Inside Latvian Pirts: A British Sauna Master's Training Journey
Written by Alfie Lamb
Many British Sauna masters head to the Baltics to train in pirts, the Latvian and Lithuanian tradition of sauna. But what exactly happens on these courses and are they worth the money? Alfie Lamb works for Community Sauna Baths at their South Bermondsey site and embarked on a five-day training camp in Latvia.
In February 2025, I headed to Latvia to do a five-day, level one pirts training with Benoit de Bock,
founder of Pirts Spirit. The camp was at the Ziedlejas wellness resort, nestled deep in the forests about 100 miles outside Riga. Travelling was smooth. I flew from London to Riga, stayed a night in a hostel and then caught a short train in the morning to Sigulda which took about 40 minutes. It was here that Benoit picked us up and the group gathered: there were eight of us - two Brits, two Americans, two Germans, a Norwegian and a Dane. As we gathered at the resort on a sunny Monday morning, it felt like the beginning of some reality TV show; a bunch of strangers about to embark on an intense journey together. That night, we opened the camp with a fire ritual, setting our intentions amidst the snow under a clear night sky. The snow had arrived two days earlier; it was a magical winter wonderland.
For anyone wondering, pirts is synonymous with the word sauna but infers the Latvian traditional practice of it. The aim of the course was to learn how to give a Latvian pirts treatment. This is a one-to-one ritual of cleansing and purification given by a pirts master to their client. We would begin our mornings with a movement class led by Benoit’s partner Elizabeth who is educated and trained in sports, injury and recovery. After breakfast we’d move into two hours of theory and discussions. Topics included working with energy, space holding, understanding steam. The Latvian word ‘garinge’ is both the word for ‘steam’ and ‘spirit’. We studied the lore around whisks, which are central to the rituals. We used birch and Benoit explained that it is a good tree to use as beginners because its properties are very energetically neutral. Other plants such as oak, maple or juniper may have stronger energetic effects that must be worked up to.
This was followed by a ‘dry practice’ outside the pirts to give us the chance to learn the movements and formula that Benoit has designed. This included whisk techniques such as ‘steam dancing’: working with the steam to create a natural hydrosol and to bring the steam down onto the client lying flat on the table. It was followed by ‘sifting’: waking up the lymphatic system by gently tickling the whisks up and down the client’s body. ‘Compressions’: using both whisks to compress the joints of the body, causing relaxation and release. ‘Flapping’: gentle rhythmic slapping of the whisks up and down the client’s body. Next came an ‘elemental cleanse’: washing and cooling with water, grounding the client on the earth, revitalising them with some fresh air. Then it was to our last round ‘Fire’. Here we used eucalyptus whisks and threw on a load of ‘garinge’ to make it super-hot. We heated the whisks then forcibly waved them up and down the clients’ body.
We partnered up and gave and received this ritual four times over the four days. The last day of the camp was our ‘shining day’ where we would fully practice delivering a ritual from start to finish in role play with our partner.
We used all three of the pirts at Ziedlejas: the woollen pirts: a beautiful spiral structure with a yurt style pirts in the middle, woollen insulation visibly hanging from the ceiling. It was stunning. The smoke pirts is a modern smoke sauna, beautifully made and perfectly representing a traditional smoke sauna. This was located in the middle of the forest, all on its own next to a babbling brook. A truly incredible place to both give and receive a pirts ritual. The glass pirts is Ziedlejas’ pride and glory; it is an amazingly built pirts dug into the side of a hill, the front entirely made of glass and overlooking a (then) frozen lake.
The camp was not just held by Benoit alone but also Elizabeth, and two Latvian pirts masters whose names I would fail to spell. They also worked with us throughout the course, guiding us whilst giving our rituals and filling us with their love and pride for their culture and tradition. My scepticism before the camp about Benoit not being from Latvia (he is Belgian) was put to rest when I witnessed how connected he is to Latvian culture and tradition. I felt I had a very authentic and deep experience of Latvia and was able to connect to its people, language and culture. Throughout our stay, Ziedlejas was still open to customers coming to receive pirts treatments. A total of 14 pirts masters work at the resort, giving treatments to (predominantly) Latvians.
The food was good. Breakfast in particular, a traditional Latvian breakfast with homemade rye bread, cottage cheese, homemade jams, honey, cheese, eggs and salad. Lunch and dinner were good but in true Latvian style, was very meaty. I’m vegetarian so it was vegetables on the side rather than a separate menu. The accommodation was very luxurious. I shared a beautiful glass house with another trainee from Germany. I arose every morning with the sunrise to a view of a snow-covered valley with a frozen pond. In the afternoons, in our breaks, I went on long walks through the snow-covered forests. I saw no-one during these walks; the only tracks in the snow were mine and those of the occasional deer crossing the paths.
The cost of the course was around 1700 euros. With flights and a stay in Riga, it amounted to around 2000 euros in total. I would happily say that it is worth it. The training was amazing, as was the food and the accommodation. It was a very bonding experience for us as a group who became close over such a short time. I left feeling amazing - cleansed and purified by all the pirts, very nourished by the silence and beauty of the natural environment and full of new knowledge after all the amazing teaching we received. It has been a month since I returned and I’m still buzzing from the experience.
What I’m finding more difficult is how to begin practicing this ritual. Ideally you need a sauna designed for treatments, with wide benches at the right height. Getting hold of good whisks is taking time as it is not the season (they are typically made in early summer) and in the city at least, they must be delivered from Lithuania or Latvia. This seems crazy. Perhaps it’s time to get foraging in a forest near London and see what I can find. www.pirtsspirit.com.
