The Russian & Turkish Baths are back open on 10th Street

Text and photos by Stacie Joy 

The heat is on just in time for the cold weather.

The Russian & Turkish Baths have reopened their doors at 268 E. 10th St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. Established in 1892, the popular bathhouse has been closed since the pandemic's start in March 2020. They reopened yesterday. 

Partners and brothers (from left) Dmitry and Jack Shapiro gave me a tour of the newly remodeled and renovated space...

Here are the hours during this holiday weekend: 

• Christmas Day: 11 a.m. until 7 p.m.

• Sunday/Boxing Day: 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. (9 a.m. until 2 p.m. men only; 2 p.m. until 10 p.m. coed). 

All patrons must be vaccinated and present proof of vaccination. Capacity, for now, is limited to 40.

Here's more info from the Russian & Turkish Baths website:

We will not be honoring prepaid admission passes or memberships at this time. We will reassess this policy in the New Year. Admission will be $50 per person.

Vaccination cards will be checked for all patrons. If you are not feeling well or are not vaccinated, you will not be allowed in the Baths. 

Dmitry and Jack's father, David, a longtime owner here, passed away in the spring of 2020. Boris Tuberman remains an owner ... and will still have the Boris weeks.

The Russian & Turkish Baths have NOT permanently closed on 10th Street

[Photos Thursday by Stacie Joy]

Rumors spread on Facebook last week that the 128-year-old Russian & Turkish Baths on 10th Street had closed.

According to one post, shared more than 300 times, workers were spotted carting out contents from the interior here between First Avenue and Second Avenue. One of the construction workers also allegedly told a 10th Street resident that the NYC institution was permanently shuttered. Meanwhile, the Baths' website still carried the "temporarily closed for COVID-19" message.

Several people reached out to us about the news after seeing the various Facebook posts.



In response to the rumors, management posted an updated message to their website and Facebook late last week...



As for the gutting, management shared this statement about that:

"We’re making superficial changes to the locker room, restaurant and greeting area so that when we open we are compliant with CDC guidelines for the coronavirus and we will definitely reopen as soon as we are allowed to."



There hasn't been any updated information from the city or state about when gyms and spas can reopen in NYC.

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David Shapiro, who along with Boris Tuberman owned the Baths since the early 1980s, died in May. His son Dmitry has served as the general manager in recent years.

View this post on Instagram

It’s with a heavy heart that we share the news of the loss of our father, and our mentor, David Shapiro. He poured his heart and soul into the Russian Turkish Baths. Even up until his final days he was prepping for the reopening.

A post shared by Russian and Turkish Baths (@russianbaths) on May 14, 2020 at 7:10am PDT

You can read more about the history here in this Times feature from 2016.

Water issues on 10th Street

The 10th Street water main replacement and sewer rehab continues this week between Avenue A and First Avenue... EVG Water Main Replacement and Sewer Rehab correspondent Daniel shared these photos from this afternoon...



The work has required some water shutdowns along the block...



This has caused Russian & Turkish Baths to adjust their schedule...



Per their website:

Due to water mains being turned off on 10th Street our schedule will be changing daily.

On Wednesday, January 11th, Woman's day has been suspended and we will be opened at 2pm for regular CO-ED hours. Information about Thursday and Friday will be announced the night before but our hours will most likely be 2pm-10pm.

During Regular business hours you may call for updates at 212-505-0665

As Daniel noted, the work on this block is pretty intense as workers are moving the water main from the south to north side of the street.

Ev Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[On East 4th Street, photo by Michael Sean Edwards]

Last-minute volunteer opportunities for Thanksgiving Day (DNAinfo)

A list of free Thanksgiving meals across the LES (BoweryBoogie)

An update on the renovations at HiFi on Avenue A (the HiFi Blog)

The new 84 Third Ave. could have been a lot taller (Off the Grid)

A look at the new Vape Lounge (NYU Local)

A review of Somtum Der on Avenue A (The New York Times)

The Jefferson Market's future (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

Remembering the K Cafe (Flaming Pablum)

When it was really fucking cold the other day (Slum Goddess)

The Roseland Ballroom will be demolished to make way for a 50-story building (New York Post)

Snapshots of the Rolling Stones on tour in the U.S. in 1965 (Dangerous Minds)

Finally, in case you wondered what a party for the tech set at the Russian & Turkish Baths on East 10th Street looked like. Photos from this event have been making the rounds, so... ValleyWag said that the party "fell just short of Stefon-level absurdity. There was, however, enough wood paneling and strung out girls in bikinis to remake that Fiona Apple video."


[Find more photos by Nicky Digital here]