SaunaScape

A bowl of Korean noodles similar to the one I had for dinner during my night at King Sauna. Image via Wikipedia

Korean-style public saunas, also known as  jjimjjilbangs, have become the mega-stores of public bathing. New construction is taking place the world over, as Koreans emigrate from their homeland and want to take a piece of home with them. Each new jjimjilbang is built larger than the last.

Several companies have established themselves as name brands in the budding Korean bath house industry. One of the leaders is the King Sauna brand. At the moment, they have jjimjjilbang locations outside New York, Dallas and Chicago.  All are large facilities. Each one has a gender-segregated bathing area, where clothing is forbidden. When you have washed yourself clean in showers, rested in the hot tubs, and enjoyed the steam room and sauna, you can don a simple, unflattering uniform and enter the co-ed facility. In the co-ed area you can enjoy traditional Korean sauna domes built from rocks, minerals, even gold; each gives a unique benefit. Among the saunas is a Korean restaurant and several different styles of comfortable chairs. All three are open 24 hours.

So, after a marathon business trip a few weeks ago put me at Newark airport at 5pm on a weeknight with a morning appointment in Massachusetts. There was bad weather in New York. 1010 WINS had little time for other news because the traffic was so snarled, I headed the short distance up the New Jersey Turnpike to the Pallisades Park and King Sauna to relax while I waited out the rush hour.

After spending the first hour soaking and steaming away the stresses of the trip so far in the naked area, I grabbed a uniform and headed down to one of the TV rooms to catch a traffic report. The chairs in there are huge overstuffed recliners. I settled in, listening to whatever celebrity gossip was the breathless headline of the day, and leaned back in the chair.

I woke up, and the news wasn’t on anymore. It was now a baseball game — In the bottom of the 7th inning. I found a clock. It was nearly 9. I napped for about 3 hours! It was at that point that I realized just how worn out I was from my trip so far, and I shouldn’t be driving anywhere that night.

I walked over to the restaurant and ordered a bowl of Korean noodles with a variety of toppings. After that I cooked myself in the Bulhanjeungmok for a little while. The Bulhanjeungmok is a wood-heated dome sauna in the style of the traditional Korean charcoal kiln. Outside the entrance, they show the overnight preparations of the room, and when the fire goes out around 6am, they use it to bake eggs. Signs caution visitors not to wear anything except for the cotton uniform inside. Right outside the door is a basket of heavy burlap blankets. The norm seemed to be to grab two and duck inside the small door.

I grabbed my two blankets and ducked through the door. It is the hottest sauna I have ever been inside. The sauna was lit by a single bulb, recessed deep in one of the walls. Hanging from another wall was an oven thermometer. I checked it out, and in the dim light and the buckets of sweat already pouring down my face, I could only tell the needle was somewhere between 400-450°F (205-230°C). Wow.

I took one of my blankets, and folded it and laid it down on the floor. I then knelt down on it like many of the others were doing. I laid the second blanket beside me instead of draping it over my head like others were doing. Most of the others in the Bulhanjeungmok were middle-aged Korean women in what appeared to be a meditative trance. I managed to stay in for about 10 minutes. Most of the women who were in there when I came in were still there when I left.

Right across the room from the Bulhanjeungmok is the ice sauna, which is basically a walk-in freezer. I sat in there until I stopped sweating. Tried out a few more of the lower temperature dome saunas, leafed through a paper, and cooked myself one more time in the Bulhanjeungmok. By then it was about 11pm. I went back to the men’s area, discarded my sweaty uniform in the laundry bins, rinsed off in the shower, soaked in the cold tub for a few more minutes, brushed my teeth with a complimentary toothbrush, donned a fresh uniform and found another recliner to spend the night.

I had a reasonably restful night there (but I can have a reasonably restful night on an airplane, in coach). I woke up once around 2am and took a walk to see what was going on. There was a large number of people who also spent the night. There was an equal mix of men and women. Most were of Korean descent and in their 40′s to 60′s. Even the men’s bath was still a hive of activity. And for those of you who hear bath house and think of something seedy, there was absolutely nothing untoward going on there.

At 4:30am my phone alarm went off and I headed up to the men’s bath again, just as the cleaning crew was finishing their nightly scrub of the place. I headed first for the sauna, then drenched myself in the icy shower right outside, then took a round in the steam room. After that I headed for one of the shower stalls, showered off, shaved with a complimentary razor, used their ample supply of complimentary toiletries to freshen up, and headed downstairs to pay my bill: $48.00. Not bad for a pretty restful night’s sleep, several hours of sauna, dinner, overnight parking and toiletries for the morning. To get that price, you need to ask the parking attendant for a coupon when you arrive, but now you know.

I grabbed a cup of coffee at a nearby gas station, and was across the George Washington Bridge by 5:30, heading up I95 into the rising sun.

If I got stuck in the area again, I would definitely spend the night here again. For the money and relaxation, it can’t be beat. If course, if I planned better, I would have found a hotel with a sauna along my route.

Have you ever spent the night in a Korean public sauna? Let us know about your experiences in the comments.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="300" caption="A bowl of Korean noodles similar to the one I had for dinner during my night at King Sauna. Image via Wikipedia"][/caption] Korean-style public saunas, also known as  jjimjjilbangs, have become the mega-stores of public bathing. New construction is taking place the world over, as Koreans emigrate from their homeland and want to take a piece of home with them. Each new jjimjilbang is built larger than the last. Several companies have established themselves as name brands in the budding Korean bath house industry. One of the leaders is the King Sauna brand. At the moment, they have jjimjjilbang locations outside New York, Dallas and Chicago.  All are large facilities. Each one has a gender-segregated bathing area, where clothing is forbidden. When you have washed yourself clean in showers, rested in the hot tubs, and enjoyed the steam room and sauna, you can don a simple, unflattering uniform and enter the co-ed facility. In the co-ed area you can enjoy traditional Korean sauna domes built from rocks, minerals, even gold; each gives a unique benefit. Among the saunas is a Korean restaurant and several different styles of comfortable chairs. All three are open 24 hours. So, after a marathon business trip a few weeks ago put me at Newark airport at 5pm on a weeknight with a morning appointment in Massachusetts. There was bad weather in New York. 1010 WINS had little time for other news because the traffic was so snarled, I headed the short distance up the New Jersey Turnpike to the Pallisades Park and King Sauna to relax while I waited out the rush hour. After spending the first hour soaking and steaming away the stresses of the trip so far in the naked area, I grabbed a uniform and headed down to one of the TV rooms to catch a traffic report. The chairs in there are huge overstuffed recliners. I settled in, listening to whatever celebrity gossip was the breathless headline of the day, and leaned back in the chair. I woke up, and the news wasn't on anymore. It was now a baseball game — In the bottom of the 7th inning. I found a clock. It was nearly 9. I napped for about 3 hours! It was at that point that I realized just how worn out I was from my trip so far, and I shouldn't be driving anywhere that night. I walked over to the restaurant and ordered a bowl of Korean noodles with a variety of toppings. After that I cooked myself in the Bulhanjeungmok for a little while. The Bulhanjeungmok is a wood-heated dome sauna in the style of the traditional Korean charcoal kiln. Outside the entrance, they show the overnight preparations of the room, and when the fire goes out around 6am, they use it to bake eggs. Signs caution visitors not to wear anything except for the cotton uniform inside. Right outside the door is a basket of heavy burlap blankets. The norm seemed to be to grab two and duck inside the small door. I grabbed my two blankets and ducked through the door. It is the hottest sauna I have ever been inside. The sauna was lit by a single bulb, recessed deep in one of the walls. Hanging from another wall was an oven thermometer. I checked it out, and in the dim light and the buckets of sweat already pouring down my face, I could only tell the needle was somewhere between 400-450°F (205-230°C). Wow. I took one of my blankets, and folded it and laid it down on the floor. I then knelt down on it like many of the others were doing. I laid the second blanket beside me instead of draping it over my head like others were doing. Most of the others in the Bulhanjeungmok were middle-aged Korean women in what appeared to be a meditative trance. I managed to stay in for about 10 minutes. Most of the women who were in there when I came in were still there when I left. Right across the room from the Bulhanjeungmok is the ice sauna, which is basically a walk-in freezer. I sat in there until I stopped sweating. Tried out a few more of the lower temperature dome saunas, leafed through a paper, and cooked myself one more time in the Bulhanjeungmok. By then it was about 11pm. I went back to the men's area, discarded my sweaty uniform in the laundry bins, rinsed off in the shower, soaked in the cold tub for a few more minutes, brushed my teeth with a complimentary toothbrush, donned a fresh uniform and found another recliner to spend the night. I had a reasonably restful night there (but I can have a reasonably restful night on an airplane, in coach). I woke up once around 2am and took a walk to see what was going on. There was a large number of people who also spent the night. There was an equal mix of men and women. Most were of Korean descent and in their 40's to 60's. Even the men's bath was still a hive of activity. And for those of you who hear bath house and think of something seedy, there was absolutely nothing untoward going on there. At 4:30am my phone alarm went off and I headed up to the men's bath again, just as the cleaning crew was finishing their nightly scrub of the place. I headed first for the sauna, then drenched myself in the icy shower right outside, then took a round in the steam room. After that I headed for one of the shower stalls, showered off, shaved with a complimentary razor, used their ample supply of complimentary toiletries to freshen up, and headed downstairs to pay my bill: $48.00. Not bad for a pretty restful night's sleep, several hours of sauna, dinner, overnight parking and toiletries for the morning. To get that price, you need to ask the parking attendant for a coupon when you arrive, but now you know. I grabbed a cup of coffee at a nearby gas station, and was across the George Washington Bridge by 5:30, heading up I95 into the rising sun. If I got stuck in the area again, I would definitely spend the night here again. For the money and relaxation, it can't be beat. If course, if I planned better, I would have found a hotel with a sauna along my route. Have you ever spent the night in a Korean public sauna? Let us know about your experiences in the comments.

Approximately 300 residents of South Korea’s Yeonpyeong Island displaced by the North Korean shelling last week have been housed temporarily at In Spa World, a large Korean-style sauna and water park in the town of Incheon.

According to the Korea Herald:

A massive spa facility in Incheon, In Spa World, has closed up shop to the general public and opened its services to house the uprooted residents and act as a relocation center.

Inside the spa, officials from Incheon City, Ongjin County and the Red Cross have set up a temporary cafeteria to serve food, and Gachon University Gil Hospital has set up an emergency center treating colds, headaches and other ailments.

According to Reuters, In Spa World’s owner donated the use of the facility.

The Korean Red Cross is currently accepting donations to help find permanent homes for the displaced residents.

Approximately 300 residents of South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island displaced by the North Korean shelling last week have been housed temporarily at In Spa World, a large Korean-style sauna and water park in the town of Incheon. According to the Korea Herald: A massive spa facility in Incheon, In Spa World, has closed up shop to the general public and opened its services to house the uprooted residents and act as a relocation center. Inside the spa, officials from Incheon City, Ongjin County and the Red Cross have set up a temporary cafeteria to serve food, and Gachon University Gil Hospital has set up an emergency center treating colds, headaches and other ailments. According to Reuters, In Spa World's owner donated the use of the facility. The Korean Red Cross is currently accepting donations to help find permanent homes for the displaced residents.

For those of you looking to try an authentic Korean Sauna, and if you’re based in Dallas or Chicago, you’re in luck. King Sauna has posted coupons on their website for free admission.

The Dallas coupon is good from November 30 through December 1, 2010. You can find information about the Dallas location in our database.

The Chicago (Niles) coupon is good from December 1 through December 3, 2010. You can find information about the Chicago location in our database.

If you’ve never been to a Korean sauna here, you can read our guide about what to expect.

Act fast. There’s no telling how quickly these will be taken down.

via Click2Money.com

For those of you looking to try an authentic Korean Sauna, and if you're based in Dallas or Chicago, you're in luck. King Sauna has posted coupons on their website for free admission. The Dallas coupon is good from November 30 through December 1, 2010. You can find information about the Dallas location in our database. The Chicago (Niles) coupon is good from December 1 through December 3, 2010. You can find information about the Chicago location in our database. If you've never been to a Korean sauna here, you can read our guide about what to expect. Act fast. There's no telling how quickly these will be taken down. via Click2Money.com

We learned this morning about the Seoul Metro Tour app by NemusTech that’s available in Apple’s app store for the iPhone/iPod Touch and the iPad.

The app features a map of the Seoul subway system. A button at the bottom allows you to toggle between regular points of interest and the JimJilBangs along the rail line. Clicking on one brings up detailed information about the  spa, including hours, price, phone number and website links, as well as instructions about how to exist the subway to get there.

The app is US$0.99. A lite version is also available.

[via Chris in South Korea]

We learned this morning about the Seoul Metro Tour app by NemusTech that's available in Apple's app store for the iPhone/iPod Touch and the iPad. The app features a map of the Seoul subway system. A button at the bottom allows you to toggle between regular points of interest and the JimJilBangs along the rail line. Clicking on one brings up detailed information about the  spa, including hours, price, phone number and website links, as well as instructions about how to exist the subway to get there. The app is US$0.99. A lite version is also available. [via Chris in South Korea]

For those of you seeking out a unique sauna experience, recently the New York Times profiled the resurgence of an old trend in Korea: Using a cooling charcoal kiln as a sauna.

To make charcoal in Korea, oak logs are placed into red clay caves, then heated for about a week to about 1400°C or 2550°F. The charcoal is ready to remove when the caves reach about 200°C or 390°F. That’s when the fun begins. The workers at the charcoal factory unload the kiln, sweep it out, and bring in rice straw mats. Guests pay KRW 11,000 (about US$ 9) for a cotton uniform (Korean co-ed saunas are used clothed, and synthetic clothing would melt in the heat) and the privilege of spending the day in the kiln.

According to the Koreans, charcoal is a purifying agent, and is commonly used in the construction of electrically heated urban saunas, including many here in the US. (Update: Lifehacker also weighs in on the purifying power of charcoal)

We tried to find the location of some of these saunas, but so far have come up blank. If you have experienced one, and can share details about it, let us know in the comments.

[New York Times]

For those of you seeking out a unique sauna experience, recently the New York Times profiled the resurgence of an old trend in Korea: Using a cooling charcoal kiln as a sauna. To make charcoal in Korea, oak logs are placed into red clay caves, then heated for about a week to about 1400°C or 2550°F. The charcoal is ready to remove when the caves reach about 200°C or 390°F. That's when the fun begins. The workers at the charcoal factory unload the kiln, sweep it out, and bring in rice straw mats. Guests pay KRW 11,000 (about US$ 9) for a cotton uniform (Korean co-ed saunas are used clothed, and synthetic clothing would melt in the heat) and the privilege of spending the day in the kiln. According to the Koreans, charcoal is a purifying agent, and is commonly used in the construction of electrically heated urban saunas, including many here in the US. (Update: Lifehacker also weighs in on the purifying power of charcoal) We tried to find the location of some of these saunas, but so far have come up blank. If you have experienced one, and can share details about it, let us know in the comments. [New York Times]

The single-gender bathing area at Spa Castle. Soaking pools are in the foreground. Showers, sauna, steam room, and cold pools are in the background (left-right)

For those looking to experience an authentic Korean JimJilBang experience without the jet lag, if you live in the New York City area, the New York Spa Castle awaits, just over the Whitestone bridge in the College Point neighborhood of Queens.

The New York Spa Castle, formerly known as InSpaWorld, from the outside its 5-story structure looks like just another big-box store. Once you enter, you find 100,000 square feet / 9,200 m² of relaxation.

There are plenty of public transportation options to get to the Spa Castle. If you’ve driven your own car, they offer complimentary valet parking. This is a good thing, since the surrounding streets are crowded and very narrow.

Entering on the lowest level is the reception area. Here you pay your entry fee and in exchange you are given a numbered plastic bracelet that is your key and charge card: Hold up to one of the 3 lockers in the facility with a matching number and the door will pop open. Allow a cashier to swipe it and it will add the charge to your bill when you exit. There are terminals throughout the facility where you can check the balance on your card.

The front desk staff (at least on the day I visited) didn’t admit to speaking much more English than “Your money please” and “Thank you.” After I was handed my bracelet, I was pointed to the appropriate locker room: To the left for men and to the right for women.

Single-gender areas:

Just inside of the locker room is a shoe storage area. One of these small lockers is the first one your key opens. True to any Korean business, the floor changes from standard industrial tile to a wood-grained vinyl. Before stepping on the vinyl floor, you are to remove your shoes. Helpful attendants were there to chastise me and the three people behind me as we went to step on the pristine vinyl floor.

Inside of the locker room, there is a service desk selling things like scrub cloths and fresh underwear, grooming areas with all types of toiletries, lounge areas with couches, and entries to the single-gender sleeping area and bath area and stairs to the coed areas. A helpful thing to note if you are planning to enjoy the coed areas first: You must do so in a uniform. These are stored by the entrance to the bath area.

I visited the bath area first. It is to be enjoyed exclusively in the nude. Watching the other patrons, the appropriate ettiquitte, at least on the men’s side, was to strip down at you locker, and walk naked across the room. Towels, etc. are provided only at the entrance to the bath area.

Inside the baths are steam room, a dry sauna, a whole bunch of pools and banks of showers. You are expected to shower upon entering, and rinse yourself after using the sweat baths and before entering any pools.  The pools range from cold to exceedingly hot. The large pools in the back have a battery of massage jets inside.

The single-gender areas of Spa Castle also have a relaxation lounge with couches for socializing, a sleeping lounge, and an area to get the famous korean body scrub.

The Coed Areas:

Once you have bathed your fill, don one of the uniforms, and head upstairs. There is a rack of them just

Rooftop pools at Spa Castle. Pools are open year 'round.

outside of the bath area. If you’re modest, grab your uniform before you undress.

The first floor is an expansive open area. At one end are the coed dry saunas. All must be used in your uniform, and they are hot. Save these until just before you are ready to head back down to the single-gender areas, as your uniform will be drenched with sweat after visiting these. A visit to the ice room helps, but not enough.

Also on this level is the food court, salon and massage area. There are tables and chairs throughout for dining, relaxing or just socializing.

Lounge area on the mezzanine level of the Spa Castle

On your way to the second floor is the mezzanine. In it are rooms full of recliners, some with personal TVs in the armrest. While lounging here you can get a foot massage, or have an attendant bring you a cold drink at your chair. This is the life.

The second floor is the pool floor: The variety of pools here rivals most water parks, and includes massaging pools, kiddie pools, and even an aqua bar for enjoying (non-alcoholic) beverages while sitting in the worm water. Some of the pools are outside, some inside. If you plan to use these pools, bathing suits and pool towels are not provided, but are available for rent. This floor also has the third locker that your key will open for storing your personal effects while in the pool. These lockers are in single-gender locker rooms, so if you don’t want to return downstairs with your wet bathing suit under your uniform, you can change out of it here.

The top floor has a full-service Korean restaurant, and a fitness center. A day pass to the fitness center can be purchased for an additional fee. This is new since our visit, so we’re not sure how you get your shoes up here. We assume you carry them.

When you have had your fill of the spa castle, you return to the lower level, and change back into your street clothes. A counter in the locker room has every imaginable toiletry, combsm brushes, and hair dryers available for use. Heck, if you want to clip your toenails, there are trays with nail clippers attached for just this purpose (eww). When dressed, claim your shoes, and proceed to the front desk to return your bracelet. If you’ve made any charges in the Spa Castle, they’ll be due here.

The trip to Queens is a little long for us. We’re anxiously awaiting the opening of the Pocono resort they show on their website.

Here are some other New York metro saunas from our database:

 

Athena Spa NY

32 East 31 Street
New York, NY

 

Aura Wellness Spa

49 West 33rd Street
New York, NY

 

Bear and Birch

6 Paragon Way
West Freehold, NJ

 

Body by Brooklyn

275 Park Avenue
Brooklyn, NY

 

BRC Sauna & Spa / Delphi Day Spa

24-20 Broadway
Fair Lawn, NJ

 

Brooklyn Banya

602 Coney Island Ave.
Brooklyn, NY

 

Euphora Spa

3815 Northern Blvd.
Astoria, NY

 

Forest Hills Spa

5921 Calloway Street
Queens, NY

 

Fountain of Youth Health Spa

3202 Linden Place
Flushing, NY

 

Great Jones Spa

29 Great Jones Street
New York, NY

 

International Steam Baths

163 Hope Avenue
Passaic, NJ

 

Juvenex Spa

25 West 32nd Street 5th Floor
New York, NY

 

King Sauna New Jersey

321 Commercial Ave
Palisades Park, NJ

 

Madison Towers Health Spa

22 E. 38th St. 3rd Floor
New York, NY

 

Mermaid Spa

3701-3709 Mermaid Ave
Brooklyn, NY

[caption id="attachment_240" align="alignright" width="300" caption="The single-gender bathing area at Spa Castle. Soaking pools are in the foreground. Showers, sauna, steam room, and cold pools are in the background (left-right)"][/caption] For those looking to experience an authentic Korean JimJilBang experience without the jet lag, if you live in the New York City area, the New York Spa Castle awaits, just over the Whitestone bridge in the College Point neighborhood of Queens. The New York Spa Castle, formerly known as InSpaWorld, from the outside its 5-story structure looks like just another big-box store. Once you enter, you find 100,000 square feet / 9,200 m² of relaxation. There are plenty of public transportation options to get to the Spa Castle. If you've driven your own car, they offer complimentary valet parking. This is a good thing, since the surrounding streets are crowded and very narrow. Entering on the lowest level is the reception area. Here you pay your entry fee and in exchange you are given a numbered plastic bracelet that is your key and charge card: Hold up to one of the 3 lockers in the facility with a matching number and the door will pop open. Allow a cashier to swipe it and it will add the charge to your bill when you exit. There are terminals throughout the facility where you can check the balance on your card. The front desk staff (at least on the day I visited) didn't admit to speaking much more English than "Your money please" and "Thank you." After I was handed my bracelet, I was pointed to the appropriate locker room: To the left for men and to the right for women. Single-gender areas: Just inside of the locker room is a shoe storage area. One of these small lockers is the first one your key opens. True to any Korean business, the floor changes from standard industrial tile to a wood-grained vinyl. Before stepping on the vinyl floor, you are to remove your shoes. Helpful attendants were there to chastise me and the three people behind me as we went to step on the pristine vinyl floor. Inside of the locker room, there is a service desk selling things like scrub cloths and fresh underwear, grooming areas with all types of toiletries, lounge areas with couches, and entries to the single-gender sleeping area and bath area and stairs to the coed areas. A helpful thing to note if you are planning to enjoy the coed areas first: You must do so in a uniform. These are stored by the entrance to the bath area. I visited the bath area first. It is to be enjoyed exclusively in the nude. Watching the other patrons, the appropriate ettiquitte, at least on the men's side, was to strip down at you locker, and walk naked across the room. Towels, etc. are provided only at the entrance to the bath area. Inside the baths are steam room, a dry sauna, a whole bunch of pools and banks of showers. You are expected to shower upon entering, and rinse yourself after using the sweat baths and before entering any pools.  The pools range from cold to exceedingly hot. The large pools in the back have a battery of massage jets inside. The single-gender areas of Spa Castle also have a relaxation lounge with couches for socializing, a sleeping lounge, and an area to get the famous korean body scrub. The Coed Areas: Once you have bathed your fill, don one of the uniforms, and head upstairs. There is a rack of them just [caption id="attachment_242" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Rooftop pools at Spa Castle. Pools are open year 'round."][/caption] outside of the bath area. If you're modest, grab your uniform before you undress. The first floor is an expansive open area. At one end are the coed dry saunas. All must be used in your uniform, and they are hot. Save these until just before you are ready to head back down to the single-gender areas, as your uniform will be drenched with sweat after visiting these. A visit to the ice room helps, but not enough. Also on this level is the food court, salon and massage area. There are tables and chairs throughout for dining, relaxing or just socializing. [caption id="attachment_241" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Lounge area on the mezzanine level of the Spa Castle"][/caption] On your way to the second floor is the mezzanine. In it are rooms full of recliners, some with personal TVs in the armrest. While lounging here you can get a foot massage, or have an attendant bring you a cold drink at your chair. This is the life. The second floor is the pool floor: The variety of pools here rivals most water parks, and includes massaging pools, kiddie pools, and even an aqua bar for enjoying (non-alcoholic) beverages while sitting in the worm water. Some of the pools are outside, some inside. If you plan to use these pools, bathing suits and pool towels are not provided, but are available for rent. This floor also has the third locker that your key will open for storing your personal effects while in the pool. These lockers are in single-gender locker rooms, so if you don't want to return downstairs with your wet bathing suit under your uniform, you can change out of it here. The top floor has a full-service Korean restaurant, and a fitness center. A day pass to the fitness center can be purchased for an additional fee. This is new since our visit, so we're not sure how you get your shoes up here. We assume you carry them. When you have had your fill of the spa castle, you return to the lower level, and change back into your street clothes. A counter in the locker room has every imaginable toiletry, combsm brushes, and hair dryers available for use. Heck, if you want to clip your toenails, there are trays with nail clippers attached for just this purpose (eww). When dressed, claim your shoes, and proceed to the front desk to return your bracelet. If you've made any charges in the Spa Castle, they'll be due here. The trip to Queens is a little long for us. We're anxiously awaiting the opening of the Pocono resort they show on their website. Here are some other New York metro saunas from our database: [pods name="sauna_baths" order="t.name ASC" limit="15" where="metro_area.id=1" template="sauna_list_div"]

Andrew Zimmern enjoying the charcoal sauna at Chamsutgama

The Travel Channel this past week aired the South Korea episode of Bizarre Foods where they found my ultimate idea of bliss: A combination sauna / barbeque. Host Andrew Zimmern as part of his travels in Korea visited the Chamsutgama, a JimJilBang and restaurant in the suburbs of Seoul.

A short clip of the scene is available here, in “South Korea Highlights 2″ around the 2:00 minute mark. The full episode can be purchased on .

From the looks of it, the sauna is heated with the same stove used to cook the facility’s barbecue meats.

I tracked down the facility’s website, which is all in Korean. The text on the pages is there as images, so web translating programs can’t do much with it. If you’ve been there or know more about it, please leave information in the comments.

(I’ve done my fair share of traveling in Korea, and have eaten many of the foods highlighted here, including the octopus sashimi. And you thought peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth.)

[Chamsugama] on Bizarre Foods via Jaunted

[starratingmulti id=1] [cft format=1]

[caption id="attachment_231" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Andrew Zimmern enjoying the charcoal sauna at Chamsutgama"][/caption] The Travel Channel this past week aired the South Korea episode of Bizarre Foods where they found my ultimate idea of bliss: A combination sauna / barbeque. Host Andrew Zimmern as part of his travels in Korea visited the Chamsutgama, a JimJilBang and restaurant in the suburbs of Seoul. A short clip of the scene is available here, in "South Korea Highlights 2" around the 2:00 minute mark. The full episode can be purchased on . From the looks of it, the sauna is heated with the same stove used to cook the facility's barbecue meats. I tracked down the facility's website, which is all in Korean. The text on the pages is there as images, so web translating programs can't do much with it. If you've been there or know more about it, please leave information in the comments. (I've done my fair share of traveling in Korea, and have eaten many of the foods highlighted here, including the octopus sashimi. And you thought peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth.) [Chamsugama] on Bizarre Foods via Jaunted [starratingmulti id=1] [cft format=1]

Scene in the showers of a Korean sauna. Photo from Urijamjari on Flickr.

The Basics: Bathing areas are single-gender, and nudity is mandatory. Leave any shyness and modesty at home, because provided towels are small and privacy is not a consideration in the design. Larger saunas (called Jim Jil Bang (???) have coed areas where clothing is required. Uniforms are provided for these. Entry fees usually are not timed. Remember to take off your shoes as soon as you enter the locker room.

What to Bring: Korean saunas are known for being all inclusive: Towels, soap, toiletries (including toothbrushes!), robes and even uniforms for the coed areas are all provided in the entry fee, as is a locker with a key on a bracelet. The toiletries are usually basic, discount brand items, so if you prefer something specific, you should bring your own. Sandals are not allowed, so don’t bother bringing them. If you are going to a large sauna with pools in the coed area, or a small sauna that is having a coed night, you need to bring a bathing suit.

About the Korean Sauna:

The Koreans have a special place in their hearts for their saunas. Fortunately for us in North America, their émigrés also have an entrepreneurial spirit. Most major metropolitan areas already have at least one Korean sauna, and it seems that more are opening regularly. The Koreans aren’t marketing these services to us round eyes.

Of course, if you are in Korea, the sauna is ubiquitous, with saunas in every hotel and bathhouses of every kind, seemingly on every corner. In the large cities, the Jimjilbangs are huge, and open 24-hours per day. If you’re a traveler on a budget, they can be an economical alternative to a hotel for a night or two.

Most Koreans treat the sauna as part of their regular routine. It is a planned outing for cleansing, as well as socializing and general wellness. Nearly every sauna or steam room is equipped with some special material or herbs, and the largest ones have saunas made from jade or lined with gold, and some have tubs made from the wood of thousand year-old trees. Unique special treatments, especially for women, are offered, as well as deep tissue massages and exfoliating scrubs where the scrubbers pride themselves of ridding your body of every dead skin cell.

Arrival:

Upon entering a Korean sauna, the first thing to greet you is the reception desk. Here, you pay your entry fee, and be given a key to your locker. You may also be given towels, toiletries or uniforms here, if this establishment rations them, but most give you all you want. If you are looking to get a treatment of any kind done, you should inquire here about how to book this, and how to pay for it. Leaving the reception desk, the desk attendant points you in the direction of the appropriate locker room.

Most Korean saunas use your key as a house charge card. For low-tech places, when you order something, they call the front desk and read them your locker number and the amount so they can add this to your bill when you leave. Higher tech places give you an RFID key where charges are directly loaded onto it as they are made. When you check out, you pay for any balance due.

Storing shoes in a locker, from the Korea Tourism site. It includes a list of Jimjilbang in Seoul

As you enter the locker room, pay attention to the flooring. It will change from a basic industrial floor treatment to (usually) a wood-grained vinyl floor. Take off your shoes before you step on the different floor! There will be a shelf or locker here for you to store your shoes. If your shoes are expensive, you may carry them to your clothes locker for safekeeping, but don’t let them touch the locker room floor until you reach the shoe area. Slippers / sandals are for the toilet, and are not allowed here either. Socks may be worn on the locker floor.

When you find your locker, make sure the lock works, then strip. Towels, robes, and uniforms will usually not be anywhere nearby, and shyness or modesty, especially in the single-gender areas, is not appropriate.

The Bathing Area:

Once you are naked, you can enter the bathing area. This is usually separated from the locker room by a glass door. If you have a robe or any other clothing on, take it off before you pass through this door as it is not allowed in here. Reading material is also not allowed in the bathing area, but can be used in the rest area.

Once you enter, you should find a shower and wash yourself thoroughly before entering any of the pools or saunas. You will have a choice between (western) stand-up showers, and traditional Asian showers, where you sit on a low plastic stool. This first washing is important, because when you enter your body is dirty, and putting a dirty body into one of the baths will taint it for everyone.

At this point, you may first become acquainted with the complimentary towels. They are usually hand-towel sized, but freely available. (At times, they may be stored just outside the bathing area.) They offer no coverage for those looking for modesty. However, they can be folded into really nifty hats.

After this, you will be free to explore the baths. At a minimum, all Korean saunas have:

• A hot dry sauna,
• A steam room,
• A hot tub (> 105°F / 40°C),
• A warm tub, and
• A cool tub.

Larger facilities seem to add more pools before they add more sauna or steam rooms to the facility.

Unlike other cultures, there is no proscribed routine in the Korean bath: You alternate between the features in the bathing area according to your personal preference, spending as much or as little time in each as you wish. The only hard rule is after leaving a sauna or steam room, you must rinse yourself in a shower before entering a pool.

The saunas are always hot and dry in a Korean bath. Most will have a tray or bag of mugwort herbs near the heater. Most are wood, but a few are made from more exotic materials. Most have signs prohibiting throwing water on the rocks – It’s supposed to be dry in here. Oddly, all seem to have a TV inside of them. Bring a dry towel in to sit on both to protect your derriere from the very hot benches, and for hygiene. Because of the heat, you may want to bring a second damp towel in to cover your head to keep it from overheating.

The steam rooms are more typical. Again, they will usually have a tray of dried mugwort herbs somewhere near the steam generator, but otherwise, you can expect a typical steam room experience. I have seen a few with an area of the floor covered with river rocks that are used for massaging your feet by sitting or standing and walking in place on the rocks. Again, bringing a towel to sit on is prudent, as is having another one to cover your head… especially if there are Russians who frequent the place.

After a quick rinse in the showers, you can explore the pools. The hottest pools have no jets and are very hot. No, very, very hot. The warm pools are closer to the temperature of a typical hot tub, and will usually have jets of some kind, but may have more elaborate water massage features. The cold pool will again usually be without jets, but will usually have some sort of deluge shower in it to allow you to cool your head without submerging it.

After a circuit of the saunas and tubs when their skin is soft and pliant, most Koreans will return to the showers for a more thorough scrub, or hire one of the attendants to give them a full body scrub. Both are done with an abrasive plastic washcloth that can be found / purchased in the sauna. With lots of soap, the washcloth is scrubbed over the entire surface of your skin, taking off all the dead skin cells as you go. If you hire one of the attendants, expect them to be thorough. (Yes, they will scrub there.)

At this point, many will also shave, brush their teeth, and do other ablutions in the showers. This is a cleansing ritual. Most saunas provide toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors and shaving cream. Soap and shampoo is provided at the showers. It’s usually all discount brands, so if you like a specific product, bring your own.

After this, the bath is done, and it’s time to take a rest.

The Rest Area:

The rest area varies on the size of the sauna. In a small sauna, it can be a room with recliners, couches, or beds of some kind. In a large Jim Jil Bang, it may be a coed, multi-floor facility with restaurants, salons, and a variety of other activities.

Clothing is usually worn in the rest area, unless it is coed, where it must be worn. For single-gender rest areas, robes are provided. For coed rest areas, a uniform of a t-shirt and knee-length shorts are provided. These are usually color coded by the sexes.

A Jim jil bang can have many different features in the coed area, including workout rooms, restaurants, salons, pools, internet cafes, and especially more saunas. The most unique saunas in the facility are here, with walls made of gold, semi-precious stones or special clays, and unique heating systems like cars loaded with hot stones that exit an oven at specified times. All seem to have a story about what specific healing benefits each has.

In the rest area, you can usually find a collection of recent papers and periodicals (usually all in Korean), and are free to bring in your own. There will also be at least one TV, most times tuned to a Korean station with news or sports on the men’s side, and Korean soap operas on the women’s side. A few have chairs with individual TVs allowing you to watch what you want, and these will also have separate quiet rooms if you don’t want to watch anything.

The biggest Jim jil bangs have restaurants, multiple rest areas, salons, and other dry saunas in the coed areas. Some even have additional, swimsuit required, pools.

If you’re looking to find a Korean style sauna, here are a few. Use our Find a Sauna feature to find more.

 

Aqua Day Spa

4637 Convoy Street Suite 105
San Diego, CA

 

Athena Spa NY

32 East 31 Street
New York, NY

 

Aura Wellness Spa

49 West 33rd Street
New York, NY

 

Bella Luna Spa and Sauna

17420 Highway 99
Lynnwood, WA

 

Century Sports Club & Day Spa

4120 W. Olympic Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA

 

Chicago King Spa & Sauna

809 Civic Center Drive
Niles, IL

 

Chung Dam Spa and Fitness

41 East Cheltenham Avenue
Cheltenham, PA

 

Dallas King Spa and Sauna

2154 Royal Lane
Dallas, TX

 

Dragon Hill Spa

Yongsan-gu Hangangno3-ga 40-713
Seoul

 

Fountain of Youth Health Spa

3202 Linden Place
Flushing, NY

 

Gold Coast Health Spa

51 Hobson Street
CBD, Auckland

 

Hankook Sauna

3121 W. Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA

 

Havana Sauna

2020 S. Havana Street
Aurora, CO

 

Imperial Health Spa

1070 E. Sahara Ave
Las Vegas, NV

 

Imperial Spa

1875 Geary Blvd.
San Francisco, CA

[caption id="attachment_204" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Scene in the showers of a Korean sauna. Photo from Urijamjari on Flickr."][/caption] The Basics: Bathing areas are single-gender, and nudity is mandatory. Leave any shyness and modesty at home, because provided towels are small and privacy is not a consideration in the design. Larger saunas (called Jim Jil Bang (???) have coed areas where clothing is required. Uniforms are provided for these. Entry fees usually are not timed. Remember to take off your shoes as soon as you enter the locker room. What to Bring: Korean saunas are known for being all inclusive: Towels, soap, toiletries (including toothbrushes!), robes and even uniforms for the coed areas are all provided in the entry fee, as is a locker with a key on a bracelet. The toiletries are usually basic, discount brand items, so if you prefer something specific, you should bring your own. Sandals are not allowed, so don't bother bringing them. If you are going to a large sauna with pools in the coed area, or a small sauna that is having a coed night, you need to bring a bathing suit. About the Korean Sauna: The Koreans have a special place in their hearts for their saunas. Fortunately for us in North America, their émigrés also have an entrepreneurial spirit. Most major metropolitan areas already have at least one Korean sauna, and it seems that more are opening regularly. The Koreans aren't marketing these services to us round eyes. Of course, if you are in Korea, the sauna is ubiquitous, with saunas in every hotel and bathhouses of every kind, seemingly on every corner. In the large cities, the Jimjilbangs are huge, and open 24-hours per day. If you're a traveler on a budget, they can be an economical alternative to a hotel for a night or two. Most Koreans treat the sauna as part of their regular routine. It is a planned outing for cleansing, as well as socializing and general wellness. Nearly every sauna or steam room is equipped with some special material or herbs, and the largest ones have saunas made from jade or lined with gold, and some have tubs made from the wood of thousand year-old trees. Unique special treatments, especially for women, are offered, as well as deep tissue massages and exfoliating scrubs where the scrubbers pride themselves of ridding your body of every dead skin cell. Arrival: Upon entering a Korean sauna, the first thing to greet you is the reception desk. Here, you pay your entry fee, and be given a key to your locker. You may also be given towels, toiletries or uniforms here, if this establishment rations them, but most give you all you want. If you are looking to get a treatment of any kind done, you should inquire here about how to book this, and how to pay for it. Leaving the reception desk, the desk attendant points you in the direction of the appropriate locker room. Most Korean saunas use your key as a house charge card. For low-tech places, when you order something, they call the front desk and read them your locker number and the amount so they can add this to your bill when you leave. Higher tech places give you an RFID key where charges are directly loaded onto it as they are made. When you check out, you pay for any balance due. [caption id="" align="alignleft" width="187" caption="Storing shoes in a locker, from the Korea Tourism site. It includes a list of Jimjilbang in Seoul"][/caption] As you enter the locker room, pay attention to the flooring. It will change from a basic industrial floor treatment to (usually) a wood-grained vinyl floor. Take off your shoes before you step on the different floor! There will be a shelf or locker here for you to store your shoes. If your shoes are expensive, you may carry them to your clothes locker for safekeeping, but don't let them touch the locker room floor until you reach the shoe area. Slippers / sandals are for the toilet, and are not allowed here either. Socks may be worn on the locker floor. When you find your locker, make sure the lock works, then strip. Towels, robes, and uniforms will usually not be anywhere nearby, and shyness or modesty, especially in the single-gender areas, is not appropriate. The Bathing Area: Once you are naked, you can enter the bathing area. This is usually separated from the locker room by a glass door. If you have a robe or any other clothing on, take it off before you pass through this door as it is not allowed in here. Reading material is also not allowed in the bathing area, but can be used in the rest area. Once you enter, you should find a shower and wash yourself thoroughly before entering any of the pools or saunas. You will have a choice between (western) stand-up showers, and traditional Asian showers, where you sit on a low plastic stool. This first washing is important, because when you enter your body is dirty, and putting a dirty body into one of the baths will taint it for everyone. At this point, you may first become acquainted with the complimentary towels. They are usually hand-towel sized, but freely available. (At times, they may be stored just outside the bathing area.) They offer no coverage for those looking for modesty. However, they can be folded into really nifty hats. After this, you will be free to explore the baths. At a minimum, all Korean saunas have: A hot dry sauna, A steam room, A hot tub (> 105°F / 40°C), A warm tub, and A cool tub. Larger facilities seem to add more pools before they add more sauna or steam rooms to the facility. Unlike other cultures, there is no proscribed routine in the Korean bath: You alternate between the features in the bathing area according to your personal preference, spending as much or as little time in each as you wish. The only hard rule is after leaving a sauna or steam room, you must rinse yourself in a shower before entering a pool. The saunas are always hot and dry in a Korean bath. Most will have a tray or bag of mugwort herbs near the heater. Most are wood, but a few are made from more exotic materials. Most have signs prohibiting throwing water on the rocks - It's supposed to be dry in here. Oddly, all seem to have a TV inside of them. Bring a dry towel in to sit on both to protect your derriere from the very hot benches, and for hygiene. Because of the heat, you may want to bring a second damp towel in to cover your head to keep it from overheating. The steam rooms are more typical. Again, they will usually have a tray of dried mugwort herbs somewhere near the steam generator, but otherwise, you can expect a typical steam room experience. I have seen a few with an area of the floor covered with river rocks that are used for massaging your feet by sitting or standing and walking in place on the rocks. Again, bringing a towel to sit on is prudent, as is having another one to cover your head... especially if there are Russians who frequent the place. After a quick rinse in the showers, you can explore the pools. The hottest pools have no jets and are very hot. No, very, very hot. The warm pools are closer to the temperature of a typical hot tub, and will usually have jets of some kind, but may have more elaborate water massage features. The cold pool will again usually be without jets, but will usually have some sort of deluge shower in it to allow you to cool your head without submerging it. After a circuit of the saunas and tubs when their skin is soft and pliant, most Koreans will return to the showers for a more thorough scrub, or hire one of the attendants to give them a full body scrub. Both are done with an abrasive plastic washcloth that can be found / purchased in the sauna. With lots of soap, the washcloth is scrubbed over the entire surface of your skin, taking off all the dead skin cells as you go. If you hire one of the attendants, expect them to be thorough. (Yes, they will scrub there.) At this point, many will also shave, brush their teeth, and do other ablutions in the showers. This is a cleansing ritual. Most saunas provide toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors and shaving cream. Soap and shampoo is provided at the showers. It's usually all discount brands, so if you like a specific product, bring your own. After this, the bath is done, and it's time to take a rest. The Rest Area: The rest area varies on the size of the sauna. In a small sauna, it can be a room with recliners, couches, or beds of some kind. In a large Jim Jil Bang, it may be a coed, multi-floor facility with restaurants, salons, and a variety of other activities. Clothing is usually worn in the rest area, unless it is coed, where it must be worn. For single-gender rest areas, robes are provided. For coed rest areas, a uniform of a t-shirt and knee-length shorts are provided. These are usually color coded by the sexes. A Jim jil bang can have many different features in the coed area, including workout rooms, restaurants, salons, pools, internet cafes, and especially more saunas. The most unique saunas in the facility are here, with walls made of gold, semi-precious stones or special clays, and unique heating systems like cars loaded with hot stones that exit an oven at specified times. All seem to have a story about what specific healing benefits each has. In the rest area, you can usually find a collection of recent papers and periodicals (usually all in Korean), and are free to bring in your own. There will also be at least one TV, most times tuned to a Korean station with news or sports on the men's side, and Korean soap operas on the women's side. A few have chairs with individual TVs allowing you to watch what you want, and these will also have separate quiet rooms if you don't want to watch anything. The biggest Jim jil bangs have restaurants, multiple rest areas, salons, and other dry saunas in the coed areas. Some even have additional, swimsuit required, pools. If you're looking to find a Korean style sauna, here are a few. Use our Find a Sauna feature to find more. [pods name="sauna_baths" order="t.name ASC" where="style.id=2" template="sauna_list_div"]