We Review Samara's New Gubernsky Baths: Steam, Food, and Prices
The biggest and most honest review for those who enjoy intense heat.
In late November, Gubernsky Baths quietly opened on Moscow Highway in Samara. The venue wasn«t heavily advertised, but hedonism and wellness enthusiasts have already taken a liking to it and are steaming away. We couldn»t resist and went to evaluate the new location.
Here is the full price list for services and amenities.
See what came of it in the video. And from the text below, learn everything: prices, details, and the pros and cons of the place.
Hello, I«m Alexandra, testing the most popular spots in this city for you.
What are Gubernsky Baths
I arrived by taxi, but if I had decided to use my own car, I likely would have had to pay extra—what can you manage in just 2 hours?
The establishment presents itself as a bath and gastronomic complex for 120 guests and promises to immerse us in the atmosphere of old Samara.
Previously, the establishment «Three Deer» was here, which many remember. Now it«s »Restaurant of Honest Prices,« and nearby, slightly to the left—the baths.
«Gubernsky Baths is an entire tradition, recreated with love. Here you»ll find oak shelves, wooden decor with patterns, and archival photos transporting you to 19th-century Samara,« says the VK group.
In general, the principle is similar to «Samara Thermes.»
It further notes that the steam room accommodates 50 people, and there«s also a private steam room.
We enter and immediately to the right—behind the curtain, there«s the changing room.
Also available to guests are «ice plunge pools, a jacuzzi, and the heart of the complex—a 40-ton stone stove, the only one in the city. After bath procedures—Volga cuisine: boiled crayfish, dried fish, snacks, and house-made kvass.»
The changing room is quite small: here you should change into a swimsuit, switch shoes, take your belongings with you, and go out to the restaurant.
A two-hour stay in the complex costs 1,000 rubles ($11 at current rates), if you come before 5:00 PM on a weekday. If you don«t finish within 2 hours, per-minute billing starts. However, the prices are reasonable. Indeed, in the evening and on weekends, a visit will cost a bit more.
Each table has a number. You can«t sit at any—you need to find yours. The number matches your bracelet»s number. If it«s your first time, waiters will show and explain everything, warmly and with a smile.
Let«s Go Scouting
Each seat doubles as a locker for belongings, opened using your bracelet.
When the establishment first opened (in November), it faced a lot of hate in online reviews. The fairer half of Samara didn«t like that only men were allowed into the new bathhouse.
You can hang clothes, throw in a backpack or bag.
Soon, the situation changed. Now, Gubernsky Baths has a women«s day, which is Tuesday. All other days are for men. So, the 63.RU correspondent didn»t have much choice—being a woman, I went to test the complex on Tuesday.
The lower part (where you sit) also opens—like luggage compartment on a train—where you can leave shoes or other items.
Gubernsky Baths is located on Moscow Highway / Michurina—a bit further than «Maximilians» and opposite «Iceberg».
There«s only one common steam room, but it»s large. Every two hours, it closes for 15 minutes for airing.
Inside, everything is quite decent: not many people, the premises are finished with wood, there«s a New Year tree, it smells pleasantly of banya and bath whisks. We enter, put on shoe covers, hand over our clothes to the cloakroom. We go to the reception.
Many convenient little things—hooks where you can hang a robe…
Nice girls record my phone number and give me a green bracelet. They don«t take payment—later, on exit, they»ll calculate by the minute, and then I«ll need to pay.
…and even a place for glasses!
«Since you»re alone, we«re seating you at a two-person table in the restaurant. If another girl comes alone, we can seat her with you,» the administrators warn.
Collective steam sessions—every 2 hours, there«s a schedule. But you don»t have to follow it. For example, if you«re sitting in the restaurant, a bath attendant comes out, rings a bell, and announces »Fresh steam!«
I mentally wonder: what does the restaurant have to do with it, I came for the baths? But a bit later, it turns out that in this establishment, your table in the restaurant is also your locker for belongings. So, each guest is assigned a specific spot.
They let us into the steam room. It really is very large. Clean, heated. It feels like it could fit not 50 people, as stated on the website, but all 100.
But first—the changing room.
That praised stove—let«s look at it up close.
You can have a snack or drink kvass. Or something stronger. Or you can finally go steam.
The same steam room, but from a different angle.
On a weekday, during working hours, there weren«t very many girls—maybe 20 people (I waited until everyone left to take a photo). The collective steam session was conducted by two steam masters, men. All ladies were in swimsuits, men—in black shorts and T-shirts.
There are numerous additional services—any whim for your money!
«Girls, if anyone feels unwell, uncomfortable, don»t hesitate, step out. Breathe, wash up, come back. We«ll have three stages—warm, hot, very hot,» the steam master instructed us, and the second began stoking the heat.
Lots of snow, and even beautiful lighting.
After such a speech, I prepared for it to be intense and decided to endure, not give up until the last moment. However, it wasn«t intense—at the »very hot« stage, it was just hot, but quite comfortable. I didn»t want to run away or ask for mercy. The girls even asked for more heat. And the whole procedure took about 10–12 minutes.
Four or five people can easily fit here—a kind of girls« gathering.
The feeling is that the guys either took pity on the girls, considering us the weaker sex, and decided not to roast the visitors. Or all this—just warming up the audience (haha, warming up!) before a sale. A kind of warm-up. Because in the end, the steam masters delicately invited everyone to individual steaming.
Follow the rules!
Individual steaming costs 1,000 rubles ($11), conducted in a separate small steam room. It takes about 15–20 minutes, the masters said.
I touched the «Chill» plunge pool with my foot and changed my mind—the water there really is very cold.
When you«ve warmed up enough, you can go out and wash with snow. I did just that. Very good for the skin and for dark circles under the eyes!
But the «Coolness» plunge pool turned out not to be cool at all, but warm, with grapefruits floating in it, the aroma was literally intoxicating! I barely restrained myself from biting one.
I liked that there«s a lot of snow and fresh snow is constantly added. In several thermes and water parks where I»ve been before, such a feature seems to be available, but in reality isn«t—in winter, you can»t beg for snow, so to speak.
While I was there, none of the girls dared—apparently, it«s more of a male entertainment.
Good, we steamed, washed up—what next? What other entertainment is there, without spending thousands? Oh, I see a jacuzzi!
There are basins, as expected in a bathhouse. But while I was there, no one used them,—and it«s not entirely clear what to do with them, since there are excellent shower cabins nearby.
The jacuzzi turned out to feel very cool. The water—not boiling, but not cold either, practically the perfect temperature. Lots of bubbles, many massage jets with good pressure. You can massage your shoulders, lower back, back. Even for the feet, somewhere below, there was a warm jet—you put your heel under, and the water gently massages it.
Overall, much is well-thought-out, everything is ergonomic and caring—you can wash your feet, wash your hands, look in the mirror, there«s a place to throw trash. Such details say a lot about the establishment.
If you get tired of sitting in the jacuzzi, you can go warm up again (the steam room is open all this time), and then dive into the plunge pool.
Oh, guys, but the prices bite! I can«t afford the assorted crustaceans.
Suppose you«ve swum enough in the plunge pool, warmed up again in the steam room. After that, you can cool down another way—go outside.
And here«s the solyanka.
Another entertainment available to visitors—pouring a bucket of cold water over your head.
A small thing, but unpleasant.
In principle, in 2 hours you can manage everything—steam room, jacuzzi, plunge pool, steam room again. After that, you can either go for a second round. Or take a shower and go for lunch.
There are loungers and a hammock, it was very pleasant to lie in it for a couple of minutes—outside it«s about -5°C (23°F), I»m heated up after the steam room, the sensations are great!
The shower cabins are closed with a curtain: you can take off your swimsuit and wash completely. While I was there, girls and women went back and forth in various masks, scrubs—so it«s not prohibited.
No complaints about the shower at all—perfect water pressure and temperature, fine spray. I wanted to take a shower, and then take another shower.
Well, that«s it, we»ve reviewed the bathhouse. There«s still the restaurant. How timely! After the procedures, I felt hungry as a wolf.
After Steaming, Time for Lunch
Let«s return to the table and see what they feed here.
I ordered solyanka, black bread, and kvass. While waiting for the order, it turned out that a girl was indeed seated with me, as promised. This was a bit strange, because there were a million free tables in the restaurant. Why seat strangers together? What if I«m an introvert? What if I»m sad today?
Fortunately, the girl turned out to be the same one I chatted with in the steam room and jacuzzi, and we talked a bit more. She ordered «Samara Blend» tea—said it was very tasty.
The food was brought quickly. The solyanka was tasty, there was a lot of meat, and the cook didn«t overdo it with lemon, which can easily either garnish or ruin solyanka. The bread—fresh, soft, not over-dried or too spicy, as Borodinsky bread sometimes is. The kvass was also super. Couldn»t find anything to nitpick.
Time to get ready, but need to dry my hair. Let«s go look for a hair dryer. It turned out that hair dryers and mirrors—are right here, in the restaurant. Quite far from my table, but close to another table, a four-seater, where two women were sitting. I was drying my hair and could hear their conversations, but that»s okay. But for them, I think, it wasn«t too pleasant that such an intimate procedure is conducted where they»re eating. Theoretically, a short hair could fly far and even get into the food.
Time to Pay for Everything
All that«s left is to change and pay. I ended up with a bit over two hours. They calculated it for me as follows:
two hours before 5:00 PM = 1,000 rubles ($11);
38 additional minutes at 8 rubles per minute = 304 rubles ($3);
total = 1,304 rubles ($14).
But I also registered for a «free gift certificate for 500 rubles» on the website—there«s such a promotion now. I presented the certificate (electronic, from my phone), it was counted. It came out to 1,304 — 500 = 804 rubles ($9).
A separate check was issued for the food:
solyanka—472.50 rubles ($5);
kvass—89.25 rubles ($1);
bread—100.00 rubles ($1);
total—661.75 rubles ($7).
The strange kopecks in the check surprised me; I looked closely (already at home, when calculating expenses)—and noticed that on the menu, solyanka cost 450 rubles. But in the check—a bit more. And there«s also a line »surcharge«—it amounted to 26.75 rubles. Apparently, the surcharge was added to the price of kvass and soup.
In total, my expenses amounted to 1,465.75 rubles ($16). Overall, it was worth it. There were many more pluses than minuses. Plus, I wasn«t in a hurry anywhere, needed to test everything thoroughly. If you aim to save as much as possible, you can stick strictly to 2 hours and not eat anything,—and spend 1,000 or even 500 rubles ($6), if you catch a promotion.
Summing up, I«ll note another thing that made me think. Why are there no joint days? Everyone»s in swimsuits anyway. I could have come with my son, he would have been delighted with the jacuzzi. And the girl I had lunch with was upset that she couldn«t come with her husband.
So, the pluses of Gubernsky Baths:
everything is new, clean, well-thought-out; cool design;
staff are extremely friendly, all polite and welcoming;
large steam room;
excellent outdoor area and jacuzzi;
very tasty food;
location in the city center;
few visitors on a weekday;
affordable prices;
they announce «fresh steam»;
many cool little things: no risk of slipping anywhere, there are mats for sitting when going to the steam room; there«s snow, hooks for robes, etc.;
in the restaurant, there are separate »VIP halls«—if you want to celebrate a birthday or sit with a company without prying eyes;
baths are generally good for health.
Minuses that I noted:
steam might seem a bit weak, if you like it hotter;
in the restaurant, they might seat a stranger with you;
the establishment isn«t very large: in 2 hours, you»ll see and try all the free stuff, and it might get boring;
hair dryers in the restaurant;
strange surcharge in the check;
mixed-gender groups cannot come;
parking is free only for 2 hours, then you have to pay extra.
