Cullercoats Beach Sauna – The Hot Topic!
Cullercoats Beach Sauna – The Hot Topic!
At CBK Adventures, we’re passionate about creating meaningful outdoor experiences that connect people with the North East coastline and our beach sauna at Cullercoats has been a unique part of that journey.
The Bigger Picture
We see the development of semi-permanent saunas along the North Tyneside coast as a hugely positive opportunity - not just for physical and mental wellbeing, but also for local economic growth. Sauna culture is thriving across the UK, with hundreds now lining our coastlines. To see this movement reach our stretch of the North East is exciting and long overdue.
A Bit About CBK Adventures
If you're new to us, here’s a quick introduction. CBK Adventures is primarily a watersports provider. We offer guided tours, lessons and equipment hire for kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) and coasteering - operating from our base at Cullercoats as well as some beautiful inland locations.
Alongside our activities, our quirky hub in Cullercoats offers an array of watersports gear, accessories and locally designed casual apparel. We're proud to work closely with fellow local businesses, regularly donate to regional charities and partner with Cullercoats RNLI to promote water safety.
Last year alone, we introduced over 2,000 children to the water, building their confidence, teaching essential safety skills and helping them fall in love with the sea.
As a seasonal, weather-dependent business operating in a high-risk environment, we take safety seriously. We’re an AALA licensed operator, a delivery partner of Paddle UK and we work with a brilliant team of experienced, highly qualified guides. Our policies and procedures are thorough, our risk assessments extensive and our insurance comprehensive.
Currently, we employ 26 staff across a mix of full-time, part-time and freelance positions.
What Sauna Means To Us
The beach sauna helps us extend our season into the quieter months, supports job retention and provides an invaluable service to the community - a warm space to retreat to after a bracing sea dip or a moment of stillness by the water’s edge.
Truthfully, it hasn’t been easy. There are early starts, equipment maintenance, significant running costs and a mountain of logistics. But we’ve invested time, care and love into making it work - listening to our customers, refining the experience and constantly improving.
We know the value it brings: a sense of wellbeing, connection and joy. It’s not just a sauna - it’s an experience.
Looking Ahead
If the opportunity arose to establish a semi-permanent sauna site on Cullercoats Bay, we’d welcome it wholeheartedly. The benefits would be significant:
Year-round operation
More flexible scheduling
Ability to run more sessions per day
Space to accommodate larger groups
Reduced setup and pack-down time
A sheltered base for our team
Greater financial sustainability
Increased benefit to the wider community - supporting tourism, hospitality and local businesses
Currently, our beach sauna operates from the north end of Cullercoats Bay - a spot we’ve grown to love and care for deeply. With new developments on the horizon, we understand there may be some confusion and some may assume we’re behind the proposed sauna installation near the RNLI station.
North Tyneside Council have informed us that all beach sauna operations in the area are to cease operating imminently. NTC have identified three sauna sites along the coast between Tynemouth and Whitley Bay and only these locations will be permitted to offer sauna services from a semi-permanent structure, off-grid, without power or water supplies. Two sites have been pre-awarded by NTC, one at Longsands South, another at Cullercoats North, with the third site at Whitley Bay the only site that was made available for tender.
To clarify: the Cullercoats site has currently been pre-awarded to a business from outside of the local area, one without the local roots or connection to this community that we’ve worked hard to nurture. We won’t pretend it hasn’t been disappointing. As Cullercoats residents ourselves and owners of a Cullercoats based business, we would have welcomed the opportunity to apply for the site and work with local communities and Cullercoats groups to submit a proposal that could work for everyone.
Cullercoats Bay isn’t just where we work - it’s our home. Our team lives and breathes this coastline and everything we do is driven by a desire to share it, protect it and contribute to the community that makes it so special. We believe our experience, our safety-first ethos and our collaborative, community-focused approach make us a natural fit for a more permanent sauna presence here.
While the future of CBK’s sauna is uncertain, we remain optimistic. We're currently exploring all possibilities to ensure our sauna can return for the winter 2025/26 season - better than ever.
We understand that change can be difficult and the addition of new infrastructure to our coast may raise concerns. But we also believe that with thoughtful planning and community collaboration, this could be a force for good - benefiting locals and visitors alike. If you haven’t yet experienced the magic of a beach sauna, we wholeheartedly encourage you to give it a go. There’s nothing quite like the exhilarating contrast of cold water and heat - it has to be felt to be believed.
See you on the beach!
Warmly,
The CBK Adventures Team