Why saunas are suddenly cool among young Koreans

At 2 p.m. on July 21, the clientele at the charcoal-fired jjimjilbang, a Korean bathhouse and sauna complex in Seoul's Seodaemun District, looked a little different from the normal visitors.

Of the 36 visitors relaxing in the bathhouse's standard-issue lounge clothing, 21 were young adults in their 20s and 30s.

Kim Geum-sook, 68, a snack bar employee who has worked at the facility for 16 years, said, "It is the first time so many young people have visited like this." She added that the influx is breathing new life into an industry battered by closures during the pandemic.

From private rooms to social gatherings Long associated with middle-aged and older customers, saunas are shedding their dated image.

Young adults are recasting them as a prime location for trendy wellness rituals, driving a cultural revival that has turned traditional bathhouses into fashionable social spaces.

This shift is especially visible online, where a new class of sauna influencers posts reviews and documents their trips to saunas Korea and neighboring Japan.

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