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Mikoku-yu Bathhouse is one of the best Bathhouses in Tokyo, which provides good customer service with low fees comparing the famous natural volcanic springs offer in the Nara, Niigata, and Nikko areas.
Location:
Mikoku-yu Bathhouse is located in Ishiwara, Sumida-ku, Tokyo. It’s one of the best public bathhouses in the Kanto Tokyo area.
The bathhouse provides natural black-spring water baths and regular hot spring water baths that have a direct flow from the source.
This natural bathhouse is only 800 meters away from the Toei Asakusa Line Honjo Azumabashi Station. It takes about 10 minutes on foot.
History:
This Japanese public bathhouse was founded in 1947, and since then, it’s been serving the local community and foreign customers.
To increase better facilities, they renovated the Bathhouse in 2015 with a double ceiling so that sunlight could enter inside. At the same time, the natural ventilation systems get better.
They also increased locker and bathtub facilities.
It’s a five-story building with hot baths on the 4th and 5th floors.
Bathhouse classification:
Japan is world-famous for its natural hot spring. Local people use these hot springs as public baths.
The public bathhouses (sento) in Japan use two kinds of water.
● natural hot spring (onsen)
● heated tap water
There’s a significant difference between these two. Natural hot springs or onsen are usually filled with natural volcanic spring water. Volcanic natural water contains healing minerals, but heated tap water is simple water that doesn’t have any such contents.
Mikoku-yu Bathhouse(Mikokuyu) is sento type.
What inside Mikoku-yu?
Mikoku-yu is a public bathhouse. So, you can guess what can be inside. But if you’re totally new to Japan, you probably can’t guess all.
There are wooden lockers on both sides of the entrance on the ground floors at the door, and these wooden lockers help you to remember that you’re in Japan.
You can see reception on the left. After crossing the reception, there’s a waiting room. People can take a rest here, or those who go with family members can wait there.
Besides, there are vending machines where people can buy tickets and drinks. As it’s a public bathhouse, beer is available in the vending machine.
There are two lifts behind the vending machines to go up for a bath, one for men and another for women. The color of the curtain of the lifts is different; for women lift’s color is pink.
Besides, man and woman are written on the curtain in Kanji. So, there’s no confusion.
How to buy tickets?
There is a vending machine at the entrance. Buy a ticket and hand it over to the receptionist.
Besides, you can ask anything you need to know on the spot. The receptionist will help you if you need further help.
Bath Alternate:
As I mentioned above that it’s a five-story building. The 4th and 5th floors are public baths with the same layout and size. The company changes the bathing floor every week, which means one week, the 4th floor for men and the 5th floor for women.
However, the significant difference between these two floors is easily notable. The 5th floor is significantly gorgeous.
The 4th floor is designed like a cave-onsen, with three temperature baths.
There are three temperature baths, such as
● High 43-46 degrees
● medium 39.5 -42 degrees
● low 25 degrees
So, people who love lukewarm water can enjoy it here.
However, the 5th floor looks romantic and gorgeous with painted colorful Mount Fuji.
The painted Mount Fuji scene on the wall is ‘Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji’ drawn by Hokusai.
However, it’s not the authentic Hokusai-painted image. But it’s the same scene Mr. Kiyoto Maruyama drew from Hokusai’s Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.’
You can see the original copy at Sumida Hokusai Museum, which is about 12 minutes on foot from Mikoku-yu Bathhouse.
Hokusai Katsushika was one of Japan’s most famous painters in Japan. His famous Ukiyoe (landscape painting), ‘Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji,’ is a world-renowned painting.
So, people can enjoy Hokusai Katsushika’s famous Ukiyoe while taking a bath on the 5th floor.
At the same time, the ceiling is designed in such a way that people feel like taking baths in a natural hot spring, watching the natural sky above their heads.
In short, people can feel it like an outdoor bath.
Moreover, people can enjoy Tokyo Skytree from the bath on both floors while taking a bath.
Extra Facilities:
Besides family bathing and other good facilities, it also has extra nursing care. Suppose some family members need separate welfare-type family care, including massage.
So, this bathhouse can provide an enjoyable bath and spa in the same place.
But it costs extra fees.
Final words:
If you’re looking for a luxurious onsen experience in Tokyo, look no further than Sumida Mikokuyu onsen! In addition, it has good bath facilities.
You don’t have to look for Japan’s famous natural hot spring areas like Nikko, Nagano, Miyazaki, Nara, Niigata, Kagoshima, Hakone, Shikoku, and Hokkaido. Of course, you may not feel Mikoku-yu Bathhouse is as good as the hot spring in Hakone, Hokkaido, Toyama, or Nikko, but you’ll feel a natural hot spring atmosphere.
Check out this magnificent onsen today and enjoy a truly unique bathing experience!
Hours:
Weekdays (Saturdays and Holidays): 15:30-2:00(1:30 last entry)
Sundays: 15:30-24:00 (last entry 23:30)
Fee:
Adult: ¥500
Elementary School Students: ¥200
Children: ¥100
Private Welfare-type family bath:
Adult: ¥1,500 (90 min)
Rental large towels are available.
Access:
Honjo Azumabashi Station
(Toei Asakusa Line)
12 min (800 m)
Kinshicho Station
16 min(1.5km)
By bus from Kinshicho:
Bus 02 bound for [Otsuka Station], get off at ‘Ishiwara 3-chome’ and 2 minutes walk.
(You can find more about it on the official website. I put the link below)
(Note: Sumida Community Ambassadors 2nd tour took place on October 15, 2022, and it’s one of the posts of the 2nd tour)