As wellness consumers' fascination with sauna baths reaches new heights, Italy's luxury hotel sector has capitalised on this trend with dedicated sauna retreats.
From 20 to 27 October 2024, Dolce Vita Hotelsa collection of five family-run luxury wellness resorts in South Tyrol, will present an exclusive wellness event, entitled Sauna Around Weekwhich celebrates the ancient European tradition of aufguss.
The aufguss is a communal and entertaining sauna ritual that, in its simplest form, involves an aufguss master shaking a towel to distribute sauna heat, usually with music and essential oil fragrances adding to the experience. But the best sauna masters can be very creative, weaving stories, costumes and complex movements to enhance the experience.
The event will be spread across the five resorts of Dolce Vita, including Preidlhof, Alpiana, Jagdhof, Lindenhof and Feldhof, each of which offers its own distinctive retreat atmosphere. Each day, one of these resorts will organise three Aufguss sessions, giving guests a great opportunity to immerse themselves in this cultural tradition.
Leading the week's festivities will be two world-class sauna masters: Michael Niedermair, the newly crowned 2024 sauna world champion, and Kasia Klajn, a former world champion, ensuring that guests enjoy creativity and a world-class sauna experience.
Free experience
Guests staying at any Dolce Vita property can move freely between resorts, either by foot or a short drive, to witness the sauna masters in action.
Sauna Around Week will be completely free of charge for guests, who are also encouraged to take advantage of the group's "hotel hopping" concept, which allows them to enjoy the luxurious spa amenities at any of the resorts at no additional cost.
Sabrina Telfser, sauna and spa manager at Preidlhof, explains: "With 38 pools, 32 saunas, 28 relaxation rooms and five SkySpas, the Dolce Vita hotels are at the forefront of wellness.
"Each property offers a sanctuary of relaxation, with impressive spa facilities, from infinity pools to sauna towers, all designed to promote rejuvenation in harmony with nature.
"South Tyrol has firmly established itself as a wellness destination, and whether you are a beginner or an aspiring sauna master, Dolce Vita hotels offer the perfect environment to explore and embrace sauna culture."
After its release in 2024, Sauna Around Week will become a biannual event, to be held every April and October.
