A Scandinavian-style sauna in Swansea has been ordered to shut down following complaints from local residents about naked bathers being visible from their homes.
Swansea council rejected a retrospective planning application from the Halsa Sauna at Caswell Bay, which had been running from a detached property without official permission.
Neighbours raised concerns about “naked and semi-naked customers being visible” from surrounding houses, alongside reports of excessive noise including shouting and screaming from the premises.
The beachside business, which markets itself as offering “beachside bliss where sauna meets the sea”, features a cylindrical sauna unit, three cold-water barrels, showers and a fenced changing area.
Owner Gareth Davies maintained he had established a quality tourism venture that remained hidden from public view.
The sauna had been welcoming customers since 2023 despite lacking the necessary planning consent from local authorities.
Remarkably, the council’s own tourism website featured advertisements for Halsa Sauna until October 2024, when officials discovered the business was operating without proper approval.
Mr Davies argued in his planning submission the facility occupied “a secluded location along the Wales National Coastal Path” and was “shielded from wider public vantage points, within the residential curtilage of the property”.
Visitors arriving by vehicle face a lengthy walk to reach the site, often parking several hundred metres away before making their way along Caswell Road or across the beach when tidal conditions permit.
The council received 43 formal objections to the planning application, with residents citing multiple concerns beyond the visibility of unclothed users.
Complaints included disturbances from noise, inadequate parking arrangements forcing guests to leave vehicles far from the premises, and the absence of toilet facilities on site.
Some objectors alleged waste water from the operation had been discharged down an embankment outside the property.
Planning officers ultimately refused the application on nine separate grounds, with noise disturbance and privacy violations among the key factors.
The council’s own tourism website featured advertisements for Halsa Sauna until October 2024
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SWANSEA COUNCIL
The council’s assessment also highlighted issues with the facility’s physical presence in the landscape, describing it as visually intrusive within the sensitive coastal setting.
The planning report stated the development, “by reason of its elevated nature, scale and prominent siting within a countryside setting, appears visually intrusive and overly dominant and forms a discordant feature within this sensitive location”.
Officers concluded the sauna and its accompanying cold-water barrels failed to conserve or enhance the natural beauty of the Gower Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, causing harm to the visual character of the surroundings.
The business’s planning submission countered the facility could accommodate up to eight customers at once, although the typical number was four.
It also stated “arrivals and departures are carefully managed to ensure no conflict” between different booking sessions.