But visiting a Japanese bathhouse for the first time can feel quite daunting: Which

area is for man and which for women?

Do I really have to be fully naked?

And what other rules are there?

Here's a comprehensive guide of do's and dont's at Japan's public baths.

An onsen is a natural hot spring, whereas a sento is a public bathhouse that uses artificially

heated water.

There are also outdoor onsen called rotemburo.

Most of the times onsen are part of traditional Japanese inns called ryokan, while sento are

often located residential areas.

The rules and the bath etiquette is pretty much the same for all of these.

A lot of people are a little scared of their first onsen experience, but to be honest the

process is quite straightforward, and most of the etiquette is just common sense.

There's one thing you have to know before going: Tatoos are kind of a problem.

Most public baths will turn away guests with tatoos.

Now this is changing slowly, so you might get lucky.

But I would definitely check in with the onsen before you go.

Once you've found an onsen, ♨ enter it and you'll probably find lockers or a place

to put your shoes.

As at most places you'll be expected to take your shoes off after entering.

From here you buy your tickets at a vending machine or a reception.

You can also get towels here – or you bring them yourself.

I'd recommend to bring one big towell and one small towell.

Now it's time to enter the changing room.

Nowadays almost all bath houses in Japan are separated for men and women, so be sure to

enter the correct area.

Often but not always you can already tell by the color of the curtains hanging in front

of the changing room.

Red is for women, blue is for men.

It can't hurt to know these kanji or hiragana meaning man and women.

In the changing room you'll either find lockers or baskets where you can leave your

belongings.

And i mean all of them.

Its usually not allowed to wear a bathing suit in the onsen, as they might be unclean.

So yes you have to be fully naked.

But so it is everyone else, so don't worry too much about it.

Here's where your small towel comes in handy.

It's the only thing you take with you and you can use it to cover some parts of your

body.

You'll probably see some Japanese people doing the same.

Once you leave the changing room, you can not get straight into onsen.

Instead you'll find either modern showers or a washing area with chairs and buckets.

Clean yourself and rinse off completely.

Most bathhouses provide toiletries to use in this shower area.

It's also considered polite to clean the shower area and the items that you used.

You can finally enter the hot water of the big pool, but make sure your small tower does

not come in contact with the water.

This is another rule focused on keeping the water clean.

Most people simply wear the small towell on their heads.

Your hair should also be kept out of the water.

If you have long hair, make sure to tie it up.

An onsen is a place to relax, so avoid being to loud, swimming or running around.

Just soak in the hot water and make sure to respect the personal space of people around

you.

If possible and if there is one, don't sit too close to the area where fresh water is

pouring into the main pool.

Once you're down, use your small towel to dry off roughly, before entering the changing

room.

It's not forbidden to rinse again at the shower area, but it doesn't really makes

sense as the onsen water with all the minerals are supposedly good for your skin and your

health.

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others things, it's free who cares.

That's it for today, you survived another day in Japan.