Why I built etsauna

A couple years ago, the first public floating sauna in the Pacific Northwest, Von, launched in Seattle. Then last winter, Bywater arrived. This winter, another 10+ saunas popped up in the region. Suddenly there were real sauna options everywhere, but finding and booking them was a pain. Each one had its own booking system on a different platform.

On top of that, searching "sauna" on Google Maps is useless. You get infrared studios, gyms with a sauna tucked in the corner, med spas, and all kinds of places that aren't what you're looking for when you want a real sauna session. I wanted a curated directory that only lists the good stuff, with real-time availability so you can book on the spot. That's what etsauna is.

How etsauna works

etsauna is an interactive map-based sauna finder with real-time booking availability. It aggregates availability from 30+ booking platforms so users can see open time slots and book directly. The site also surfaces live conditions like water temperatures and tide times for waterfront saunas.

etsauna covers wood-fired saunas, Russian banyas, Nordic spas, jjimjilbangs, and more, from Seattle to New York, Vancouver to Helsinki.

Technologies used

• React
• Next.js
• Leaflet - interactive maps
• PostgreSQL (Drizzle ORM)
• Tailwind CSS
• Cloudflare R2 - image hosting
• Railway - hosting