What a sunset! And how incredibly clear water there is! And no one around. Granted, it is late in the evening on a Thursday night, but still.
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August 2026, Punkaharjun yleinen uimaranta, Punkaharju, Finland
Swimming (Water, Waterbody-Lake, Beach)
Kruunupuisto is a hotel and a spa in the classic Finnish lakeside area of Punkaharju. The hotel has a spa with easy and affordable access. They also have a beach with free access. However, until now I had not realized they also had a spectacular sauna by the beach. Sadly, it has been available for rent for 320 euros, but has this year become available on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings for a mere 5€ per person.
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August 2026, Kruunupuiston uimaranta, Punkaharju, Finland
Sauna (Normal); Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Lake, Beach)
I'm on a health rehab course at Kruunupuisto, in beautiful Punkaharju. But I arrived late due to stopping at friends and caves... it was dark, almost closing time of the hotel reception. But I was on a mission: have to swim every day. Hence I headed to the by now dark beach at Kruunupuisto.
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August 2026, Kruunupuiston uimaranta, Punkaharju, Finland
Swimming (Water, Waterbody-Lake, Beach)
Hollywood. Not that one, not in Los Angeles... I mean the one in the outskirts of Belgrade's airport... the water park and swimming hall. That one.
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August 2026, Aqua Park Hollywoodland, Belgrade, Serbia; Wellness Land, Belgrade, Serbia
Swimming (Indoor, Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool)
Karjalankallion laavu (the lean-to of Karelia Cliffs) is a nice, easy to reach fire-pit and viewing point near the Punkaharju Arboretum. The arboretum hosts among other things Finland's tallest tree.
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August 2026, Karjalankallion ranta, Punkaharju, Finland
Swimming (Water, Outdoor, Waterbody-Lake)
A wonderful German beach, Freizeitanlage St.Alban, in the town of Dießen am Ammersee. Wasn't particularly overcrowded as lakes go in Germany, either. There's a grass, trees, places to sit, restaurant/kiosk, bathrooms, playgrounds, several piers, a floating platform a bit further out, boating, etc.
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August 2026, Freizeitanlage St.Alban, Dießen am Ammersee, Germany
Swimming (Water, Waterbody-Lake, Beach, Outdoor)
... too busy, too little time to swim. I hope floating on the basement jacuzzi qualifies as a swim on my swim-every-day challenge?
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August 2026, House Arkko, Kauniainen, Finland
Swimming (Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool)
It was a long drive, two hours from the office/home. But I found a small fishing village with a great spa, access was affordable (just 12€), they had nice outdoor pools shielded from the wind by glass, a 25-meter indoor pool, a good, dark-wood-colored sauna, a steam room, and even an infrared sauna (though with additional cost).
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August 2026, Kasnäs bad, Kasnäs, Finland
Swimming (Indoor, Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool); Sauna (Normal, Steam)
After another sweaty cave exploration, I had to get the sweat off. I was returning from Punkaharja back home to Kauniainen, but splitting the drive to two days by stopping for the night in Mikkeli. I always love the underground swimming halls (like those in Itäkeskus or Tampere), so now it was time for another one: the Naisvuoren uimahalli in Mikkeli. Deep inside the rocky hill in the middle of the city, home to gyms, swimming hall, and WWII-era command centers. Interesting place, must be like Swiss cheese inside that hill!
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August 2026, Naisvuoren uimahalli, Mikkeli, Finland
Swimming (Water, Indoor, Waterbody-Pool); Sauna (Normal); Urban-Exploration (Bunkers)
Wow, had a hard day demoing for work, but this find right in the center of Stockholm was so relaxing: the Selma City Spa, on the roof of the Clarion Hotel Sign by the main train station was something else. A very nice sauna, relaxation rooms, a small cafeteria, and then the pool outside on the roof. And you could order drinks directly to the pool.
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August 2026, Selma City Spa, Stockholm, Sweden
Sauna (Normal); Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool)
Prirovo beach is right next to the city center and port of Vis. It is next to the Hotel Issa beach as well, but the Issa beach is piers and rocks, while Prirovo is nice round pebbles. And the time I happened to be here was at night, with full moon rising from the other side of the Vis bay. Wonderful!
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July 2026, Prirovo beach, Vis, Vis, Croatia
Swimming (Water, Waterbody-Sea, Beach, Outdoor)
On my way back to the airport I saw a beach on the way, just by the road. A quick swim was called for, after a lot of sweaty skiing and bunkering and travel around Copenhagen.
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July 2026, Solgårdsparken strand, Køge, Denmark
Swimming (Water, Waterbody-Sea, Beach)
The Tuusula swimming hall has been in renovations for a long time, a year? Now at the start of the summer 2026 it re-opened. Of course I had to visit!
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July 2026, Tuusulan Uimahalli, Hyrylä, Tuusula, Finland
Swimming (Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool); Sauna (Normal)
There's a few beaches around the town of Vis (on the island of Vis) in the Croatian archipelago. Like the one in front of the hotel Issa. Plaža Grandovac is another beach, in the natural environment where you can't really see the city just the sea and the beautiful pine tree forests. It is northeast from the city, at the entrance of the bay. You can walk there from the city, it is about a 2 km walk. A nice walk!
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June 2026, Plaža Grandovac, Vis, Vis, Croatia
Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Sea, Beach)
Valkeakoski. I knew this place mostly for the paper mill, but it is small city. And has a swimming hall! Since I was nearby, I wanted to try it.
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June 2026, Valkeakosken uimahalli, Valkeakoski, Finland
Swimming (Waterbody-Pool, Water, Indoor); Sauna (Normal)
Small but cute. And very sandy. A most of all, near my work place in Kirkkonummi, just a 14 minute drive... good evening exercise.
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June 2026, Pilvijärven uimaranta, Kirkkonummi, Finland
Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Lake, Beach)