Berkeley Heights is about to get a lot steamier. Bathhouse, the New York City-based social wellness brand known for its sauna-and-cold-plunge circuits, is set to open its first New Jersey location on Thursday, Nov. 5, inside The Park, the sprawling mixed-use campus off Route 78. The 20,000-square-foot facility spans four levels and is expected to draw around 600 visitors a day once it's up and running.
The opening marks Bathhouse's New Jersey debut and was first detailed by NJBIZ, which reported that the operator expects roughly 600 guests daily at the new site. According to a company announcement distributed via PR Newswire, the Berkeley Heights space will include four indoor pools — salt, hot, cold and neutral — alongside two tailored saunas and a steam room. A rooftop sauna and three additional outdoor pools, also split between hot, cold and neutral temperatures, round out what the release describes as a year-round outdoor Nordic spa-style deck.
No Restaurant, No Massages — Just the Soak
Bathhouse founder Travis Talmadge told NJBIZ that unlike some of the brand's other locations, the Berkeley Heights outpost will not feature a restaurant or massage services. The company's broader model leans on what the Philadelphia Inquirer described as contrast therapy — alternating between hot saunas and cold plunges — rather than a full-service spa menu.
Co-founder Jason Goodman said the brand aims to make sauna culture accessible as part of everyday life, according to ROI-NJ. Goodman added that The Park's walkable campus suits what he called Bathhouse's next chapter. The new location sits within District Drive, described by the company as The Park's 60-acre walkable downtown core.
A $500 Million Makeover for a Former Corporate Park
The Park, formerly known as Connell Corporate Park, is a 185-acre mixed-use lifestyle campus undergoing what the prnewswire release calls a $500 million repositioning. Per ROI-NJ, that repositioning is aimed at bringing urban energy and community to the suburbs. The campus already includes a 112,000-square-foot Lifetime Fitness center, a 176-room Embassy Suites hotel, and more than 1.5 million square feet of what's billed as work resort offices, flexible workspaces and collaborative lounges.
District Drive itself is planned to eventually include 328 apartments and 160,000 square feet of restaurants and entertainment retail, per the prnewswire announcement. The Connell Company recently celebrated a topping-out for the structural completion of RT600, an eight-story tower that will comprise 149 apartment units, according to ROI-NJ. Shane Connell, executive vice president of The Connell Company, said Bathhouse complements The Park's dining, hospitality, fitness and entertainment offerings, and that The Park's vision includes elevated wellness experiences meant to complement the campus lifestyle.
Part of a Bigger National Push
Bathhouse was founded in 2019 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, by real estate investor Travis Talmadge and hospitality operator Jason Goodman, according to Beauty Independent. The brand now operates locations in Manhattan's Flatiron district, Brooklyn's Atlantic Avenue and Philadelphia, where its latest outpost debuted in September, NJBIZ reports. Bathhouse also has a 50,000-square-foot location under development in Chicago and an approximately 80,000-square-foot spot planned for Los Angeles, the same report notes, with the Inquirer adding that outposts are also planned for Nashville, Minneapolis, North Jersey and Connecticut.
That expansion comes amid what the Global Wellness Institute describes as a record moment for the industry: the wellness market hit $6.8 trillion in 2025, up 35% from 2019, and is forecast to reach $9.8 trillion by 2029, per NJBIZ. Social sauna and contrast therapy concepts are gaining momentum across the U.S., according to AthleTech News, putting Bathhouse in competition with rivals including Othership, Lore Bathing Club, Schwet, Altar and Remedy Place, per Beauty Independent. Othership has raised $8.5 million for its own U.S. expansion, while competitor Sauna House has committed $9.6 million toward opening at least three new locations annually for five years, AthleTech News reports.
For Berkeley Heights, the arrival of Bathhouse adds another name to the mix of retail, dining and lifestyle destinations taking shape at The Park, according to ROI-NJ. Whether the Nov. 5 opening proceeds exactly on schedule remains to be seen once doors are set to open this week.
