Sauna in the Parks reopens at Shady Oak Beach on Friday, Oct. 23, with two wood-fired saunas, Horizon and Vista, instead of one. The city's announcement promises "twice the offerings, twice the cold plunges and twice the heat," along with an upgraded changing facility that has better heat and bathrooms.
Doubling is the simple version. The published 2026-27 timetable doesn't run the two saunas the same way. Vista carries the public sessions all weekend. Horizon takes private groups for most of each weekend afternoon. Once the winter schedule starts Nov. 18, the new public time is mostly on weekday evenings and Saturday mornings. If you book by sauna and by day, you'll find openings that someone scanning for a 2 p.m. Saturday slot won't.
From a holiday week to a line in the capital budget
The program started small. The city ran a short winter pilot at Shady Oak Beach from Dec. 27 to Jan. 2, with adults booking 90-minute sessions in one Voyageur Mobile Sauna and using the lake for an optional plunge. According to Park Board minutes, the city rented that sauna for the week, and all 315 reservation spots were taken within the first two and a half days. Recreation staff described the goal as getting people outdoors in winter and building community around health and wellness.
| Season | What ran | Price and length |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot, announced Nov. 2023 | One rented Voyageur Mobile Sauna, Dec. 27 to Jan. 2 | $25, 90 minutes |
| Season announced Sept. 2024 | Full October-to-April season, opening Oct. 4 | $25, 90 minutes |
| 2026-27 | Two saunas, Horizon and Vista, opening Oct. 23 | $28, 1 hour 25 minutes |
The city said the pilot earned "rave reviews" when it announced the full season in September 2024. By November of that year, the Minnesota Star Tribune had put Shady Oak in its statewide guide to winter saunas and cold plunges. In March 2025, Hopkins Park Board minutes called it a popular offering. The beach sits on the Minnetonka-Hopkins line, and the Sun Sailor has described the program as an initiative of both cities.
The second sauna came out of the June 8, 2026 council meeting. The council amended the Capital Improvement Program to move $55,000 of existing funding to buy a second sauna at Shady Oak Beach, saying it would "help meet growing demand without increasing the overall project budget." The pilot's 315 reservations are still the only published count. For the seasons since, the city's own line, "spots fill fast," is as far as its public figures go.
Horizon and Vista run on different clocks
Each sauna runs 1-hour, 25-minute sessions that start every 90 minutes, which leaves five minutes between one group and the next. The two saunas are offset by 45 minutes. On a fall Saturday, Vista starts at 11:15 a.m., Horizon at noon, Vista again at 12:45 p.m., and so on into the evening. With a five-minute turnover, the city's request to "be respectful to groups finishing their sauna sessions" applies at every changeover.
The two saunas split the work. In the fall schedule, which runs through Nov. 15, every weekend Vista session is public: 11:15 a.m., 12:45, 2:15, 3:45, 5:15 and 6:45 p.m. Horizon has one public weekend session, at noon. Its 1:30, 3, 4:30 and 6 p.m. weekend sessions are reserved for private groups. Private bookings cost $280 for up to 10 people and are offered only at select weekend hours. Public sessions cap at seven or eight people.
So on a weekend afternoon, half the heat on the beach belongs to private parties. If you're booking a single seat, the 45-minute Vista rhythm is the schedule to watch.
Where the extra room shows up after Nov. 18
The Sept. 30 city announcement opened registration for fall sessions from Oct. 23 to Dec. 6 and said "extended weekday offerings" begin Nov. 18. The posted timetables show where that new time goes. Here are the public sessions per week, counted from the city's grids:
| Day | Fall, through Nov. 15 | Winter, from Nov. 18 |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | None | 4 |
| Thursday | None | 4 |
| Friday | 4 | 7 |
| Saturday | 7 | 10 |
| Sunday | 7 | 7 |
| Week total | 18 | 32 |
Sunday doesn't change. Most of the added public time lands on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, with sessions at 4:30, 5:15, 6 and 6:45 p.m. Fridays start earlier, at 3 p.m., and add a 7:30 p.m. Horizon session. Saturdays open at 9:45 a.m. with both saunas running public sessions all morning, and they also gain a 7:30 p.m. session. Horizon still goes private on weekend afternoons in the winter grid, so the Saturday-morning and weekday-evening slots are where the second sauna adds public time.
The city has also posted extra holiday hours for Dec. 23, Dec. 28, 29, 30 and 31, and Jan. 1. That's close to the same dates as the original one-week pilot, now with two saunas.
Plan around the refund rule. Cancellations made at least one week before a reservation qualify for a refund. A holiday-week booking for visiting family needs to be settled a week ahead. The city hasn't published a set date or time when later registration windows open, so the Sauna in the Parks page and its booking calendar are the place to check.
The 85 minutes, round by round
A host tends the IKI wood-fired stove and guides the session. The city keeps the sauna between 180 and 200 degrees Fahrenheit. The city lays out a session like this:
- Arrive about five minutes before your start time. Park in the main lot, walk just inside the Shady Oak Beach gate and check in with the host.
- Spend 10 to 20 minutes in the heat.
- Cool down outside by the bonfire or take the optional lake plunge. The city suggests plunging for 2 to 5 minutes.
- Repeat. The city says a typical session is three to four rounds of hot and cold.
The plunge depends on open water. The Hopkins listing for Shady Oak Beach says an aerator near the floating dock keeps open water around the dock through winter, and it tells visitors to use caution. Ice conditions vary from winter to winter, so ask the host what the water looks like that day before going in.
The city can reconfigure a sauna for guests who need an accessible setup if you ask ahead of time. To request one, contact Jesse Izquierdo at 952-939-8351.
What goes in the bag, and what stays home
The changing and storage space is partially heated and has no running water. Pack with that in mind. The city's list:
- A bathing suit or athletic clothes that can get sweaty and wet
- A water bottle, since the city asks guests to arrive hydrated
- Two full-size towels, one to sit on and one for afterward. A towel on the bench is required.
- Flip-flops or similar sandals
- A robe, sweatshirt or blanket for outdoor cool-downs
- A change of clothes
- Proof of purchase, printed or as a screenshot
- A completed waiver, which is also available on-site
Alcohol, portable speakers and strong fragrances, perfumes or essential oils aren't allowed. All participants must be 18 or older.
Weather cancellations follow set limits. The sauna closes if the forecast calls for a sustained wind chill below minus 20, or a sustained air temperature below minus 5, for most of the day. The program manager can also cancel for other weather, and participants are notified by email.
Opening weekend lines up with another city event. On Saturday, Oct. 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Marshland Market at The Marsh celebrates its third anniversary with local bites and sips, live painting with Harvest by Jane, and a $35 candle-top workshop with 108 candles. The first Vista session that day starts at 11:15 a.m.
At The Weinstock Group, we follow how Minnetonka spends its winters as closely as we follow its sales, and a one-week rental pilot growing into a two-sauna season is part of that story. If you're weighing a move closer to Shady Oak Beach or anywhere along the Lake Minnetonka corridor, schedule a complimentary consultation and we'll talk through it with you.
