Award-winning seaside sauna refused permanent home despite petition backing

Bruce Sinclair, Local Democracy Reporter

Plans to allow an award-winning seaside sauna to remain permanently at its current location have been refused, despite the backing of hundreds of supporters.

Members of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park’s development management committee voted to reject an application to retain Hwyl Outdoor Sauna at Saundersfoot Harbour after planning officers warned it would harm the setting of the conservation area, restrict public access and had not been supported by an updated flood consequences assessment.

The mobile wood-fired sauna was granted temporary planning permission in June 2024 and has operated at the harbour for the past two years.

Owner Kerry Evans had applied to make the permission permanent, arguing the business had become a popular attraction for both residents and visitors, promoting health and wellbeing while helping to draw people to Saundersfoot throughout the year.

The application attracted widespread public support, with a petition signed by 558 people calling for the sauna to remain. Supporters described it as a major asset for the village and a unique attraction for visitors.

The business has also received national media coverage and, earlier this year, won Sauna of the Year 2026/27 at the Wales Prestige Awards.

However, planning officers concluded the proposal should be refused because of its impact on the Saundersfoot Conservation Area, the reduction in public space along the promenade and the lack of an updated Flood Consequences Assessment.

A report to committee also noted that the latest application included a booking office built after the original temporary permission was granted, meaning the scale of development was greater than that previously approved.

During the meeting, officers suggested there may be scope to relocate the sauna elsewhere within the harbour area, but warned that allowing it to remain in its current position could create a precedent for similar developments in other sensitive locations within the national park, including Tenby and Parrog in Newport.

Addressing the committee, Ms Evans said the sauna had become “a successful local business” that had attracted thousands of visitors while creating a strong community around sea swimming and wellbeing.

She said the current location was fundamental to the business because it offered users privacy while providing views across Saundersfoot Bay.

“For many first-time customers, that first time when they step in and look at the waves rolling in is unforgettable,” she said.

Ms Evans added that the sauna had operated safely over the past two years and was moved whenever severe weather was forecast.

Former Saundersfoot county councillor Phil Baker highlighted the petition supporting the business and said the sauna had become part of the harbour’s successful regeneration. Current county councillor Chris Williams also backed the application, telling members there had not been a single complaint from residents or businesses about the sauna’s presence.

Despite those arguments, members accepted officers’ recommendation to refuse the application.

Visual impact

Cllr Di Clements, who proposed refusal, described Hwyl as “a brilliant business” but said the visual impact of the development meant it could not remain in its current location. She expressed hope that officers and the applicant could identify an alternative site.

Seconding the motion, Cllr Michael Williams warned that approving the application could create a planning precedent that might be relied on by future applicants elsewhere in the national park.

Committee chairman Cllr Simon Hancock said members wanted the business to continue but in a location that addressed the planning concerns.

“We all desperately want this business to continue, but in a location that reflects the concerns of the national park,” he said.

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