I’m sitting in a bathtub on a beach. Waves are crashing, people pass by with dogs, and the only thing I have for company is a bag of seaweed. Surprisingly, I’m not in the throes of a strange dream that I’ll try to make sense of in the morning, I’m just enjoying a seaweed bath in Dorset.
I’d discovered seaweed bathing a few weeks beforehand, reading an article about the revival of the ancient tradition in Ireland. The comments were filled with passion for the practice, with people enthusing, “I felt renewed!” and, “soaking in seaweed [is] a delightful way to pass the time”. As a person who likes to feel renewed and delighted, I was sold. While there are countless seaweed baths in Ireland due to an abundance of the green stuff, the wellness activity is migrating over to the UK, popping up in Wales, and closer afield at Sae, in Dorset.
Located in Studland, with bathtubs contained within beach huts on a path overlooking the sea, it has an intimate feel, particularly as it’s not overrun by tourists or daytrippers. When I arrive, I’m given instructions — first to use the nettle foot scrub, then the elderflower face mask, then to submerge in the bath. The scrub and mask are both made by Sae, and all of the seaweed used in the baths is sustainably sourced by the husband/wife team, Jade and Dan. While I’d read that seaweed baths traditionally involve sitting in a barrel on the beach while stewing in stray seaweed, they decided that being horizontal was probably more relaxing. And, when it came to the seaweed, they found that keeping it contained within muslin bags helped to make it more palatable for people. As Dan described it, “we’re like the gateway seaweed bath.”
I arrive at Sae a broken woman plagued by a cold bestowed upon me by my three-year-old daughter. My head feels heavy, I can’t hear anything, and I feel like I’ve aged about a hundred years. But, thankfully, somewhere between the tightened clay mask, sounds of the sea, and pickling in seaweed water, the fog lifts and I begin to feel much more relaxed, clear-headed, and less like a sad, leaky rubbish bag.
Intrigued by the seaweed bag, I picked it up and found some unexpected viscous gloop seeping from it. Instinctively, I put the unknown matter on my face and neck, later learning that I hadn’t lost my mind and was supposed to be doing that. According to Dan, this gelatinous substance is secreted between high tide and low tide when the seaweed is exposed in order to keep itself moist, and that by heating it in the bath you essentially trick it to undergo this process. The result is a hydrating serum of sorts that helps to lock in moisture, boost collagen, and alleviate conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.
The benefits of seaweed bathing are wide-ranging due to the vitamins and minerals contained in it that not only help skin conditions, but also ease muscle pains and assist in toxin removal. For Jade, the baths have become an important part of her life after being diagnosed with a connective tissue disease and Mast Cell disease, a rare condition causing repeated allergic reactions. After searching for ways to naturally reduce muscle pain, she stumbled upon the benefits of seaweed bathing, and says that, “I just started doing it at home and felt much better.”
Jade and Dan opened Sae in the summer of 2024, and have noticed a pattern in the type of visitors who flock to them — the summer brings people looking for a novel experience, and the winter draws more of a “health and wellness” crowd. And, beyond just bathing, Jade and Dan hope to connect their customers more to nature, and hope that the experience will also encourage them customers to join in on their foraging expeditions.
As a person who puts snail serum on her face, I entered this experience without an aversion to seaweed, and was surprised to learn how many people can find it off-putting. For those in this camp, I’d say that it’s worth a try if you want a relaxing activity, have some muscles to soothe, or skin conditions to allay. You can stay away from the seaweed bags and live safely in the knowledge that you won’t be attacked by a gelatinous tentacle during the experience. But for those who are less squeamish, in addition to all of the health benefits of seaweed bathing, it’s also a lot of fun to play with the goop.
Fancy a seaweed bathe? Try:
UK
Sae, Middle beach, Studland, Dorset, BH19 3AP; saeseaweed.co.uk
Halen Môn, Brynsiencyn, Isle of Anglesey, LL616TQ; halenmon.com
Ireland
VOYA Seaweed Baths, Strandhill, Co. Sligo, Ireland; voyaseaweedbaths.com
SOAK Connemara Seaweed Baths, Market Street, Clifden, Connemara, Co Galway, Ireland, H71XA52; connemaraseaweedbaths.com
Sneem Seaweed, Goldens Cove, Drimna Beg, Sneem, Co. Kerry, V93 XV44, Ireland; sneemseaweed.ie
Can’t make it to a seaweed bath? You can test out the benefits of seaweed with skincare range Ishga and Sae is launching its own range at the end of November.
