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Brit celeb opens UK’s first-ever floating sauna on incredible British island with ‘world’s best campsite’

Watch the video to see the floating sauna first-hand

“WHEN you’re in a sauna, you just stop thinking,” ex-Radio 1 DJ Rob da Bank tells me.

The Bestival co-founder is brimming with enthusiasm having just opened the UK’s first-ever “floating sauna” on the Isle of Wight - an idea inspired by a recent holiday to Finland.

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, Slomo sauna features two wood-fired Nordic saunas, an ice-cold plunge tank and an outdoor lounge area framing a cosy fire pit.

Add Himalayan salt and rose body scrubs into the mix as well as thermal massages, it’s safe to say that Slomo is a little different from the former techno DJ’s usual ventures.

But it’s part of his wider plan to introduce saunas all over the island for tourists and holidaymakers.

“Ten years ago, there were very few attractions on the Isle of Wight that appealed to younger families.” But over the last decade, Rob da Bank - who has been visiting the popular holiday destination since the 1980s - has watched the landscape here completely change.

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His family loved it so much that they even ended up moving to the island 12 years ago.

“It’s an incredible place to live,” he gushes. And Tapnell Farm, he says, is a “mini world for families” thanks to undercover adventure barns, an on-site aqua park, axe-throwing, a football golf course – and now his floating sauna, where holidaymakers can properly unwind in nature.

The activities aren’t the only reason to visit, though. The amusement park is also home to The Cow Restaurant & Bar, which Rob describes as one of the best burger joints on the Isle of Wight.

As well as classic beef patties served with simple additions of lettuce, burger sauce & gherkins (£16), the menu features more unusual burgers like the Matador crammed with “Mexicana cheese”, confit chorizo, chorizo mayonnaise and jalapenos as well as dirty, loaded fried and juicy steaks cooked the way you like.

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For those who prefer seafood, another of Rob’s favourite spots is the , (there are three locations on the island), which serves “pan-Asian sushi with a coastal twist”.

Then for families, there’s in the Western town of Yarmouth, which serves classic pizzas like the margherita and Americana as well as simple pasta dishes and salads.

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But the best thing about the Isle of Wight is that when it comes to having fun, you really don’t need to spend a penny.

Families who love the great outdoors are quite simply spoiled for choice, with the Needles being one of Rob’s favourite places to take his four sons.

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The three distinctive chalk stacks, just off the western coast of the island, have been owned by the National Trust since 1975. Make sure to visit the Needles Old Battery, a former defence site in the Victorian times, while you’re here. It’s the perfect place to for a postcard snap.

On the same side of the island, the shores of Alum Bay and Freshwater Bay are two more of Rob’s recommendations for nature-loving holidaymakers. Freshwater Bay is just over a 10-minute drive from the Needles Old Battery and is home to the Blacksmith’s Arms – “one of the best food places on the island” which also serves local and national ales.

A roast dinner here will cost you as little as £12 for a small plate or £16.50 for a large, piled high with meat, veg, yorkies and gravy.

If you’ve never tried wild swimming, here is the place to give it a go. Newton Creek, north of Freshwater Bay which is “a very beautiful place with seals and wildlife”, Rob says.

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