Sturebadet is Stockholms most luxurious public bath and spa. Founded in 1885 by Professor Carl Curman, M.D., it was expanded and remodeled to it's current appearance in 1902. It was during this time the main pool was added, being 14 x 7 meters, or 98 square metres. The interior was designed by architect Hjalmar Molinis in Jugend style with Old Norse and Moorish features.

During the 1930s Sturebadet expanded to roughly 12,000 square metres, adding exercise studios. For fifty years, it continued to dominate Östermalm until on May 31st, 1985, disaster struck. In a violent fire, Sturebadet burned to the ground. No floorplans or engineering blueprints could be located, making reconstruction seem impossible, but fortunately a great number of photographs taken only weeks before the fire (insert conspiracy theory here) were subsequently found. At this point, the owner of Sturebadet, the insurance company Skandia, declared that they would not rebuild the highly popular public bath, instead opting to build a large shopping mall in it's place. Fortunately the City of Stockholm intervened and decreed that only if the main pool and the turkish bath were rebuilt exactly as they were before the fire could Skandia have their mall.

On May 15th, 1989, Sturebadet reopened, now measuring only 2000 square metres. During the construction it had been decided that floors 4, 5 and 6 were of particular architectural and cultural importance, and they were promptly "K-marked", meaning that they cannot legally be altered. This is the only incident in which a reconstructed building has been given this honour.

As befits a luxurious spa in the middle of Stockholm, Sturebadet has a policy of truly exorbitant pricing. Membership in the "Breakfast Club", which includes breakfast, a robe and a towel each day costs 11,900 SEK, roughly $1000, per year. For those more interested in workouts and bathing than breakfast, a gym membership card can be had for the more moderate sum of 9.500 SEK, roughly $900, per year. Despite these high fees Sturebadet showed a net loss for the fiscal year of 2001.

See www.sturebadet.se for more info, available in Swedish and English