Two heat rooms, judged separately
Gyms often sell a sauna and a steam room as a pair, yet they go wrong in different ways. A sauna is a wood-lined room of dry heat, so its weak points are worn benches, a poorly guarded heater and stale air. A steam room is a tiled room of humid heat, where the weak points are mould, standing water and steam too thick to see through. Ask to step inside both while they are empty.
This guide covers those two rooms only. For the whole suite, cold water included, use the checklist on choosing a gym with recovery facilities. RPM's recovery suite has a Finnish sauna and an aroma steam room beside its ice bath, a real example to compare others with.
The sauna, from bench to heater
What should I look for in a gym sauna area?
Start with the wood. Benches should be smooth and dry, with no splinters, dark stains or sour smell that suggests sweat is soaking in. The heater and its stones need a rail or guard so nobody leans on them by accident. The door should open outwards, never lock and have a glass panel, so someone walking past can see a person who has become unwell. Check for enough light to see the step up to the top bench, a clock or timer you can read from your seat, and drinking water outside. Ask whether you must sit on a towel and how often the benches are scrubbed.
A sauna switched off during your tour shows the wood but not how the room runs. Ask when it is heated, and come back once while people are using it.
The steam room, corner by corner
What should I look for in a gym steam room?
Humid rooms show neglect faster than any other part of a gym. Look at the grout and the corners at floor level, where black or pink patches mean cleaning is not keeping up. Water should run to a drain rather than sit in puddles, and the floor should grip under bare feet. The steam outlet should be shielded or clearly marked and placed away from the benches. Check that a light stays visible through the steam and that the door has a glass panel. If the room is scented, as an aroma steam room is, ask what goes into the steam, since a strong scent does not suit everyone.
On your tour, each row takes seconds to check with the door held open.
| Where to look | Well kept | Ask more questions |
|---|---|---|
| Sauna benches | Smooth, dry, evenly coloured wood | Dark patches, splinters or a sour smell |
| Sauna heater | A rail or fence keeps elbows off the stones | Open stones, or towels hung on the heater |
| Steam-room grout | Clean lines between the tiles | Black or pink film in corners and under seats |
| Steam-room floor | Water runs straight to a drain | Puddles, a slow drain or a slippery patch |
| Both doors | A glass panel, opening outwards | A solid door, or a catch that sticks |
| The air as you leave | Wood, or clean steam | Damp, drains or old sweat |
Rules on the wall, and someone who enforces them
Well-run heat rooms have rules posted inside, and the rules show whether the gym has thought about what can go wrong in them.
- A dress code, which may differ between sections, so you know whether swimwear or light gym kit is expected.
- A towel rule for the benches, which keeps the wood cleaner for the next person.
- No shaving, oils or scrubs in the steam room, because they clog drains and leave a film on the tiles.
- No phones or cameras, for privacy in a shared room.
- Who should check with a doctor first, and what to do if you feel unwell inside.
- Any age limit for children and teenagers.
Then ask who enforces them. A good answer names a role, says how often someone looks into each room during the day, and points to an alarm or call button inside. "People look after themselves" is also an answer, and a weak one for a closed room where someone could feel faint.
Heat does not suit everyone. Speak to your doctor before using a sauna or steam room if you have a heart or blood-pressure condition, are pregnant or take medication, and leave straight away if you feel dizzy, faint or unwell. The rules posted in the rooms and the staff's guidance come first. If you fast during Ramadan, ask your doctor whether heat on a fasting day is right for you.
Space on the bench at the hour you train
A sauna that seats a handful of people feels roomy at mid-morning and cramped at the after-work peak, when a class ends and half of it heads for the heat. In Abu Dhabi the busy slot moves with the calendar. Most of the year it falls straight after office hours, in Ramadan it shifts to the evening after iftar, and weekend trainers fill the rooms on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
- Visit at the hour you would use the rooms, not the hour suggested to you.
- Look through the door glass: is anyone waiting outside for a seat?
- Ask whether a time limit applies at busy hours, and how it is kept.
- Ask whether either room closes for cleaning during the evening, and when.
Which memberships open the door
A heat room you cannot use is decoration. Gyms often tie recovery rooms to certain tiers, passes or sections, so match the question to your situation.
| Your situation | Ask |
|---|---|
| You want the entry-level tier | Does it include the sauna and steam room, or the training floor alone? |
| You will train in a women-only section | How are the heat rooms arranged for that section? |
| You want to try a short pass first | Does the pass cover the heat rooms, and is it on sale now? |
| You train at the busiest hour | Can you walk in, or do you book a slot? |
RPM's two heat rooms, and the questions left open
At RPM's single club, on Level 4 of AD HUB Sports Complex in Al Manhal, the recovery suite has a Finnish sauna and an aroma steam room, with an ice bath alongside. These are the questions to put to the team:
- Which tiers (Floor, Engine or Atelier) or passes include the two heat rooms?
- How is access arranged for the Mixed section and the women-only Ladies section?
- How often are the rooms cleaned, and who checks them during the day?
- Are towels provided, and what should I wear?
Inclusions and prices are confirmed on enquiry, as is whether a pass is on sale. On a free guided tour, a walk-through with a member of the team rather than a workout, ask to look inside both rooms, ideally at the hour you would use them.
Questions, answered.
Is a steam room harder to keep clean than a sauna?
Usually. Constant moisture lets mould and film build up in grout and corners, so a steam room needs cleaning more often than a dry sauna. That makes it the better room for judging how well a gym cleans.
What should I wear in a gym sauna?
Whatever the posted dress code says, which is often swimwear or light gym kit, plus a towel to sit on. Ask before your first visit, because rules differ between gyms and sometimes between sections.
Should a gym steam room smell of anything?
A light scent is normal in an aroma steam room. A smell of damp, drains or old sweat underneath it means the cleaning is falling behind.
Do men and women share a gym's heat rooms?
Arrangements differ from gym to gym and sometimes by section. Ask before you join, along with the dress code that goes with them.
I use the sauna after most sessions. What else should I check?
Two things: whether there is space on the bench at the hour you usually finish, and whether your membership opens the heat rooms on every visit. For how heat fits around heavy days, read timing heat and cold around your lifting sessions. If you have a health condition or are pregnant, speak to your doctor before making it a habit.