In a spinning apparatus including a rotatable spindle carrying a package for receiving a yarn from a yarn guide which is arranged in axial alignment with the spindle, a tubular element surrounds the package and the spindle and is floatingly supported by magnetic bearings and a second yarn guide is arranged so to be rotatable within the tubular element and receives the yarn for guiding it onto the package with a winding speed corresponding to the rotational speed difference between the spindle and the tubular element and sensors are arranged adjacent the tubular element for sensing any axial deviation of the tubular element from its desired position which axial deviation is taken as a measure for the yarn tension forces.