Cheap saunas in Japan

Tokyo, Japan

91° Sauna is a standalone sauna in Ginza, Tokyo, booked in timed sessions through a free registration system rather than walked into. It shares a building with SALON91's bars and restaurants but is reserved separately from them.

Tokyo, Japan

Akazaru occupies a former ryotei in Kagurazaka, Tokyo, now converted into a sauna. The second-floor public sauna is men-only, with staff-led aufguss, a cold plunge and an outdoor rest space overlooking a courtyard. A separate ground-floor private room, bookable by phone, adds a cypress-wood bath and can be taken for the day or overnight.

Fukui, Japan

APA Spa Fukui Katamachi is a natural hot-spring bath and sauna inside the APA Hotel in Fukui's Katamachi district. Day-use bathing is open to anyone, not just hotel guests. Both a men's and a women's sauna are part of the bath floor.

Tokyo, Japan

Asukayama Onsen is a day-use bathhouse in Kita-ku, using pumped and heated groundwater rather than a true hot spring. It runs a full infrared sauna alongside large tubs, jet baths and an open-air bath.

Tokyo, Japan

Ban Sauna Ginza East is a dedicated sauna near Tsukiji Honganji. A heated mineral floor, dry sauna and fine mist share one room, booked solo or as a private hire for up to six. It finishes with a 9-18°C cold plunge and a covered outdoor rest area.

Fukuyama, Japan

A sauna and capsule hotel three minutes from Fukuyama Station, above a café and cinema. The sixth-floor sauna runs hot in the Showa strong style, with a cold plunge and a warm bubble bath to cool down between rounds. Capsule beds on the floors below let a sauna session run into an overnight stay.

Tokyo, Japan

Cocofuro Takanoyu is a redesigned neighbourhood sento in Ota ward built around a hot-air sauna with an automatic löyly cycle. A deep cold plunge and a beer counter sit alongside the regular hot baths and a carbonated-spring tub. It keeps the sento's everyday rhythm while making the sauna the reason to come.

Tokyo, Japan

Corridor no Yu is a hotel spa and sauna on the fifth floor of the Granbell Hotel in Ginza, open to non-guests as well as those staying over. The dry sauna runs automatic löyly, with a separate steam room on the women's floor. An outdoor rest deck with reclining loungers is a rarity in central Ginza.

Tokyo, Japan

A neighbourhood bathhouse near Tokyo Skytree, its bathing hall painted with murals of the tower and Mount Fuji. Two sauna rooms sit alongside different tubs: one by the outdoor bath, one by the carbonated-spring tub. The whole space can also be booked privately outside normal hours.

Tokyo, Japan

Edoyu is a large bath and sauna complex in Sumida, Tokyo, near the Edo-Tokyo Museum. It runs three saunas, including a wood-scented Finnish room, alongside six baths, bedrock baths, dining rooms and several rest areas.

Tokyo, Japan

Egotayu is a Nakano ward sento rebuilt in 2021 around a below-ground, earth-toned design. It runs on well water and keeps a sauna, a carbonated-spring bath, an electric bath and a cold plunge.

Hisayama, Japan

The Vanish is a tiled bathhouse and wood-fired sauna inside Nayuta, a shopping and dining complex near Fukuoka. Two bathing rooms alternate between men and women each day, both fronted by historic tile art. An outdoor sauna house sits beside the open-air bath.

Kyoto, Japan

Gokoyu is a neighbourhood sento in Kyoto's Shimogyo ward, run by the local bathhouse association. Alongside a mineral-infused radon bath, it offers two saunas and a cold plunge on the upper floor, plus a separate rock-bed sauna by reservation. A small snack counter serves drinks and light food after bathing.

Hiroshima, Japan

Grand Sauna Hiroshima is a men-only capsule sauna in the Yagenbori nightlife district. Day-use sauna access is sold separately from overnight capsule stays. Aufguss sessions run on a published schedule, and the facility includes a massage service and restaurant.

Osaka, Japan

A round-the-clock sauna and capsule hotel between Namba and Shinsaibashi. It has a salt sauna, a convection stone sauna, a herbal steam sauna and an open-air bath. Day-use sauna tickets are sold without a room stay, and a restaurant and body-care desk sit alongside the bathing floor.

Osaka, Japan

Hanshin Sauna is a men's hot spring bathing floor on the seventh storey of Hotel Hanshin Osaka, a short walk from Fukushima Station. A high-temperature dry sauna sits alongside a natural hot spring pool, an outdoor bath, a cold plunge and a jacuzzi. Day visitors can pay to enter, at a discount for hotel guests.

Osaka, Japan

A neighbourhood sento in Osaka's Higashiyodogawa ward, run for generations by the same family. It has a steam sauna with a small cold plunge alongside it.

Yokohama, Japan

A neighbourhood sento in Yokohama's Hiyoshi area, with Japanese- and Western-style bathing rooms that alternate daily. The Japanese side has an outdoor bath, and the sauna has its own cold plunge.

Nagoya, Japan

Hotokuyu is a neighbourhood sento in Nagoya's Kita ward, listed with a fee-based sauna alongside its regular bathing. Entry follows the standard tiered sento pricing for adults, schoolchildren and infants, with the sauna as an add-on.

Tokyo, Japan

Hotta-yu is a neighbourhood sento in Adachi's Nishiarai area, rebuilt in 2022 around its Showa-era tile mural. An auto-löyly herbal sauna sits beside the open-air bath. The men's side has a deep cold plunge, and the women's side offers two plunge temperatures.

Tokyo, Japan

Jisshiyu is a modern sento built into a municipal complex near Kodemmacho station in Chuo ward, opened in 2014. The men's bath has a dry sauna with a cold plunge, and the women's bath has a steam sauna instead.

Tokyo, Japan

Jujoyu is a neighbourhood sento in Kita, Tokyo, a five-minute walk from Jujo Station. Alongside the hot and cool soaking tubs, there is a sauna and a cold plunge regulars rate as especially well chilled. High ceilings and well water give the bathhouse its particular character.

Nobeoka, Japan

Kirakuyu is a small, old-fashioned sento in Nobeoka with a compact infrared sauna alongside the bath. It has no venue-run website, so details beyond the basics are limited.

Kobe, Japan

A downtown sauna and spa complex with separate men's and women's floors, an outdoor hot spring bath, and a capsule hotel for overnight stays. Private sauna rooms can be booked for small groups on ninety-minute slots.

Tokyo, Japan

Kugaharayu is a neighbourhood sento in Ota, Tokyo, drawing on both a natural hot spring and an artificial carbonated bath. Entry covers the steam sauna; the far-infrared sauna costs a small surcharge, and each has its own cold plunge. The bathhouse is billed as Ota Ward's first health-promotion sento.

Handa, Japan

Midorikan is a health-land bathhouse and business hotel in Handa. It has a sauna alongside ten varieties of indoor and open-air baths, drawn from a local hot spring source. Day-use bathing is open to non-guests as well as overnight visitors.

Sapporo, Japan

Mochizukiyu is a neighbourhood sento in Sapporo's Misono district, open since 1963. It pairs a high-temperature electric sauna with a women-only salt sauna and a cold plunge. An open-air bath strung with lights joins a run of themed tubs, including a black silica mineral bath.

Tokyo, Japan

Nakanobukinen-Yu is a sento in Shinagawa's Hatanodai area, with open-air baths for men and women alongside a steam sauna. The men's open-air bath looks onto open sky, while the women's overlooks a pond with koi and turtles. Eight bath styles are on offer alongside the steam room, from a lying bath to an electric bath.

Etajima, Japan

Not Busy Sauna & Cafe is a Finnish-style community sauna on Etajima Island in the Seto Inland Sea. It is built around a low-temperature triangular sauna, a cold plunge fed by groundwater and a café serving Finnish beer, wine and coffee. Guests pour their own löyly, and small groups can book the place privately.

Tokyo, Japan

Nu-Land Sagamiyu is a day-use hot spring complex in Tokyo's Ota ward, built around the area's distinctive black-tinted natural spring water. Eight bathing options include a far-infrared sauna, a cold plunge, an open-air bath and jet baths. The complex also has a restaurant floor and a lounge that hosts occasional live music.

Tokyo, Japan

Oasis Sauna Astil is a men-only sauna by Shimbashi station with a restaurant and reclining seating. Optional body-care treatments include akasuri scrubbing and head massage. No advance booking is taken: entry is by walking in and buying one of several timed courses.

Tokyo, Japan

Omoriyu is a neighbourhood sento in Ota Ward known for an unusually hot dry sauna, nicknamed Yaba Mori by regulars. Staff manage the dry heat with a kettle, a vihta whisk and aromatherapy mist, and bathers cool off in a cold plunge. The sento also has a tourmaline bath and a heated medicinal bath.

Osaka, Japan

Osaka Sauna Desse is an urban sauna complex on Shinsaibashi's shopping street, opened in 2023 with eight themed saunas. One, Musubi, is a fully private room for families or groups, with an anteroom for food, meetings or coworking. A lounge serves its own sauna-food menu after each session.

Tokyo, Japan

Paradise Otemachi is a men-only recovery spa on the 26th floor of an Otemachi office tower, open to visitors without a gym membership. It offers a löyly sauna, a mist sauna, and an oversized cold plunge, with an outdoor air-bathing deck and a panoramic jacuzzi. Entry is restricted to age 18 and over.

Kyoto, Japan

Rumor Plaza is a men-only sauna and capsule hotel in Gion, Kyoto. It has three sauna rooms and a rooftop bath looking over the city. Sauna and bath entry is sold separately from a hotel stay, on ticketed courses through the day.

Tokyo, Japan

Hokuo is a sauna and capsule hotel in Ueno with a Finnish sauna and a seventh-floor outdoor bath. A premium aufguss session runs four times each evening, and day-use tickets are sold on top of overnight stays. The floor is men only.

Chiryu, Japan

Sauna Eagle is a 24-hour, men-only sauna by Chiryu Station in Aichi, reopened in 2024 after a renewal. It runs aufguss sessions through the day around three cold-plunge options and a rest area sized for the region. It also has its own food counter on site.

Hamamatsu, Japan

Sauna Tenryu is a riverside sauna at TAKI Camping Ground on the Atago River in Hamamatsu. Wood-fired barrel and tent saunas sit beside the water, which doubles as the cold plunge, with infinity chairs along the bank for the outdoor rest. The barrel sauna can be booked privately for small groups.

Tokyo, Japan

Sauna XX Meguro is a men-only drop-in sauna in Tokyo. Booking and payment run through its own app rather than a membership. A real-time occupancy counter lets guests check availability before arriving, so there is rarely a wait.

Tokyo, Japan

Sauna XX is a dedicated sauna in Yotsuya, one of two Tokyo locations from the same operator, the other in Meguro. Entry and billing run through the venue's own app, with a QR code controlling access and a points balance covering the fee. Visits come in sixty-minute blocks with paid extensions rather than an open-ended session.

Setouchi, Japan

A business hotel on Amami Oshima built around a löyly sauna and a communal bath. Both are open to day visitors as well as overnight guests, in the harbour town of Koniya.

Tokyo, Japan

SaunaLab Kanda is a dedicated sauna near Jimbocho, with gender-separated sauna floors and a shared rest area. Its ground-floor Kitchen Sauna serves Finnish-style food and coffee, and a whisking treatment is bookable by appointment.

Tokyo, Japan

Nine sauna rooms near Shibuya station, produced by Sa-do author Tanaka Katsuki. A deep cold plunge and a scheduled aufguss programme with named löyly masters run through the day. A workspace and meeting rooms are available for guests staying longer.

Tokyo, Japan

Takanawa Saunas sits inside the Takanawa Gateway City development, built around a timetable of retreat programmes rather than a single löyly session. Men's and women's floors each run their own schedule of aufguss and sound-retreat sessions. It also has two cold-plunge temperatures, a hot bath, and a private room for whisking or group hire.

Shari, Japan

A large hotel in Utoro on the Shiretoko peninsula, with a natural hot-spring bath, an open-air bath and a sauna. Day visitors can use the bath without booking a room.

Tokyo, Japan

Shiromizuyu is a neighbourhood sento near Iriya station in Tokyo's old shitamachi district. It rotates themed baths through the month, from coffee to root beer to Aomori cypress water. Its dry sauna is in the men's bath only, for a surcharge on top of standard admission.

Tokyo, Japan

Sola Spa's Shinjuku branch sits below street level in Kabukicho, a short walk from the station. A high-temperature sauna is the draw, alongside bathing areas and lockable private rest booths for longer stays. Amenities run from toiletries to phone chargers, so a visit needs nothing brought from home.

Tokyo, Japan

SPA:BLIC is a Japanese-style sauna house in Akasaka, built around two rooms. One holds a steady humidity through an automated löyly system, the other a nine-person room for self-poured löyly over lava stone. Sunken hot and cold tubs sit beneath a high ceiling, with a private-room sauna and overnight stays on offer.

Tokyo, Japan

Sugamoyu is a neighbourhood bathhouse in Toshima ward, fully rebuilt in 2022. Tatami flooring runs from the changing room into the bathing hall, and its sauna runs an automatic löyly every twenty minutes. Cold plunges sit at two temperatures, with both indoor and outdoor rest areas.

Higashiosaka, Japan

Yu-Bath Royal Takaida is a super sento in Higashiosaka, built over its own natural hot spring source. The bathing hall has a high-temperature sauna with scheduled auto-loyly, a cold plunge and an outdoor deck for cooling off. There is also a women-only salt sauna and a separate bedrock bath.

Sagamihara, Japan

A fixed tent sauna site on the banks of the Dochi River, ninety minutes from central Tokyo. Each visit is a private booking for one wood-fired tent. River water supplies the cold plunge, with space to barbecue alongside.

Tokyo, Japan

A third-generation neighbourhood bathhouse a few minutes from Higashi-Mukojima station, open since 1951. The bathing hall pairs a sauna with a cold plunge, alongside jet, bubble, electric and bedrock-combination tubs. A rotating herb bath runs weekly.

Tokyo, Japan

Thermae-yu is a natural hot spring and sauna complex in Kabukicho, open around the clock. Its outdoor bath is fed by hot spring water carried from Izu, alongside a bedrock sauna and cold plunge. A rooftop bar and restaurant round out the building.

Tokyo, Japan

Toshimayu is a shrine-style sento in Kita ward, built with the traditional miyazukuri roofline and a chimney. It runs a mist sauna alongside jet baths, a vibration bath and an electric bath. Firewood heats the bathwater, in the older tradition of the neighbourhood bathhouse.

Tokyo, Japan

Totoken pairs a running station with a dedicated sauna and a craft beer bar by the Sumida River in Nihonbashi Hamacho. The sauna floor has a cold plunge and a rooftop outdoor rest area, and men's and women's sessions alternate through the week. Sauna-only visits are welcome without joining a run.

Sapporo, Japan

Yuya Salmon is a neighbourhood sento in Sapporo's Nishi ward. Its name is a nod to the hope that bathers return again and again, like salmon to their home river. The sauna is a small surcharge on the standard bath admission, followed by a cold plunge fed by fresh groundwater.