North Loop projects are still in the planning stage
Bathhouse plans a 45,000-square-foot North Loop facility with three indoor pools, three large saunas, a steam room and a massage area, according to Finance & Commerce. The Star Tribune has reported a late-2027 opening projection, while northloop.org has cited mid-2027. Those dates remain forecasts.
EMBER is planning a separate 35,000-square-foot North Loop club and advertises a spring 2027 opening on its website. Its planned facilities include a Thermal Lounge with a dry sauna, steam hammam and cold plunge, as well as coworking and fitness areas. The plans also include a public café called Mattina and interest-based clubs, according to northloop.org. Listed monthly dues are $300 for members 30 and older, $250 for those under 30, and $500 for couples. These features and timelines are plans, not operating amenities.
Operating options, grouped by setting
All’s Well, which opened in Minneapolis’ Harrison neighborhood in October 2026, is one operating option. Axios reports that it has electric, wood-fired and infrared saunas, steam, a warm pool, cold plunge, salt room and plant-filled retreat. A two-hour visit costs $55, according to the Star Tribune. These details rely on those outlets’ reporting.
Embrace North in Marcy-Holmes offers a different configuration: three 200-degree saunas and a cold plunge, according to Axios.
Pool oversight
For cold-plunge pools that fall under public-pool rules, the Minnesota Department of Health says public pools are reviewed, licensed and routinely inspected, with licensing handled by state, county or city health departments. The agency’s guidance concerns public pools and does not establish a separate rule for sauna rooms.
Outside the Twin Cities, Explore Minnesota describes guided sauna sessions at Cedar + Stone Nordic Sauna in Duluth, including women-only Sunday sessions and private group bookings. In Finlayson, Silvae Spiritus ties community events to outdoor projects such as tree planting and gathering kindling. Ely Steam Sauna, which has operated since 1915, is identified as the state’s oldest public sauna. The agency also traces Minnesota’s sauna tradition to Finnish immigrants who arrived in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
What the available evidence shows
The cited reports give projected opening dates for the North Loop clubs, but no planning or construction milestones; they therefore do not establish whether either project has secured approvals or begun construction. The Minnesota Department of Health guidance described above concerns public-pool licensing and inspection, not the clubs’ planning or building status. Separately, the Star Tribune quoted Opus vice president Nick Murnane describing the North Loop as having high demand for office and retail space but dwindling development opportunities. That is neighborhood development context, not evidence of what is driving sauna demand. In Duluth, Cedar & Stone’s flagship offers private, social and floating sauna sessions, each with an optional harborside natural cold plunge, according to the operator.
The social-sauna trend also extends beyond Minnesota. Axios, citing SaunaShare co-founder Ben Burger, reports that the directory lists roughly 150 saunas and bathhouses nationwide, while Burger estimates the total number is in the hundreds.
