5,800sqm Kai Water Culture House to open in Denmark this December

A new landmark bath house, Kai Water Culture House is due to open overlooking Copenhagen harbour in Denmark this December.

Designed by Japanese architecture practice Kengo Kuma & Associates, the 5,800sqm public bath house features ten pools. This includes an open-air pool between five brick towers and a heated onsen overlooking Copenhagen harbour.

The pools at are spread across multiple floors and levels – the ground floor features a 25-metre pool, a teaching pool and three children’s play pools.

From here, bathers have direct access to Copenhagen’s clean harbour waters, with designated swimming and dipping zones in and around a timber boardwalk.

The project also features cold plunge and three saunas, a heated stone and a steam bath.

It has a capacity for 380 bathers.

Bathing at Kai Water Culture House

The connection between indoors and outdoors continues on the building’s upper floors.

The stylish Valley Pool, located on the first floor between five brick towers, allows bathers to swim under open skies and experience the changing seasons, from sunshine and rain to snow.

In the Onsen pool on the same floor, visitors can enjoy an outdoor bathing experience with panoramic views across the harbour.

Grass roots wellness

The idea for Kai Water Culture House was originally conceived by locals. In 2015, the City of Copenhagen launched an ideas competition for a new cultural and leisure facility on Paper Island.

People submitted 160 proposals, the vast majority of which called for a swimming facility that would provide space for relaxation and reflection, as well as a gathering place for local clubs, associations and communities.

In spring 2017, the City of Copenhagen launched an international architectural competition, which was won by the Japanese practice Kengo Kuma & Associates.

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