A new trend is heating up Boston this winter: pop-up saunas. It's a modern approach to an age-old Nordic bathing tradition as a means of relaxation and wellness.

“When you're not near your phone or anything else, you’re way more present. It doesn't have to be like you're social, but it's just the feeling of you're around other people,” Mark Peloquin said on Boston Public Radio Wednesday. Peloquin is the owner of the Moki Sauna pop-up on the Rose Kennedy Greenway in Rowes Wharf.

Moki Sauna offers a unique outdoor wellness village right in the heart of Boston. There’s a $55 option to enjoy the entire village for two hours. The setup includes three saunas heated between 170 and 190 degrees and two ice baths kept around 45 degrees. Moki will be at the Greenway until April 1.

For those seeking a more private sauna experience, Got Sauna offers mobile saunas that can be rented and conveniently delivered to various locations. Renting one that could fit three to four people for a weekend could average between $500 to $600.

“People will rent it to have it in their driveway for the weekend. It makes a great date night,” said Mark Babson, owner of Got Sauna.

He has partnered with Finlandia Foundation Boston to provide mobile saunas Feb. 23-25 for their National Sauna Week celebration in Newton.

The Finlandia Foundation, an organization that promotes Finnish culture, began National Sauna Week in 2022 to promote the tradition of sauna as a means of relaxation and wellness.

“It gives you time to slow down and relax. You're going to be in a hot room. You got to tell your body, stop for a second. … It gives you a chance to relax and just let go of the world for a little while,” said Babson.

Babson, of Finnish descent, brings a deep cultural understanding to the tradition of sauna bathing. With Finland having 3 million saunas for a population of 5 million, sauna bathing is deeply ingrained in Finnish culture.

He explained how the Finnish pronounce it “sow-na” and a Finnish term for the relaxing steam that is released when water is poured on the hot rocks: löyly.

“Löyly, the essence of the sauna… you're going to feel it, you're going to see it, and it's going to hit you in the back of the head. And all of a sudden you're wrapped in this warmth.”

Both Peloquin and Babson emphasize the soothing nature of sauna bathing and the unique opportunity to slow down and rejuvenate.

“A lot of people come into our place for the two-hour session and they always say, ‘Oh, we're not going to need that full time.’ But they always leave and say, ‘Wow, that went by fast,’” Peloquin said.