When coming to Japan, there’s a wealth of things to do and see – even just staying within the Tokyo city limits, you’d be hard pressed to enjoy everything available in a week. On the other hand, if you just stick with the big sightseeing spots, you’ll be both crushed by crowds and probably bored in a few days. This has left a lot of overseas tourists with time – and incentive – to look for new or unique activities.
One of the things apparently gaining popularity is "sento," or public bathhouses. While not quite as much fun as hanging out in hot springs in the mountains with monkeys, sento still provide a fun and different activity for anyone just looking to relax. The warm waters are especially welcome after a few days running around Tokyo! But you might want to check this handy guide before you head out for a soak in order to avoid annoying other bathers.
Though bathhouses are by no means unique to Japan, the culture around them can be a bit different. While most customs are pretty obvious and can be gleaned by carefully watching how others act, it’s always helpful to have a clear, concise guide. And that’s exactly what the Ota City Association of Public Bathhouse has produced.
With the most bathhouses in Tokyo, Ota Ward is the perfect place for anyone interested in slipping into a sento. Hoping to make things easier for everyone involved, the ward has created a “get started in the bathhouse guide.” The guide is available in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean and can be found at www.ota1010.com. The site isn’t exactly new – it has actually been online since 2009 (and looks like it was made in 1999)–but it is helpful.
In addition to providing details about common customs in Japanese sento, the website also features a guide of things not to do (at left).
The association has also produced a video guide, complete with awkward actors being awkward and naked. Though it’s not a big-budget Hollywood production, it certainly is helpful.
But perhaps the most useful part of the website is the directory of bathhouses in Ota Ward, which allows you to search by facilities, map, or photos of sento entrances.
The rules are hardly difficult to remember and a soak in a sento is actually one of the cheaper ways to kill time in Tokyo–all Ota Ward bathhouses have the same entry fee of 460 yen (about US$4.50).
So if you’re exhausted after sprinting from one tourist photo opportunity to the next, why not find a sento and wash your soreness away.
Just remember to take off your underwear before you get in!
Sources: Japaaan, Ota10101, YouTube
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12 Comments
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sensei258
The video was actually very informative. I've always been curious, but never enough to pay to bathe publicly when I can do it at home for free. How can you know for certain that you are not steeping yourself in somebody's urine?
Tessa
I know quite a few males in Japan, both native and foreign, who occasionally go to local sentos just to kick back and relax, even though they have access to private bathrooms at home. Why not give it a try?
Kathryn Sanday
They usually have beautiful scenes on the ceramic tiles, or in the older sentos, they are hand painted.
nath
It seems kind of condescending to have the "sad looking good patron" in each drawing. I agree this is a good sign, otherwise, but people are capable of reading.
Bad2Dbone
1 easy way to avoid remembering or doing a mistake , "reserve a room at the onsen with Private Bath"
Tessa
I know, I know. I cannot count the number of times that I've seen elderly ladies simply strip off and get straight into the tub, without bothering to have a wash-up first. And according to a student who works with elderly people in nursing homes, well the first physiological reaction to being plunged into warm water for many seniors is ... take a guess. Same goes with babies.
Another disturbing story i heard is when a foreign tourist took his blonde-haired little girl into a sento, and an elderly man pulled out a camera and started snapping photos of her. Only in Japan.
kyushubill
All the video seems to be communicating before play is, "Dude quit staring at my junk."
Pubic baths are just that - public. I prefer private as I have no need to impress people with my onsen stories back home. I tell them you can experience the same here in the USA, just ask a neighbor if you use their pool with them.
UK9393
Wipe yourself down. OK
Dry yourself off. OK
Wipe yourself off. No. Not OK.
That is not a tub. It's a bath. Why oh why don't they ask native speakers to check this stuff?
Sioux Chef
What's a pubic bath? A sink?
gogogo
Besides the first two the rest are optional, I've seen several Japanese people do all of them.
edojin
I have spent nearly half a century going to public bathhouses throughout Japan. It's now part of my daily life. And believe me, after a stressful day in the office, a nice hot relaxing bath at night is all that is needed to remove that stress and make one feel really great. I always get a good night's sleep after soaking in a huge tub of hot water.
I have made many friends, both men & women, from my bathhouse experiences. It seems that I can go almost anywhere in Tokyo and can meet someone I know from a bathhouse I have been to. And if I don't recognize them, they tell my wife where & when they saw me, and she informs me. Can't "hide" anywhere in Tokyo without someone seeing me ... and letting my wife know about it.
Of course, good manners are expected of the sento users. As explained above, the "how to wash" signs are not only in English, but Japanese, Chinese & Korean, too. So, if you go to a sento, show those bathing with you that you have good manners.