Sauna wrong to toss out woman wearing a burkini

A dress code banning burkinis from saunas is discriminatory, judges at the Dutch human rights institute have concluded.

The Zwaluwhoeve sauna in Hierden removed a young woman from the facility for wearing a burkini, a body and head-covering swimsuit, citing hygiene reasons.

The center “insufficiently substantiated that wearing a burkini poses health or safety risks,” wrote in its decision on Thursday.

The woman was visiting the sauna in June 2025 with her family, on a day when bathing suits were mandatory.

After enjoying the wellness space for four hours, she was approached by an employee and told to leave. The women left and later filed a claim at the the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights.

According to Zwaluwhoeve’s dress code, burkinis are not allowed.

“Studies indicate that there is no difference in hygiene between different types of clothing made of swimwear fabric,” the court ruled, noting that other saunas in the Netherlands permit burkinis.

The dress code, the judges concluded, is discriminatory on both religious and gender grounds.