Editorial Policy

Wild Sauna UK is intended to be a trustworthy reference for two audiences: people looking for a wild sauna to visit in the UK, and people considering buying a sauna for their own home or garden. This page describes how content is researched, what counts as a source, and how reviews are scored.

Research process

Specification first. For any home sauna, infrared cabin, sauna heater or accessory, we start with primary sources: manufacturer spec sheets, official certification (CE, UKCA marking, and where relevant EN 60335-2-53 for electric sauna heaters), retailer warranty terms, and delivery / installation details published on the retailer's own site.

Owner signal. We then read long-form owner accounts — UK and international Reddit threads, sauna-specific forums, garden-design communities — looking for installation issues, after-two-year feedback, warranty experience and recurring complaints. We do not quote owners verbatim in published content; we summarise what we found in our own words and cite the source.

Venue listings. For wild sauna venues, we list operators with a verifiable booking channel (a website or established booking platform), an explicit operating area, and consistent operating history. Pop-ups without a reachable operator do not get listed.

What we score on

Home sauna reviews are scored against a consistent rubric:

• Build quality — wood species and grade, panel thickness, joinery, and weather resistance for outdoor units.
• Heater — kW rating, stone capacity, recovery time, and certification.
• Total UK cost — list price plus delivery, plus the realistic cost of base prep, electrics (where applicable) and any planning considerations.
• Warranty and support — length, what's covered, UK-side returns experience.
• Suitability — how well the unit matches a stated use case (1–2 person indoor, 4–6 person garden, year-round outdoor).

Sources and citations

We cite sources for non-obvious claims, especially price ranges, certification standards, planning rules and statistical claims. Where regulations differ between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, we say so. Where a figure is an estimate, we say that too — we'd rather flag uncertainty than imply precision we don't have.

Conflict-of-interest policy

Wild Sauna UK earns money primarily from affiliate links (see the affiliate disclosure). To keep recommendations honest:

• We do not accept payment from manufacturers or retailers in exchange for inclusion in any guide.
• Affiliate revenue does not influence which products are chosen for "best of" lists.
• Where a retailer has a higher commission than a competitor, that does not move it up the rankings.
• Where two products are similarly matched and we recommend one, we say why.

AI in the workflow

AI tools assist with research, drafting and editing. A human editor reviews every published piece for accuracy before it goes live. We do not publish fabricated statistics, invented first-person experiences, or claims we cannot trace to a source. See the AI use disclosure for the long form.

Corrections

If you spot a factual error — a wrong spec, a venue that's closed, a regulation we've described inaccurately — please flag it through our affiliate disclosure page's contact route. We correct errors promptly and note significant corrections on the affected article.