Bathroom Remodeling Inspired by Steam at AIRE Ancient Baths New York

How do bathroom remodeling and a steamy, intensely relaxing experience at AIRE Ancient Baths in New York City relate? Perfectly, when it's a matter of BlogTour NYC design bloggers gaining firsthand knowledge about steamtherapy with guidance from Mr.Steam, a longtime sponsor of BlogTour.

For Mr.Steam, BlogTour is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to interact with design bloggers and hear firsthand what kinds of questions they encounter from clients looking to create a personal renewal space in their bathroom. It's also an opportunity to expose them to the many therapeutic aspects of steam in conjunction with an immersive design event - in this case ICFF 2014, the International Contemporary Furniture Fair.

Bathroom Remodeling Inspiration Starts With Real World Stresses

The visit to AIRE Ancient Baths NYC began when the BlogTour bloggers met to stroll along the Highline, a public park built on a historic freight railway above the streets of Upper West Manhattan. Imagine a park from which you can still see, feel and hear the intense bustle of New York City. As you become more immersed in the greenery and the height, you begin to relax and separate yourself from the intensity of the city.

And then, you step into another world where real world stresses no longer matter. 

How AIRE Ancient Baths Creates an Inspiring Steam Experience

AIRE Ancient Baths New York - as its name suggests - strives to deliver a spa experience like that of the Roman, Greek and Ottoman empires by using water (and its multiple forms) to help visitors attain the ultimate in physical and mental relaxation. More specifically,

"The bathing ritual began in the "Tepidarium", the warm-water pool, then went on to the "Caldarium", the hot-water pool or the high-temperature steam room "Lanconicum", and lastly to the "Frigidarium", the cold-water pool. 

(You can learn more about Greek and Roman bathing rituals in the Steam Bathing: A Journey through the Ages series with Steam Bathing History with the Ancient Greeks and Romans.)  

Here's how that translates in terms of a 90 minute thermal session which takes you through several bath chambers at varying temperatures:

• Warm-water pool of 97 degrees F

• Hot-water pool of 102 degrees F

• Cold-water pool of 61 degrees F & cold-water pool below 46 degrees F (Yikes!)

• Steam Room at 102 degrees F including aromatherapy of jasmine, eucalyptus or peppermint

• Propeller jet bath of 97 degrees F

• Salt Water Pool of 100 degrees F , a very popular bath with its capability to induce complete mental relaxation

As you progress through the bath chambers at Ancient Baths NY, you'll find a relaxation room complete with hot marble stone to rest on and fresh beverages to hydrate, as well as a variety of massages to complement the ritual of steam bathing.

Design Ideas to Inspire Bathroom Remodeling

Ancient Baths New York is built in a style that emulates ancient Roman baths and the luxurious entertaining associated with them in the 5th century BC -- with many flickering candlelights throughout the space against rustic brick walls. Warm, inviting, relaxing even sexy.

Here's how Veronika Miller, CEO of Modenus.com and creator of BlogTour describes her experience at AIRE Ancient Baths NY:

"I loved the contrast between the bustle of the streets of Soho, NYC and the complete silence of the baths at the spa, the beautifully designed interior was the perfect setting for various bathing and massage experiences.  

The pools ranged from body temperature to very hot to ice cold along with a salt water pool for floating. The changing temperatures were both invigorating and soothing. The highlight however, was the steambath, which forces the user to be quiet, sit back and relax, and that's what it's all about."

(Check out a few of the benefits of steam for body, mind and soul not to mention how steam therapy can help achieve glowing skin and relieve allergies.)

Design blogger and photographer Anya Jensen, in A Day Of Tranquility & Steam!!, describes her experience at Ancient Baths NY,

"The place was candlelit and the waters amazingly soothing. First we got in to the pool with body temperature water, then very hot water, freezing pools x 2, and into the steam room, where - at first - I couldn't breathe, but that lasted a mere 10 seconds, and then it was bliss. The body relaxed, the mind drifted, some of us chatted away, others relaxed in their own little worlds."

Add Steam to your Bathroom Remodeling for AIRE Ancient Baths-Inspired Personal Renewal

Although most bathroom remodeling projects won't necessarily include a variety of different temperature bath chambers, they can include steam for everyday personal renewal. And steam is easier than you might think to include in your bathroom remodeling.

Just think - you, too, can create your own personal AIRE Ancient Baths experience in your home...