If you’ve visited a typical European spa, you may well be familiar with Aufguss. Meaning ‘infusion’ in German, it’s a 15-minute ritual hosted by an Aufgussmeister in a large, shared sauna. Ice balls infused with essential oils are dropped onto hot rocks as the master wafts aromatic steam over bathers with a towel, often in a graceful, rhythmical dance set to music.
At its best, Aufguss is entertaining, engaging, and the deep sweating it delivers makes you feel cleansed. It can also be emotional and surprisingly bonding, and presents as a liminal space where norms are suspended. The idea of sauna as a ‘third space’ is something Dr Martha Newson, associate professor of Psychology at Greenwich University, and the British Sauna Society mapped during the UK Aufguss Championships at London’s communal sauna, Arc.
The UK Aufguss Championships at Arc in London
Dr Newson has worked with basketball teams, Brazilian football fans, and UK ravers to see how shared physiology in collective spaces can lead to group bonding. Her latest Aufguss research involves gathering data from bathers before and after an Aufguss ritual and assessing how behaviour may change.
‘Sauna is an extreme, unusual environment,’ says Newson. ‘As humans, we have a need to suspend reality and find something meaningful, magical and possibly uncomfortable in the immediate. The variety of sauna rituals and how they might foster feelings of connection are particularly intriguing.’ When our porous borders melt, we channel our individual agency into group behaviour to create what is known as ‘identity fusion’. Highly fused people can develop strong, positive relational and collective ties within a group.
Where else do you sit half-naked and sweating, watching contestants in panto-style costumes perform choreographed towel-waving moves around a sauna?
Emma O’Kelly
French sociologist Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) called this group high ‘collective effervescence’, and more recent studies have shown how theatre audiences unknowingly synchronise their heartbeats when watching an engaging performance.
The UK Aufguss Championships at Arc in London
Over two days last month (18-19 May 2025), more than 300 bathers came to Arc to watch ‘Show Aufguss’, a gold-sequined, high-octane version of conventional Aufguss, where costumes, lighting, music, and storylines play their part. It certainly offers a spectacle to remember.
Where else do you sit half-naked and sweating, watching contestants in panto-style costumes perform choreographed towel-waving moves around a sauna? Storylines range from Boudicca to the Dubliners, and each performer has to devise an olfactory journey to accompany their show. In Europe and Japan, audiences can’t get enough of its sauna-meets-performance-art ambience, and each session is judged by an international panel of experts.
Arc co-founder Alanna Kitt says: ‘There is a truth to being part of a collective, and maybe when you're watching an Aufguss show, because it’s so ridiculous, you come out of your comfort zone, lose all critical thinking. You suspend reality and let go of cynicism.’
The scent-infused ice balls that are poured on the rocks to create the steam also have a healing effect. ‘Aromatherapy is a key part of the ritual,’ explains Deborah Carr, founder of Anada Aufguss training school. ‘Infusions of rosemary through the hair stimulate the follicles, and inhaling lavender and cedarwood aids relaxation. And Aufguss is a great entry into sauna for those who are new to it, or those who might be unsure what to do and those who like to be guided.’
It also offers huge potential to British spa owners keen to attract new audiences and entertain sauna guests. ‘People are prioritising their health and mental wellbeing by visiting saunas in ever-increasing numbers,’ says Mark Smith, deputy editor of European Spa Magazine. ‘By introducing guided Aufguss sessions, spas can take the thermal journey to another level.’
‘Aufguss is a great entry into sauna for those who are new to it, or those who might be unsure what to do and those who like to be guided’
Deborah Carr, founder of Anada Aufguss training school
‘It’s not so much about how long a ritual lasts, but rather that it’s done well,’ adds Newson. ‘People need to be receptive, and reflection afterwards is critical as it can offer the chance to change neural pathways.’ She hopes her Aufguss research might provide further evidence for the ‘Social Cure Theory’, suggesting that if we identify with and belong to meaningful social groups, we can find support, a sense of meaning and improve our health.
Arc London
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