Winter Spa In Williamsburg Offers Hot And Cold Therapies High Atop Hotel
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Looking for a laid back way to pass some time?
You might want to set your sights on Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where some outdoor tents are turning heads.
High atop the William Vale boutique hotel, CBS2's Vanessa Murdock found something unusual against the backdrop of the Manhattan skyline – an encampment of glamping tents.
Step inside and you won't find sleeping arrangements.
"We just took out the bed and put the sauna in," said Lauren Berlingeri, Co-founder and Co-CEO of Higher Dose.
She said the vision she shared with Katie Kaps was two years in the making.
"We just wanted to bring that Scandinavian feel here to New York," she said.
There are treats and hot beverages, like the biscotti totti, waiting for you, but the focus of the outside oasis is the juxtaposition of hot and cold therapy. Inside each heated glamping tent, an infrared sauna awaits.
Sit down for a session and you might experience euphoria, Berlingeri said. Step outside, and Mother Nature will deliver the cold.
"I love that you can just have your own tent and be in the sauna, and then go out in the freezing cold and go back and forth," said Kaps.
Murdock sat down with cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Barney Kenet to learn more about infrared saunas. He said in Finland there are five million people and two million saunas.
"Historically, it's been great for them," he said. "I'd recommend it. It's a lovely experience."
He added infrared saunas are not a medical treatment.
"There are a lot of medical claims that are really unsubstantiated regarding saunas," he said. "You won't have any sustainable weight loss, you won't lose toxins, but you will feel good. You'll have increase blood flow, you'll sweat a little bit, you'll be relaxed."
The winter spa is open through early April. A private tent for an hour costs $65. Bring a friend and the tent for two costs $60.
