In June, the Minnetonka City Council moved $55,000 of existing capital funding toward a second sauna at Shady Oak Beach. The council summary gave the reason as meeting "growing demand without increasing the overall project budget." That sauna opened this fall alongside the original. The bigger change starts Wednesday, Nov. 18. With two saunas running, the winter schedule offers more than 30 public sessions a week, and a lot of them land on weeknight evenings.
The city describes the addition as "twice the offerings, twice the cold plunges and twice the heat." The schedule tables show what that means in practice. When you book is about to matter less than it used to.
Last winter's January 2026 Minnetonka Memo listed sauna sessions on Wednesdays and Friday through Sunday, at $25 per person. This winter's schedule on the Sauna in the Parks page adds Thursdays. It also packs the Friday and Saturday evenings with sessions that start every 45 minutes.
The 45 minutes is the key detail. The two saunas are named Horizon and Vista, and each session runs 1 hour and 25 minutes. Their start times are staggered, so a new session begins about halfway through the one before it. On a Thursday this winter, public sessions start at 4:30, 5:15, 6 and 6:45 p.m. You can leave work at 4 or at 6 and still find a slot.
Here's how the public sessions compare. The fall schedule runs through Nov. 15, and the winter schedule starts Nov. 18:
| Day | Fall public sessions, through Nov. 15 | Winter public sessions, from Nov. 18 |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | None | 4 evening sessions, 4:30 to 6:45 p.m. starts |
| Thursday | None | 4 evening sessions, 4:30 to 6:45 p.m. starts |
| Friday | 4 sessions, 4:30 to 6:45 p.m. starts | 7 sessions, 3 to 7:30 p.m. starts |
| Saturday | 7 sessions, 11:15 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. starts | 10 sessions, 9:45 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. starts |
| Sunday | 7 sessions, 11:15 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. starts | 7 sessions, 11:15 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. starts |
That works out to 18 public sessions a week this fall and 32 a week once winter starts. Public sessions hold seven or eight people each. So the extra capacity is several dozen seats a week, and most of it lands between Wednesday afternoon and Saturday night. The city has also added holiday hours on Dec. 23, Dec. 28 through 31, and Jan. 1, the stretch when a lot of people have days off and guests in town.
The city's Sept. 30 announcement calls everything from Oct. 23 through Dec. 6 "fall sessions," with "extended weekday offerings beginning Nov. 18." The schedule tables on the program page split fall and winter at mid-November. Registration opens in blocks, so check the availability calendar before you plan a December visit around a specific day.
The second sauna also changes how weekends work for public visitors. Private group reservations cost $280 for up to 10 people and are offered at select hours on Saturdays and Sundays. On the posted schedule, every private weekend block is in Horizon, from 1:30 p.m. through the 6 p.m. session. Vista stays public all afternoon and evening, every 90 minutes.
The Star Tribune's 2024 roundup of lake saunas described Minnetonka's setup that season as a single wood-fired sauna on Shady Oak Beach, at $25 for a 90-minute session. With two saunas on site, a birthday group or a neighbors' outing on Saturday afternoon runs alongside the public schedule. The private groups and the people booking one ticket each have their own sauna.
The program has grown quickly. It began as a one-week pilot from Dec. 27 to Jan. 2 over the 2023 holidays. The city brought it back as a full season starting Oct. 4, 2024. It now has two saunas and a schedule that runs from October through April. Shady Oak Beach is shared ground, too. Its programming comes up in Hopkins-Minnetonka Joint Recreation updates to the Hopkins Park Board, which noted in October 2024 that "the Shady Oak sauna is open for reservations."
A session costs $28 per person this season, up from the $25 listed last winter. Guests must be 18 or older, and you have to register in advance. If you cancel at least a week ahead, you get a refund. Here's how the city lays out a session:
The packing list is specific:
Leave the alcohol, portable speakers and strong fragrances at home, since all three are prohibited. If you need an accessible setup, the city can rearrange the sauna with advance notice. Contact Jesse Izquierdo at 952-939-8351.
The longer winter schedule means more sessions in January's real cold. The city's weather policy sets clear limits. The sauna closes when sustained wind chill is forecast below minus 20 for most of the day, or when sustained air temperature is forecast below minus 5 for most of the day. Registered guests get an email if their session is canceled.
Plunging after the lake freezes over has depended on aeration in past seasons. The Star Tribune reported in 2024 that Shady Oak Lake is aerated with a bubbler, so sauna guests could plunge all winter. The Hopkins facility page for Shady Oak Beach warns that an aerator near the floating dock keeps open water there through the winter. Open water next to ice is exactly what thin-ice signs are there for. Plunge only where the sauna host directs you, and stay off the ice around the aerated area.
The weeknight schedule makes it easy to fit food in on one end. yum! Kitchen and Bakery is at 6001 Shady Oak Road, just up the road from the beach. It's family-owned and open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. That works for a 5:15 Thursday session followed by dinner, or a 6:45 session after a meal. The kitchen closes before the last evening sessions let out at 8:10 and 8:55 p.m., so if you're booked late, eat beforehand.
For the Saturday morning sessions that start in winter, at 9:45 and 10:30 a.m., Base Camp Coffee & Provisions at 14635 Excelsior Boulevard opens at 8 a.m. on Saturdays and closes at 3 p.m. You can get coffee there before the 9:45 session, or come back afterward if you're dressed for it. Base Camp opens at 7 a.m. on weekdays and closes at 3 p.m., so it suits weekend visits better than evening ones.
Want to make Thursday your sauna night? Booking is now open on the City of Minnetonka's Sauna in the Parks page. The fall schedule runs through Nov. 15, and the weeknight sessions start Nov. 18.
At Brooks Team, we keep track of the small changes, like a new sauna or an added Thursday, that change how a Minnetonka winter goes for the people who live here. If you're thinking about your next move and want a team that knows the area this well, schedule a free market consultation. We'll happily talk about which nearby neighborhoods put Shady Oak Beach a short drive away.
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