At the end of November every second year, Odden Saunafestival transforms the old harbour in Havnebyen, Sjællands Odde, into a temporary landscape of saunas, hot tubs, music, performance, food, winter darkness and the cold Kattegat sea.

The festival took place in 2022 and 2024 and returns for its third edition in 2026, bringing together around 110–120 people for an evening of art, wellness, togetherness and unusual encounters.

The basic idea is simple: What happens when we move music, performance and art out of their traditional spaces and into the sauna?

A sauna is already an unusual social space. People sit close together, naked or in swimsuits, sweating in the heat, and the usual physical and social boundaries begin to shift. When the sauna simultaneously becomes a concert hall, theatre, drawing studio, kitchen or place for collective singing, a different relationship emerges between artist, audience and artwork.

The festival explores this meeting between art, performance, music, the body and social life, with the fishing boats, fresh sea air, winter darkness and cold water of Sjællands Odde as part of the setting.

2026
The 2026 edition expands the festival with artists and contributors from Denmark, Sweden, the UK, Iceland, Finland, Romania, Brazil, Ireland, Germany and Ukraine.

Groove Sauna – Tuba Libre feat. Leafnuts (SE/DK/UK)
A wall of furious music and rhythmic meditation, with groove, brass, reggae and improvisation.

Icelandic Baðstofa – Gunnar Rún, Pétur Húni & Hafdís Hrund (IS)
Icelandic singing, storytelling and sauna gus inspired by the traditional Baðstofa – the warm communal room where Icelandic families gathered through the long winters.

Gourmet Gus – Matthew Francis Parker (UK)
A culinary sauna experience by the chef behind Kiosken på Odden.

Corquis Sauna – Silvia Paizan (RO)
Life drawing in the sauna, with the audience taking turns drawing and posing as models.

Finnish Birch Sauna – Marina Minetti (FI)
Finnish sauna culture and birch rituals using local birch branches from Sjællands Odde.

Puppet Theatre Sauna – Goya (BR)
Puppet theatre and performance with mystical handmade Brazilian puppets.

Cold-Water Disco – DJ Einkaufwargen (IRL/DE)
7-inch vinyl played from two turntables mounted on a shopping cart, while disco balls and colourful underwater lights transform the winter sea into a dance floor.

Ukrainian Guest Artist – in collaboration with Lost Farm and Insha Osvita (UA)
A Ukraine-based artist is invited to do a piece at the saunafestival as part of Lost Farm's research residency towards the development of a future site-specific art project on Sjællands Odde.

Plus...

Community Singing Sauna // Karaoke Sauna // Monologue Sauna // Sauna Gus // Lounge Music // Pop-up Sensory Experiences // Hot Tubs // Colourful Lights // Refreshing Sea // Lovely People // Winter Darkness // Much More.

2024 program
Den Outer Sauna // Gourmet Sauna // Vølven’s Sweat Hut // Community Singing Sauna // Scrub Sauna // Whale Sauna // Karaoke Sauna // Puppet Theatre Sauna // Shadow Sauna // Music Box Sauna // Gusjam // Fairy Tale Sauna // Sauna Gus // and much more.

2022 program
Trumpet Shower // Gourmet Sauna // Quiz Sauna // Lecture Sauna // Adventurous Stories Sauna // Poetry Sauna // Sound Gus // Community Singing Sauna // and much more.

Food, beer and wine are locally produced whenever possible, with local ingredients and producers forming part of the festival.

Odden Saunafestival is initiated by artist and cultural project developers Steen Andersen and Petter Brandberg and is created in collaboration with Lost Farm and other local partners on Sjællands Odde. The festival explores new ways of using the sea, nature, the body and social togetherness through art and culture.

The festival is non-profit. Any surplus goes towards the next Odden Saunafestival and other cultural and social activities on Sjællands Odde. Pasted markdown

Photo: Maria Dembek &
Susser Preuss