Nordic Wave Cold Plunge Review: Viking Premier vs. Hybrid vs. XL (Plus the Pro Chiller)

Nordic Wave recently sent me three of their best-selling cold plunge tubs — the Viking Premier, the Viking Hybrid, and the Viking XL — and I’ve been testing them at my home spa alongside the company’s Gen 2 Pro chiller.

In this review, I’ll share what I like about Nordic Wave’s tubs, what could be improved, and which of the three tubs I’ll keep.

If you don’t have time to read the entire article, here are my key takeaways:

• The Viking XL is the one I’m keeping. If you’re over 5′ 10″, it’s the most comfortable cold plunge I’ve used in this price range.
• The Viking Hybrid is the best value in the lineup and the easiest to get in and out of — it’s what I’d recommend to most first-time buyers.
• The Viking Premier is my wife Kathy’s favorite and the only one that fits through a standard doorway, making it the clear pick for indoor installs.
• Build quality across all three tubs is a step above most competitors I’ve tested, especially the hardware (fittings, insulated lines, drainage valves).
• The Pro chiller gets the job done, but the flow rate is just average and the companion app needs a full rebuild.

What All Three Nordic Wave Tubs Have In Common

The three tubs share more than they differ, so it’s worth covering the common ground first.

All three are made from a single-piece, rotomolded high-density polyethylene (HDPE) shell with two inches of spray-foam insulation throughout the walls and base. 

The build quality is what you’d expect from a tub in this price class. It feels and looks premium. The connection hardware (fittings, valves, water lines) is also top-notch and a step up from the “builder’s grade” materials used by most other plunge manufacturers.

Nordic Wave uses insulated water lines, which I appreciate for both outdoor winter use (reducing the risk of freezing) and indoor setups (reducing condensation on the floor).

The dedicated drainage valves on each tub make partial or complete water changes painless. On most of the plunges I’ve owned, draining involves disconnecting the chiller. With Nordic Wave, you just open the dedicated valve while the powered-off chiller can remain connected. 

That might not sound like a big deal, but considering that a water change is somewhat of a pain in the butt (it takes a while to completely drain and refill a 100-gallon tub), anything that speeds up the process is welcome. (FWIW, a complete water change is usually only necessary once every 4-6 months.)

Every system runs on a standard 120V outlet, which means no electrician visit and no dedicated circuit. And unlike some competitors, every Nordic Wave bundle includes the ability to heat the water up to 104° Fahrenheit (in addition to cooling it), so you can use these tubs as a hot plunge if that’s part of your recovery protocol. 

I’ve never done that, but I might experiment with turning the XL into a hot tub next winter.

The warranty is five years on the tub and one year on the chiller, covering both residential and commercial use.

The Gen 2 Pro Chiller

Every Nordic Wave system ships as a bundle, so you’re always buying a tub and chiller together. The Pro chiller – priced $1,000 less than the Elite – is the base option. 

(Note that the XL requires the Elite chiller due to the massive water volume the tub can hold.)

The chiller has a bright, easy-to-read digital display that works well in direct sunlight, which a few other chillers I’ve used can’t match. 

Setup is plug-and-play thanks to the auto-priming pump. The built-in ozone generator handles sanitation, reducing (but not completely eliminating) the need for chemicals, and the clear sediment filter housing makes it easy to see when the filter needs to be changed. Nordic Wave recommends monthly filter swaps, and the tub arrives with a two-month supply to get you started.

Despite the built-in ozone generator, I still use non-toxic water treatment solutions, including hydrogen peroxide, to keep the water sanitary for longer. In my environment (a working homestead with livestock, high winds and plenty of dust), I change the filter about every two weeks to maintain a steady water flow rate and adequate water quality.

My main gripe with the Pro chiller is its maximum flow rate. At 6.4 GPM on my unit (Nordic Wave’s spec sheet lists 5.4 GPM; the Elite is rated at 5.8 GPM), it’s on par with most of the external chillers I’ve owned – the Plunge Standard, Inergize Elite, TheraFrost, and Polar Monkeys all land in the same range. 

The Pro chiller gets the job done for the Premier and Hybrid, but I’d like to see it closer to what the Plunge Pro chiller delivers (I don’t have actual flow-rate data, but the difference is visible in how the water moves in the tub). After all, a higher flow rate means better water filtration capacity and fewer water changes over time.

With any external chiller setup, the efficiency of heat exchange depends partly on how quickly water cycles through the system, and a higher flow rate helps the chiller keep up in warmer ambient temperatures, or after a plunge that raises the water temperature. 

For what it’s worth, the Pro chiller is able to maintain temperature and water quality in both the Premier and Hybrid under normal conditions. But in our relatively dusty and insect-rich environment, a higher water turnover would help reduce the need for additional water treatment solutions.

The other thing worth mentioning is the mobile app. Nordic Wave’s app is called Nordic Flow, and it’s primarily a breathwork app — guided sessions, timers, that sort of thing. The chiller controls exist inside the app, but they feel like an afterthought rather than a core feature.

Adjusting the target temperature, checking the current temperature, scheduling sessions — all of it works, but the interface isn’t as intuitive as it should be for something this expensive. I’d like to see Nordic Wave build a dedicated chiller control app, or at a minimum, make the chiller controls a first-class part of the existing app rather than burying them.

Side note: I actually had to call Nordic Wave’s support to figure out how to connect the chiller to the app because it wasn’t obvious at all when I downloaded the Flow app from the App Store.

Viking Premier

The Viking Premier is Nordic Wave’s signature tub. It’s an upright, vertical design that lets you sit in a natural position with your arms and knees submerged. It measures 36 inches long, 30 inches wide, and 44 inches tall, with an interior of roughly 32 by 26 by 39 inches. 

Water capacity is around 95 gallons at full fill, though Nordic Wave recommends filling to about 75 gallons for most users. I filled the tub to the rim at first, but ended up spilling roughly 20% when I submerged my 215-pound body. As a result, sticking to the 75-gallon fill recommendation seems reasonable.

The Premier’s most useful practical feature is its footprint. At 30 inches wide, it fits through a standard 32-inch doorway. If you need a plunge inside your home (e.g., in a mudroom or a converted utility room), the Premier is the obvious choice among these three options.

One of the things I’ve been paying close attention to since we moved to our current property is the lids of my cold plunges when it’s windy. During a recent thunderstorm with 70-mph wind gusts, several lids from my other plunges were blown off the tubs. The Nordic Wave lids stayed put.

My wife Kathy prefers the Premier over the Hybrid, and her preference reflects exactly who it’s designed for. She’s shorter, prefers sitting upright, and finds the snugger interior more comfortable. For a person of average or below-average height, the Premier’s interior is plenty spacious, and the vertical position makes full-body immersion easy to achieve.

For me, at six feet tall, the Premier works fine, but I do have to bend my knees quite a bit to submerge to my jawline. If you’re tall and want to be fully comfortable during longer sessions, that starts to matter.

What I like: compact footprint, doorway-friendly dimensions, excellent lid seal, well-suited to smaller users and indoor installs.

Worth knowing: taller plungers will need to bend their knees noticeably to submerge fully — not a dealbreaker, but worth factoring in if you’re over 5’10” and planning on longer sessions.

Viking Hybrid

The Viking Hybrid is the most distinctly designed tub in the lineup. Rather than a fully vertical or fully horizontal orientation, it splits the difference with a reclined backrest — somewhere between a classic barrel and a traditional soaking tub. You step in from the top and lean back against an angled wall, which can feel less intimidating than plunging into a traditional tub design.

Dimensions are 50 inches long, 31 inches wide, and 34 inches tall. The interior runs 43 by 27 by 32 inches, with a recommended fill of around 81 gallons. Because the walls are lower than the vertical tubs, it has the lowest step-in height of the three, which makes entry and exit the easiest of any tub in the lineup. No stairs required.

The Hybrid lid is different from the Premier and XL. Instead of a rigid, insulated lid, it uses a soft cover with integrated clips. It looks good, and I actually like that you can flip just half of it open when getting in and out without removing the whole cover. The clips are easy enough to use, but securing them after a session takes a few more seconds than simply dropping a rigid lid into place.

The Hybrid is my second favorite of the three after the XL (discussed below), largely because of how the reclined position feels during a session. It’s more comfortable than being fully “exposed” in a traditional tub design, and the low step-in height makes it easier to get into than a barrel tub. If you’ve been holding off on a plunge because climbing in and out felt like too much of a production, or if you’ve found traditional tubs uncomfortable, the Hybrid is a good middle ground.

The Hybrid is also the most affordable system Nordic Wave makes. If you want Nordic Wave’s build and hardware quality without paying for the XL’s water volume or the Premier’s vertical footprint, this is the one to consider.

Viking XL

If you’re tall, want room to move, or occasionally share the tub with a partner (my 4′ 11″ wife refused to jump in), the Viking XL is the right choice. 

It measures 43 inches long, 33 inches wide, and 48 inches tall, with an interior of 39 by 29 by 43 inches. Water capacity is 160 gallons at maximum fill, with Nordic Wave recommending 120 to 130 gallons for most users. It’s the only tub in the lineup that Nordic Wave requires to be paired with the Elite chiller, and given the volume of water it needs to maintain at temperature, that makes sense.

The XL has one design detail that the other two don’t. It has dual molded, non-slip interior steps, which you’ll appreciate given the step-over height of around 44 inches.

At six feet tall, I barely have to crouch to submerge myself all the way to my jawline in the XL. I can sit comfortably with my shoulders submerged and still have several inches of clearance above the waterline. If you’re someone who’s felt cramped in other plunges — especially upright designs where you end up with your knees pressed against the wall — the XL solves that problem definitively. Nordic Wave rates it for users up to 7′ 4″, and I believe it.

The XL also ships with free white glove delivery, which makes sense given its filled weight of over 1,100 pounds. Position it carefully before you fill it because you won’t be able to move it once it’s full. Also, make sure to check the maximum weight-carrying capacity of whatever platform you choose to position the tub on (e.g., a deck or patio).

The one practical limitation worth flagging is doorway clearance. At 33 inches wide, the XL needs a doorway wider than 34 inches to get through. If you’re planning an indoor installation, measure first.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Who Should Buy Which

The Viking Premier is the right call if you're installing indoors, you're under about 5' 10", or you're working with a limited floor footprint. Kathy tested the Premier and Hybrid and preferred the upright, snug feel of the Premier over the Hybrid's reclined position. For smaller-framed users, it's the one that fits.

Go with the Viking Hybrid if you want the most accessible experience — easiest entry, relaxed seated position, and the lowest price in the lineup. It's also the right call if you're coming from an Ice Barrel or a basic tub and want a step up in quality without committing to the higher price of the XL.

The Viking XL is the one I used most during testing, and it's the one I'll keep. Get it if you're tall, if two people are going to use it regularly, or if you simply want to be fully comfortable without any compromise on space. The extra water volume does mean longer cool-down times and higher operating costs, and you're locked into the Elite chiller, but the experience inside the tub is noticeably better than either of the other two for anyone over 5' 10".

How Nordic Wave Compares to Other Cold Plunges

Since I've been testing cold plunges for several years and currently have multiple tubs at my home spa, it's worth putting Nordic Wave in context with the rest of the market. (Click the links to read my review of each plunge.)

Compared with inflatables (Plunge Air, Inergize Elite, TheraFrost), the Nordic Wave tubs are a clear step up. Inflatables are convenient and portable, but they have a softer, less substantial feel — and over time, the rigidity of a hard-shell tub makes a real difference in how the setup holds up and how premium the experience feels. If you've been using an inflatable and are thinking about upgrading, any Nordic Wave tub will feel like a significant improvement.

As far as hard shell options are concerned, the Plunge Pod is a solid tub (especially when paired with the Pro chiller), but the Nordic Wave tubs feel more premium in terms of fit, finish, and hardware quality.

The Sun Home Cold Plunge Pro and the ReGen Blast are in a different category entirely. The Sun Home has a fully integrated design — chiller built into the tub — and reaches 32° F.

The ReGen Blast is in a class of its own. It only chills the water to 37° F, but its flow rate is so extraordinarily high that the water stays absolutely pristine and the experience feels harder than sitting in still water at 33° F. That constant movement against your skin is a fundamentally different sensation, and it's why I consider the ReGen Blast the benchmark for what a cold plunge can be.

Nordic Wave slots in between. It's a step above inflatables and budget hard-shell tubs, priced competitively against the better rotomolded options on the market, and a solid choice if you don't need the performance ceiling of an integrated system.

For a more detailed look at how to compare plunges, I recommend reading my cold plunge buying guide, which goes over the 12 factors that are more important to consider.

Where to Buy

All three tubs are available directly through Nordic Wave's website. Use code KUMMER at checkout to save $150 on any system.

Nordic Wave offers 0% APR financing through BreadPay for 12 to 36 months, and all systems are HSA/FSA eligible through TrueMed if you have a qualifying health account. Free shipping to the continental US is included, with White Glove delivery standard on the XL.

Summary and Final Verdict

Nordic Wave makes well-built cold plunges that are priced fairly for what they are. The construction is what you'd expect from a rotomolded tub in this price class: premium and durable. 

What does stand out is the hardware quality: the fittings, valves, insulated water lines, and drainage setup are all done right. All three tubs are solid products, and the real question is which form factor matches how you plan to use it.

The Viking XL with the Elite chiller is the one I'm keeping. The extra room makes every session more comfortable, and the lid seal and integrated steps are small details that add up over months of daily use.

My second choice would be the Viking Hybrid, primarily because of how the reclined position changes the feel of a session. If I were buying for Kathy, or for a bathroom installation, I'd go with the Viking Premier.

The Gen 2 Pro chiller does the job for the Premier and Hybrid. My main complaints are the flow rate (I'd like to see it higher) and the app (which needs to be rebuilt with chiller controls as a first-class feature rather than something added on top of a breathwork app). Neither issue is a dealbreaker, but both are worth knowing going in.

What matters most to you in a cold plunge — form factor, interior space, or keeping the price as low as possible? Leave a comment and I'll help you narrow it down.