Saunas in Vilnius could soon take on a completely new form – three mobile public saunas, terraces, showers, a lifeguard station and renewed beach infrastructure are planned for Vingis Park beside the River Neris. Vilnius Municipality will present the final project solutions to the public on 15 September. If the project is implemented, the Neris riverbank could become one of the most interesting public sauna destinations in the Baltic region.
Vingis Park is one of the most important green spaces in Vilnius. Located in a bend of the River Neris, it is already a popular destination for walking, sport, events and recreation.
However, the riverbank has much greater potential.
The new project aims to transform the area so that it can be used not only during the summer beach season but as a fully functioning recreational space throughout the year.
And sauna is intended to play an important role in that transformation.
Saunas in Vilnius will stand beside the River Neris
The project provides three locations for mobile modular public saunas.
Each sauna is planned to have a building footprint of up to approximately 25 square metres.
Interestingly, the municipality is not proposing one mandatory standard sauna building. The project establishes requirements for materials, quality and architecture while allowing different sauna solutions to be used.
This could allow different saunas to operate at the site in the future while maintaining the overall architectural quality of the area.
Another important feature is that the structures are intended to be movable.
The saunas will not be massive permanent buildings requiring deep foundations. The modular approach should allow them to be integrated more carefully into the landscape of Vingis Park while reducing the impact of construction on the surrounding environment.
The sauna project is part of a much larger beach redevelopment
The new saunas in Vilnius will not be an isolated project.
They form part of a broader redevelopment of the Neris riverbank and the public beach in Vingis Park.
At present, the area lacks some of the infrastructure required for a modern public recreation space.
The project therefore also includes showers, toilets, a lifeguard station, terraces, improved pedestrian connections, accessibility for people with reduced mobility, a bicycle repair station, street furniture and rainwater management solutions.
So this is about much more than three saunas.
Vilnius is attempting to create a complete riverside recreation area.
Sauna could bring life to the Neris riverbank in winter
One of the most interesting aspects of the project is seasonality.
A beach is naturally most active during summer. As colder weather arrives, visitor numbers decline and much of the infrastructure can remain underused for several months.
Sauna could change that model.
A hot sauna beside a river becomes particularly attractive when the weather turns cold.
In autumn.
In winter.
In early spring.
The possibility of stepping outside into fresh air and cooling down by the river after a sauna makes the location attractive long after the traditional beach season has ended.
The new saunas could therefore help transform the Neris riverbank into a public space used throughout the year.
The project has already changed following public feedback
The first public presentation of the project took place in spring.
Vilnius Municipality subsequently received comments and proposals from residents, and the original plans were revised.
Requirements for the architecture of the saunas were reconsidered.
Pedestrian routes were improved.
Rainwater management solutions were expanded.
Additional elements of public-space infrastructure were added.
Construction of the children’s playground, meanwhile, is planned as a separate stage of the project.
This is important because the public sauna is not being designed independently from the surrounding urban environment.
It is becoming part of the overall development of the park and riverbank.
Medicinal plants are planned beside the sauna terraces
One of the project’s more unusual features is the proposed planting of medicinal herbs beside the sauna terraces.
The plans envisage these plants being available for sauna visitors to use for wellbeing and preparing tea.
For Baltic sauna culture, this idea feels particularly natural.
Plants and sauna traditions have always been closely connected in our region.
The Vilnius project therefore goes beyond simply placing modern modular saunas beside a river.
Sauna is being connected with plants, water, landscape and relaxation.
That combination also gives the project a cultural dimension.
54 new trees will be planted in Vingis Park
Vingis Park is an important landscape and cultural heritage area, so the new infrastructure must fit into its existing environment.
The project aims to preserve valuable vegetation and minimise changes to the existing terrain.
At the same time, 54 new trees are planned.
Species suitable for the local environment will be used, including birches, black alders and other trees characteristic of the Neris riverbank.
The development of sauna infrastructure is therefore being combined with broader landscape restoration.
The park will not be turned into a car park
Vehicle traffic was one of the issues raised during the public consultation.
The project does not envisage building a large new car park in Vingis Park simply because new saunas and an improved beach are being created.
Only a limited number of spaces near the recreation area are planned for people with disabilities, service vehicles and other necessary transport.
The emphasis remains on pedestrians, cyclists and public use of the park.
That fits well with the basic concept of the project – riverside sauna as part of a green urban environment.
Saunas in Vilnius are becoming part of urban life
Saunas in Vilnius are not being treated merely as places to warm up in this project.
They are intended to become part of a wider public recreation area combining sauna, river, beach, plants and the city’s green environment.
The project also reflects a broader trend across Northern Europe and the Baltic region.
For a long time, sauna was primarily regarded as a private tradition, part of a country home or a service offered by a spa.
Public sauna, however, is increasingly returning to the heart of urban life.
It becomes a place where people meet, relax, visit after work or spend time with friends.
Helsinki and other Northern European cities have already demonstrated how powerful a public sauna beside the water can be as an element of urban life.
A similar direction is now becoming increasingly visible in Lithuania.
Why is the Vilnius project interesting for Latvia as well?
From a Latvian perspective, the project is particularly interesting.
Latvia has a strong traditional sauna culture and many private sauna venues, but an easily accessible public sauna as part of everyday urban infrastructure is still relatively uncommon.
Vilnius is demonstrating a different model.
The sauna is not hidden inside a spa complex.
It is placed in a public park beside a river and connected with a beach, pedestrian infrastructure, plants and everyday city life.
That represents a very different way of thinking about the role of sauna in a modern city.
Final project solutions will be presented on 15 September
The public presentation of the final Vingis Park project solutions is scheduled for 15 September at 18:00 at the Vingis branch of Vilnius University’s Botanical Garden.
This means the sauna complex has not yet been built.
The project remains in the planning and design stage.
However, its main elements are already clear.
Three public saunas.
The River Neris.
Terraces.
Showers.
Medicinal plants.
A renewed beach.
And the possibility of using the area not only for a few summer months but throughout the entire year.
Saunas in Vilnius could become much more than places to experience heat – this project could make them part of everyday city life and the public space along the River Neris.
If the project is implemented as planned, Vilnius could gain one of the most interesting public sauna destinations in the Baltic region.
Sources
Vilnius City Municipality – information on the final design solutions for the Vingis Park sauna project.
Vilnius City Municipality – Vingis Park redevelopment project documentation.
VilniausParkai – information on the Vingis Park public sauna project.
