As a Russian person who went to this bathhouse expecting a real banya, I have to say I was disappointed. The only aspect of a russian banya that this place holds is its deceptive name. If you are expecting samovars, wood paneling and matryoshkas, this is not the place for you.
The lounge room was just an empty carpeted room with a couple of lawn chairs and some exercise balls, not exactly what I call cozy. The tea room was also rather plainly furnished and they only offered one type of tea in paper cups. Though, I have to say the place was very clean.
A Russian bathhouse is a place where people go to not only to get clean and relax, but also to socialize. To me, this is a very important aspect of the Banya, yet upon entering Banya 5 it seemed as if the place had some sort of unspoken rule about silence. Everyone talked in whispers and kept to themselves, I began to feel uncomfortable talking to my own mother sitting next to me.
Now that I've covered my thoughts about the atmosphere of Banya 5 let's get to the most important part; the facilities.
Banya 5 has two steam rooms: a turkish steam room and a "parilka".
They may call this room a parilka, but in actuality it holds a closer resemblance to an oven. First of all, the room was completely dry, with no opportunity to splash water onto rocks to create steam, so in this way if anything it was more of a sauna. Second of all the temperature was extremely high, even for a sauna. Apparently they sell veniki there (but not everyday), but I really can't imagine how anyone could use a venik in a completely dry parilka. Sitting there for more than 10 minutes was unbearable. Another negative was the benches. They were uncomfortable and too small, making lying down a challenge.
As for the Turkish steam room, I am of a completely different opinion. The room was spacious and the temperature inside was perfect. As a bonus they put fresh eucalyptus plants near the holes were the steam came out of so as a result the whole room was filled with a pleasant eucalyptus scent. Overall it was one of the best steam rooms I have ever experienced.
Along with the stream rooms Banya 5 also has three pools: a cold tub, a warm salt water pool, and a hot tub. All three were clean and pleasant, I especially enjoyed the salt water pool.
The staff were friendly enough and I struck up a conversation with one of them. I asked a couple of questions about Banya 5 and was surprised to learn that the original owner was an American and not a Russian. Nothing wrong with this in general but it explained the lack of Russian in the supposedly Russian bathhouse.
If it weren't for the great steam room I would say that this place is not worth the price (40$). The steam room is really its redeeming quality, but even with this in mind I have been to bathhouses that charge half the price of this one and have better facilities. This place is great for anyone who dosen't know better and just wants to go to a spa to relax, but if you are in to authentic banyas that offer delicious food, an assortment of tea, and a lively atmosphere where you can freely engage in friendly conversation with whoever, I advise you skip this place. read more