If you are into the Banya Culture than this place is worth a visit. Other reviews really cover all of the bases. I highly recommend this place. read more

Went here to relax after school. It was a bit cramped, but the amenities were nice. The people in pools told me about the correct circuit- the people at the desk should've told me about this- but the circuit really works read more

I went back. Again, on a weekday. Upgraded to four stars because the hot tub was hot this time, there was a lovely tea selection, the atmosphere was very nice, and the employees were very slightly more kind. I still plan on avoiding weekends though. read more

As many other yelpers have pointed out, this is a great relaxing spa. It is a russian-style bathhouse with many different options for cycles. Hot tub, Steam room, Cold shower, Sauna, cold plunge and salt water pool. It's a very social spa experience, so come with a friend. It is co-ed. Once you're in you can stay as long as you want (well, until they close). Upstairs they have relaxation area with teas as well as a stretching/napping room. A really fun spa experience! read more

This is a great place! Very clean, comfortable and well run. Not super cheap by any means, but worth a fair deal. I had a massage there also by Kreschenda--best massage that I can remember. read more

I usually write some kind of tongue-in-cheek bullshit when I review a place. I'll keep it on the straight and narrow for Banya5: this place is a life saver. Whether your body is a temple or an amusement park, Banya5 will help keep you healthy. It is good for the immune system (I've barely been sick in the last two years, thanks to Banya), skin, heart, circulation, lymphatic system, limbic system, and for general mental health. The employees and owners are very pleasant, and the establishment is clean and nice, but unpretentious. I go once a week during the winter months, and maybe once a month during the summer. Banya5 is awesome. read more

If I had endless resources, I would visit Banya 5 at least every week. Alas, I do not have endless resources and so Banya 5 is an extra special treat. For those tragically unfamiliar with Banya 5, it is a Russian-style spa that includes a Turkish steam room, 200+ degree dry sauna, cold plunge, and tepid salt-water pool. Typically one cycles through each of these for several hours to get maximum benefit. There is a Western-style chlorinated hot tub but I rarely use it. If you are lucky you can convince one of the regulars to perform platza. This is where you are, let's not mince words, lightly whipped from head to toe with a dried oak branch called venik whilst lying on the uppermost bench of the dry sauna. It sounds painful, but it isn't and the branches have astringent and stress-reducing qualities. You really must try it. Banya 5 also has wonderful services such as massage and salt-scrubs. I have had excellent massage therapists each time I've indulged, but they are pricier than average. Banya 5 is the best place to be in mid-winter and is for obvious reasons closed for a month during summer. I can't recommend Banya 5 enough. read more

Excellent spa. They have a great set-up with several hot/warm pools and perhaps the coldest plunge I've ever experienced at a spa! Also their sauna is piping hot and steam room offers plentiful steam which is filtered through eucalyptus bundles. Overall an excellent experience. The only minor issue I had was the girl working ay the front was fairly cold and unwelcoming, but who knows maybe she was having a bad day. In any case I'd highly recommend it and if you go in for a package of 5 visits you get one free (pay for 4, get the 5th for free). Also the pass is transferable so others can use it. read more

The Banya 5 spa is incredible! As a college student, I have the unique difficulty of looking for places to relax after finals without spending much money. Banya 5 has an incredible "earlybird special" where you can enter the spa from 10 am to 2 and get half off entrance admission (normally $35). The spa is really nice, beautifully designed with very clean facilities. The staff are friendly and helpful. But mostly, I gave this place 5 stars because of the amazing experience. One begins by going into the hot sauna, until you are nice and warm, then you take a cold plunge into a ~40 degree pool. This is a scary, but amazing experience! Then you can make your way to an amazing salt-water tepid pool. Finish with either eucalyptus steam room or nice hot tub! Also there is a great room upstairs with hot tea, games, and a napping room. read more

I wish the tubs were a little further apart from each other. I'm spoiled an love esalen so dont take my review seriously. It's good enough if you can't go to big sur. read more

i have been here too many times to count--and will always prefer to come here over other kinds of spas! banya is like an escape from the world in the heart of the city, where you can sit and just let your soul melt into the heat. it's always very clean, and well managed. the staff are helpful and on top of things. and i always leave feeling like i've given my spirit a good cleaning. for about the price of a *cheap* manicure, you can spend as much time here as you like. it takes courage to jump into the ice bath after sitting in the sauna, but do it--trust me, it feels awesome. i've also had a massage here, and a salt scrub--the massage was amazing and so was the scrub, only, i was allergic to something in the scrub. there's also a tea room upstairs with unlimited high quality tea. it's fabulous with the homemade jam they provide to sweeten. read more

Hot sauna, nice steam room, had a great time. Don't go when it's busy it's a small place.

Great place to detox. The cold plunge takes a few visits to get used to. Personal record is 4 minutes. I've seen others go longer much longer. Happy hour is the best deal unless you are willing to commit to a summer or annual pass. I gave a 4 star because parking sometimes cause my visits to be short or interrupted. read more

Never been to a Russian spa before, had a great time! Loved the steam room, jumping into the cold pool (what a way to feel alive!), the pizza oven room (aka sauna), normal pool, and strong jetted hot tub. They also have a tea room upstairs and a movement/nap room which has chaises, yoga balls, and blocks. My favorite part was seeing the older Russian men drink coconut water and socialize together-makes the place fee even more legit. Slightly overpriced at about $43 after tax for all those things but definitely a good life experience! read more

I stopped into Banya with about an hour to spare after a flight. What a great way to relax. I felt refreshed, detoxed and energized when I left! I definitely recommend Banya and only hope I have more time next time! read more

I have only seen the inside of the lobby with a view of the pool and sauna and it looks really inviting. I would recommend this kind of therapy to chronic back pain and neck pain patients. Moist heat is a fantastic analgesic for chronic pain. read more

What a great find. I was hesitant at first, but once I got inside it all made sense. Very clean and well maintained. The heat / cold therapy can't be beat for muscle recovery. I'll definitely be coming back! read more

I've been a regular for awhile and would have to say something has changed this past year. I'm not sure if it's the growing South Lake Union "moneyed clientele", financial stress, or what - but their rates have been going up quickly: up 39% from last year on what used to be "happy hour" and now much more limited "early bird" hours. And no more comlimentary entry with a paid service like a massage. Don't rely on reviews here for pricing and times - go to their website to avoid surprises. Still a good escape, just won't be seeing me as a regular any longer.. :( read more

So much for the slogan of: clean, safe, and friendly environment! First of all, it is not clean and safe when there's a floating used condom in the jacuzzi. Sure, they can't control what customers do in there but how often do they check the water? That aside, once we alerted the attendant, he took it out of the water. Sign was put up for 20-30 min for closure & then jacuzzi was open for use again. No one apologized or reassure us that this is not common. What kind of friendly customer service is this? If this was a hotel or public pool then fine...but a spa that charges $40 per entry?! Desk supervisor was rude, unapologetic, acted like we were complaining to get a free pass. And of course, we still paid. He had the audacity to say someone brought it in and probably fell out of their pocket! It was not in a wrapper and it was stretched, looks pretty used and disgusting to us 4 girls in the jacuzzi at the time! 1 star is for the steam room, the rest you can find at LA fitness or any gym for less than $40/month. Literally just 2 small pools of water, a 4 person jacuzzi, a sauna and a steam room. read more

Rude staff/ownership, dirty facility. Absolute waste of time/money. Customer service is not known to owners and staff of this establishment. I'd suggest trying other places. read more

I was taken here as a birthday gift and had a wonderful time. I got a body scrub, scalp massage, and body massage, as well as full use of the facilities. Body scrub: Felt amazing. It was my first one andI really enjoyed it. The man who did it was very professional Massage: It felt good. Could have used a little more pressure and focus, but overall good. The facility was nice and clean. Would go again. read more

I received a sharp acute pain shooting up my spinal chord after spending New Years Eve curled up in a sleeping ball on a loveseat . Decided to head over to Banya for some TLC. The place was clean, modern, smelled refreshing and had just the right accommodations to relieve me from the pain. read more

As a Russian person, I must say that this place isn't super authentic. It is pretty small, too. The food is quite good, and the sauna gets very hot, which is good. Very clean, too. It's extremely expensive; we only go if we have a Groupon. read more

This place is quite expensive, but it's nearly always worth it. The facilities are clean and beautiful. My favorite massage therapist is Michelle. She gives amazing massages that leave me feeling lighter and relaxed! I highly recommend her! read more

The staff was very friendly and helpful. I wasn't a big fan of the baths and locker room. But I was only there to get a massage and it was the best massage I've had in years! Ask for Johnny and you won't be disappointed. read more

I love Banya 5! It's part of my weekly ritual and self care. I am usually a sick person - getting a cold or flu like condition every few months. I've been going to Banya for 6 months and in that time haven't gotten sick once... Talk about healthcare! The massage therapists are brilliant. See Andi for true healing / treatment work read more

Love this place! The circuit pools are great. It is always very clean whenever I'm there. My favorite thing is the eucalyptus steam room. It is a bit pricy- and that is my only hang up. read more

I wasn't sure what to expect, but from start to finish this was really a lot of fun and I felt great when I left. Not to be missed.

When I first went to the Banya, I thought the place was gorgeous! The facility looked really well kept, the clientele (except the grunty guy who was kinda pushy) was mostly friendly and the pools, hot room and steam room were so relaxing. I thought immediately that I was going to be coming back again and again. Well, that was until I kept noticing the spa attendant guy eyeballing me and my friends and I over and over again. The first time, I was flattered and thought wow, my pilates has been really paying off! That quickly wore off and it became creepy. This was a several months ago. I tried them out again and had nearly the same thing happen and I don't think I'm coming back. The Banya 5 was beautiful. I give the facility 2 thumbs up! I give the creepy staff 2 thumbs down! read more

My first trip to a spa of this type. As a Midwesterner whose auditory system cannot handle the constant din of traffic, noisy motorcycles, machines, loud talkers and noisy restaurants, I was hoping for a quiet respite, especially since I find Seattle to be a fairly quiet large American city. Previous reviewers indicated a Russian Banya is a place to socialize and they were uncomfortable with the hushed talking levels. I wish that would have been my experience at Banya 5 last night. I was resting peacefully in the hot tub when a group of loud-talkers invaded the (rather small) pool and talked loudly and incessantly about inane drivel. Two of these people obviously had no clue how loud or annoying their voices or blather were (few things more grating than hearing the words "I, me, mine" over and over again.......!). The lighting in the spa seemed it could be a little more subdued. Lots of convenient hooks and clean fresh towels. I do wish the place would use real tea cups instead of paper; is it really that much cheaper to buy thin paper cups than to run a dishwasher? This made it difficult to really enjoy the nicely flavored tea offered in the lounge. The space for yoga mats was taken over by the lounge chairs and it was not very relaxing to practice yoga in a room that was an expansion of a shared hallway. I'd hoped to sign up for the advertised evening salt scrub session but was told that the practitioner was running late that night; as I was alone in a new city at night, I was a little anxious to return to my hotel. Sadly, no one offered any sort of discount for a future session as recompense for this inconvenience. When I gently suggested this to the front desk staff, she said, "Maybe," then turned her attention to two young men who were apparently more interesting than I. Everything was super clean unless you happened to follow right behind a chick who hadn't a clue how much of her hair she'd left in the sink after she was finished blow-drying her head. Seriously? Your mother didn't teach you to wipe down the sink when you were finished? Not the fault of the staff; just inconsiderate boorishness. Kind of pricey for what one gets but I have nothing to compare. read more

My girlfriend and I came to Banya 5 on a same-day reservation and the experience was...interesting. The first appearance of the spa is positive: nice-looking building, with a pleasant welcoming lounge. The front office staff was particularly pleasant and the first-time steps were easy to follow and they answered all our questions. The moment that I entered the men's locker room, the experience took a turn for the worse. The locker room is particularly small where the lockers are located so if 2+ other people are located in the locker room, then it becomes a bit of a game of twister and awkwardly asking people to move out of the way while you reach over the bench in order to put your clothes into your locker. Then, before your massage you have to walk through the baths in order to get to the room where your masseuse takes you back to your private room. For me, this was fine and not a problem, but my girlfriend mentioned to me that her walk through the baths was particularly uncomfortable to do in a bath robe while naked and she felt like the guests in the baths were staring at her. When we arrived at the waiting room where we were told our masseuses would be waiting for us, they did not show up until 5-10 minutes past our scheduled time, so we were unable to take advantage of the full hour of the massage. The massage itself was also slightly disappointing. Whether it was just the style of massage that I wasn't used to, or the style of the masseuse, it was very slow moving and I didn't feel like the ailments I wanted removed (neck and leg tension) were taken care of. Instead you'll be drifting off into your own thoughts to suddenly realize "wait, why has this person spent 30 seconds pressing my shoulder into submission?". Overall, not a terrible experience, but I don't plan on coming back for another massage when the price tag is $100+ after tips. read more

Let me start by saying, I came for a massage and I had a WONDERFUL massage! Really, really great. HOWEVER....Several things...the locker room is small and very outdated. It was unclear where we go to get our massage, had to find someone and ask. The area upstairs is also outdated and just not very upscale, but whatever. Had a great massage, however there is a lot of construction going on next door (jack hammers, bull dozers, etc), so it was super loud and noisy in my massage room. After we finished we thought we would check out the spa amenities. Area is SUPER small and it was packed on a Saturday afternoon..no thanks. Anyways, we go to check out there are about 7 people waiting to be helped, so they were deft understaffed. We finally get checked out and notice we were both charged approx $27 each for using the spa amenities...which we didn't use, because everything was packed. Finally we get refunded (this whole process takes entirely too long...). I mention to the manager (Who was brought in to do the refund) that they should confirm with customers that they did indeed USE the spa amenities before just assuming and charging them the $27. She replied in a bitchy tone that "Most customers use them."....ummm, a) don't talk back to a customer. Own it, apologize, and move on...b) that's a very poor way to go about business, assuming you should charge people for something you don't know they used. Given my poor customer service experience, and the fact that the spa is outdated, I will not be returning and cannot recommend this place. read more

This has to be my favorite relaxation spas around Seattle. A little pricey, but well worth it.

Just wanted to share my experience of Banya 5. I went on Saturday afternoon about 3:15pm and the place was pretty busy; I'm guessing there were probably around 25-30 people there. I honestly think it would be unbearable if there were 65 people there, which is apparently the maximum based on the bather count on their website. We didn't receive any services but just enjoyed the baths. My first impression is that it is a clean and modern but very small facility, and seems poorly planned as there is a lot of wasted space. There were times the saltwater tepid pool was actually overflowing because there were too many people in it - and when I say too many, there were maybe eight people in it. I really wish they had made that pool twice the size and the cold plunge pool about half the size.. You can't stay in the plunge pool for more than a minute or so anyway whereas people were relaxing (or trying to) in the salt water tepid pool for ~10 minutes or so at a time and there just plain wasn't enough room for everyone. The plunge pool was virtually empty the entire time, since people are really just in and out. There were never two people in it at a time. The hot pool is also tiny - can fit maybe six people in it comfortably, but tight. There were also only four recliners in the 'napping' area - which of course no one is there for less than half an hour so the sizes of the pools and napping area just seemed sort of inadequate and poorly planned, to me. On the other hand, the parilka sauna and Turkish eucalyptus steam room were decent sizes and pretty nice. There is a pretty chatty atmosphere here - it's not a silent spa by any means - but people we came across were generally very friendly and social. There's also people of all shapes and sizes here which was great. My last comment is about the changing rooms, which were ludicrously small, as well. There was nowhere to put your things and really hard to manoeuver around other people getting in and out of their locker and changing and whatnot. There was a constant chorus of "sorry!! sorry!" when you're trying to get your things and dry off and get changed. There are only two showers and no stalls for anyone who might be a little more modest. We opted to just throw on our clothes and get to our hotel to have a proper shower and dry off. It would be great if they had a bathing suit drying machine too, but that's just a 'nice to have'.. All that to say, I enjoyed the two hours spent here but don't think I would return. read more

Had a $100 gift certificate. Reviews looked okay, figured let's try it out and see if this is something I can start doing regularly since I was looking for a Russian spa for a while. So I got there, was told they were at capacity, you'll have to wait, you're #4 in line. Okay, no problem. After 30 minutes, still #4 in line. After 1 hour, still #4 inline, but people kept walked in, going in, while others were leaving. I started to wonder what was going on. Turns out members don't have to wait / worry about capacity. If you want to pay $600 for a 3 month membership, you're good to go. At this point I figured okay, either refund the $100 gift certificate, or provide the service. They called their director - apparently refunds cannot be provided, service could not be provided, I can chargeback if I want. Save your money and time and go somewhere else - you'll waste both here. read more

i use to love coming here and relaxing in the sauna. the space is great . however i knew people who worked here and they were really worked to death. 10 hours of straight messages and salt scurbs will take it out of any one. however i still like to lounge the spa facilities. read more

I used to be a huge fan of the banya! It's always been a bit pricey but sometimes you need to treat yourself especially as it gets colder. But recently they raised there prices again and it's a now 48$ per person which in my opinion is crazy!!! It's not even that big there. The girl at the front desk said it's because they made improvements but I don't see any? Lame read more

Normally I would never write something so negative about a business, however I have been stewing on this for quite some time. I have been in the customer service industry for over 16 years and had never seen or been treated as scathing as I was there. The guy at the front desk was verbally abusing and aggressive, how they are still in business while he is there is beyond me. I booked two appointments there on my anniversary and was the biggest mistake. I was super sick so when I came in I explained what was going on, they denied me services and than charged my cc for 350$. I tried to reschedual and was told no over and over. There are many great spa's in Seattle, this is NOT one of them......please think it over before going there. read more

this is my seattle wintertime escape. there's nothing better than the steam room....sauna....icy plunge...salt pool...hot tub sequence (repeat as desired). if the regulars are there, make sure you get them to beat you with the venik (a special bundle of branches and leaves). i recommend ending your visit with a shot or two of ice cold vodka. nostrovia! read more

I'm not the kind of girl that flings money around on cosmetics and spas and treatments all the time, so when I DO go to the spa, it's quite a special occassion. That said, I've only ever been to Olympus up in Lynnwood and Banya 5 so I can't make too many comparisons...but there are somethings that I clearly like and don't like about Banya 5. Let's get the don't-like's out of the way, first. -The normal $35 entry fee seems steep, given that their facilities aren't even that big (read: if you go on a remotely busy day, you'll be less able to relax and more concerned with how to relax without getting remotly close to that hairy guy over there) and there's not much variety. -Another note about their facilities: not sure about the men's bathroom, but in the women's bathroom, there were only two showers and one toilet. SERIOUSLY? And, now, for the like's: -If you go early on a Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, the entry fee is halved, which makes it a solidly reasonable entry fee. While it's true, as I mentioned above, that the variety of pools and rooms is not as numerous as, say, Olympus, the ones they do have are fun to hang around in. DON'T BE A CHICKEN! RELAX IN THE HOT TUB AND TAKE THE PLUNGE INTO THE FREEZING COLD POOL! It feels awesome and, at the risk of sounding crazy, is one of my favorite things to do here. -There's a nice big area to relax upstairs, where my boyfriend and I retreated to when we wanted to take a break from all the soaking and sauna-ing. There's complimentary tea, magazines scattered around, some board games and, in another room, they have beachy lounge chairs set up for you to nap in. -Lastly, the biggest upside of Banya 5? That I can lounge around in a spa for hours with my boyfriend by my side! read more