Story
Saunalautta Hiisi is a public sauna by the water, with a name that feels evocative. You can book a slot, and in the open-water season the barge also runs cruises. The experience is both urban and archipelago. At the pier you get heat and the sea, with a direct plunge from the sauna.
Hiisi was designed to use charred wood both on the exterior and in the interior. It is a natural choice for a sauna barge: the same product and surface works in both environments without changes. Outside there is sun, sea wind and UV; inside, sauna heat and moisture. Charred wood is meant to withstand these conditions and keep its look over time.
The project was designed by architect Maija Korkeela of Necto Design Oy. She already had a history with Hiil – the same designer was involved in Hiil’s first project, Marttakahvio at Joensuu market square. It is interesting to see how know-how and trust carry from one project to the next when the material and its behaviour are familiar.