews: Google: 4.7 stars (93 reviews) and Tripadvisor: 4.5 stars (19 reviews).

My own figure: 7.5, visited 2020 (Corona affected).

engelenlaagwater

Good way to begin your sunday 🧘‍♀️🔥🛁

#sileau #sauna #hottub #relaxtime #couplegoals #enjoyyoursunday #wellness

Slightly less obvious in this medley, I've included the wellness facilities of Le Plat Pays, an excellent and peaceful B&B just beyond the outskirts of Brugge.

In essence, the wellness section comprises just a small barrel type sauna, a barrel type hot tub. With the possibility of natural swimming pool usuage in the more public section. As it's dark (when you use the wellness), the latter should be no problem for other (non-)users.

Not really special, based on our most recent (summer 2022) visit a 7. You really need to be able add firewood for both, but not too much ... Other reviews (with reference to the wellness use) are not common; but otherwise the review figures for a stay border on perfect!

So there it is: the first review medley. Not too exciting I know, but let's just see how this evolves.

What stands out are the lack of wellness and nature: it's mostly all nondescript industrial surroundings, the backround even in some circumstances walled out. Non of above even try to emulate any natural specifics.

Otherwise public reviewers tend to give high markings for a wellness visit, clearly they meet or are better than expectations. 

Predicament

A dilemma: 

What to do when soaking in natural waters is your hobby and you are located far-far away from such opportunities? 

Or what to do when you've been made curious by other natural water and/or heat based therapies?

Or you notice that the effects of soaking are to be equated by other more obvious choices?

Then sometimes you'll opt for what might be perceived as second choice, but actually is an all new experience, which need not to be thermal related. 

So that's how we come to slowly become fans of public sauna's.

With this in mind the Hôtel Le Moulin De La Wantzenau, located just north of Strasbourg (Alsace region) was another of these places we actively sought out, as a case of French sauna bathing experience. And as being a smaller resort, the intended stay is perceived to be much better (usually) than the various hotel chains. And as it's located close to the French border and Strasbourg is the Ville Européenne one could expect a more liberal sauna culture, akin to France's north/northwestern neighbours. Because, if you haven't noticed yet, we are more fans of liberal/socialable bathing opportunities.

The hotel itself is highly acclaimed: an old watermill which has been tastefully reconstructed with considerable attention to details. For instance, in the hallway are small windows in the floor through which you can view the rushing water which passes under the building.

It's a bit out of the local town, so if you prefer to stay in, you'll be dependent on what's on offer. That said, a vegetarian curry was cooked up, despite France having a (well-earned alas) reputation for lack of vegetarian options. Overall customer service was excellent.

Lost

Then over to the wellness on offer, as that what's interests you (and us) the most.

From their own website (in English):

'Come and enjoy a true voyage of discovery in the heart of the country!

Our spa and relaxation area, built from natural materials, provides a delightful break and unique experience with its forest, nature and river themed areas..

You can relax in a 300 m² intimate, exclusive setting, with a sauna decked with wooden loungers, and which opens onto the rural landscape, a 400 year-old millstone that is now the seat in the hammam, an outside terrace spa built from natural wood, opening directly onto the gardens and surrounding natural landscape'.

So what did it entail? 

A single hallway with various amenities which connect through. 

First off changing room / bathroom (nothing special), then on your right: a relax space dominated by straw (photo below) and the hamman. 

coco_spo

Échappée du vendredi fin d'après-midi 🤗

Spa, dîner 🥂

Magnifique endroit et de qualité

#lemoulindelawantzenau#alsacemylove

While on the left are seperate showers and the sauna. In the corner a larger ensuite relax space. And outside an in-built large jacuzzi on a wooden veranda opening up to a garden.

Permission

How was the experience?

Well, I'd like to say that the efforts put into details ensured this was an excellent experience, but somewhere the details seem to have conquered the customer experience.

Let's start with clothing expectations. I had expected clothesfree was the way to go; there's nothing to contradict this. Their own website notes (in original English):

'Access to the SPA, from 16 years of age / bathing trunks not permitted'.

The German original refers to 

'Bermuda und Badeshorts nicht zugelassen'.

The photo's from the website could also  be intepreted as such, there are no clothes in sight (but many towel encapsuled models). 

While as we are in France one could experience a clothed situation, it seems what can be expected here. 

As we were just 4 kms from the border of liberal thinking Germany and it was not a very open-to-public experience (the public from outside the hotel were required to pay €49 for three hours; that might explain the lack of shares from outside experiences) one could presume the impression made was indeed correct.

But it was very clothes de rigueur.

Other points:

• Shower water pressure was poor.
• The sauna could be hotter and it was noticable that the glass wall leaked heat big time as well as the door failing to close correctly.
• The hamman was not very on temp.
• The outside jacuzzi could be warmer.
• Early closing time, even for hotel guests.

Other users (just a few) were not helping the experience either; loud and very inconsiderate: one person entered the sauna, dumped a bucket of water on the heater and then left two minutes later! Is this the French way of sauna?

Notes

Overall reviews gave this a 4.6 stars (from 300+ reviewers) on google, though not much on the wellness experience.

Booking.com gives the hotel an 8.7 (from 250+ reviews), other than comments on the spa exterior, no sauna user.

Tripadvisor notes 4.5 stars from just below 200 reviews, again only the brief remark on the spa, none recent on the wellness experience.

Their own Facebook page rates it as 4.7 stars from 230 plus reviews.

What sticks out is that virtually all are French guests / visitors with little real experiences of the wellness itself, most probably hotel guests, easily impressed even. Question mark. No sauna fans? But very liberal in dealing out compliments.

So what did we learn?

The French sauna experience is (based on what we experienced here) nowhere near to the more pleasant experiences of said neighbours above. Is this perception solely due to the abundance of clothes? 

Details do not always ensure that the experience is likewise; maybe I'm just too practical to be taken in by all schmuck.

florencetihaywalter, fully clothed in the designer sauna space:

A ce week-end pour nous dans ce cadre plus que parfait, merci mon amour ❤️

@lemoulindelawantzenau

#weekend #spa #detente #amour

So, I don't know how this sauna review section will pan out, so let's see if we can compare the experiences by adding a number to the visit. Six out of ten here?Based on impresssions near-perfect, but the practical experience itself was a let-down; I probably wouldn't adivise anyone to visit this hotel based solely on it's wellness spa. So a six seems fair.