Solitary Sauna - #2 Sauna Tokyo

I'm starting to dive deep into the world of saunas; I'm Taishi, a budding sauna enthusiast!
（👉Self-introduction）

Recently, I learned that there are many attractive saunas in Japan through the "Saunachelin 2023," which is announced and awarded every year on November 11th, "Sauna Day."I learned that there are many attractive saunas in Japan.

After that, although I had been going to the local hot spring sauna about once a week, I wanted to go on an expedition to have a new sauna experience, so I went to "Garden Sauna Kamata." I experienced ice loyly and aufguss for the first time.

Not "Solitary Gourmet," but "Solitary Sauna."

When you are relaxing in a sauna, you must not be disturbed by anyone; you must be free, and in a way, saved. Alone, quiet, and rich...

And this time, while my two elementary school sons were at winter cram school and my wife had some free time from work,I took the opportunity to go to "Sauna Tokyo" all by myself.

About "Sauna Tokyo"

A men-only sauna facility located in Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo. It had its grand opening on April 24, 2023. It was selected for the aforementioned "Saunachelin 2023."

It was a place I had picked out in the article when I saw the Saunachelin.

Facility Information
・Address: 3-13-4 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
・Price: Weekday rates: 1 hour 1,600 yen / 3 hours 2,700 yen / 6 hours 3,900 yen. Weekend rates: 1 hour 1,800 yen / 3 hours 3,000 yen / 6 hours 4,200 yen. Extension: 1,000 yen per hour.
・Business hours: Weekdays 11:00 AM to 9:00 AM the next day (22-hour operation). Weekends and holidays: 24-hour operation.

For details, please refer to Sauna Ikitai.

"Sauna Tokyo" Highlights

A sauna expedition during a gap in my schedule that I suddenly found myself able to use freely. Oh, how luxurious.

I have personally come to understand "Sauna Tokyo" as a very high-grade sauna within the sauna world.

This is because my home sauna and hot spring costs less than 1,000 yen even if I stay all day, but "Sauna Tokyo" is 1,600 yen for 1 hour, 2,700 yen for 3 hours, 3,900 yen for 6 hours, and then +1,000 yen for every hour after that. Oh, how luxurious.

I had a dense sauna experience in 2-3 hours. I will record the highlights of such a luxurious "Sauna Tokyo."

① Key handling and operation are super efficient

Things I thought were amazing before entering the sauna.

You take a key at the shoe locker. That serves as your entry pass. Touching it at the entrance records your time stamp. And that same key is the same one for the locker in the bath area. After you relax and get dressed, you touch that key to the payment machine, and the fee based on your stay time is charged. When you pay, a paper with a barcode for exit is issued. You use that paper to exit, insert the key into the shoe locker to retrieve your shoes, and you're done.

This flow involves absolutely no human intervention for entry and exit. In other words, there is no need to line up at the reception for entry or exit. Moreover, since it's just one key, there's no "where did I put my shoe locker key" problem that often happens.

The operation is super efficient. As a customer, it's an experience where you can go straight to the sauna without anything getting in your way.

I thought, 'The latest saunas are amazing' (it's subtle, but I think it's a super important design point).

② The shower head is on a new level

And another thing that impressed me before even entering the sauna. lol

When I went to wash my body and hair to purify myself, mist came out of the shower.

Whoa! What is this! I thought, and when I pressed the button on the shower head, it switched between normal shower, power shower, jet, and mist.

It's the latest ReFa shower head.

It eliminates the common frustrations found in hot spring inns, like weak water pressure that makes rinsing shampoo take forever, or the annoyance of having to keep pushing the lever down to keep the water running. You get the shower you want at the water pressure and temperature you want, continuously. This level of comfort is amazing.

Moreover, the mist shower after the sauna feels super good.

I thought the latest saunas are super amazing.
I want all hot spring shower heads to be like this. lol

(Reference) This is probably the shower head. I want it for my house. It's expensive... lol

③ There are 5 types of saunas, each offering a different experience

After being impressed by the state-of-the-art facilities before even reaching the sauna, I headed to the sauna.

There are 5 types of saunas.
The auto-löyly sauna 'Joki Ranbu', the self-löyly sauna 'Tejaku Joki', the meditation sauna 'Meiso', the steam sauna 'Todana Mushiburo', and the super dry sauna 'Showa Enseki'.

I went through all of them.
I'll write about each one, along with the information I studied in advance on the official website.

(1) Joki Ranbu

I wondered what 'automatic control of sound, lighting, and auto-löyly' meant... so I was excited and went there first. A 90°C sauna.

I was able to get in just before the sauna master's Aufguss show started.

Even when it seemed like no more people could fit, men kept coming one after another, asking 'Is this spot taken? Is this spot taken?' and filling in the gaps until there was barely enough space to avoid touching shoulders. By the time the sauna master appeared, over 40 naked men were packed into the sauna room at maximum capacity. Outside the sauna room, a line of men formed, waiting for a gap to open up. I thought I was lucky to have come at such a good time.

When the sauna master arrived, they started with a self-introduction. Applause erupted from the 40-plus men.

And then,the sauna master danced to the music. It wasn't just fanning to send heat waves; it was as if the heat waves were being created by the dance itself.

When they danced in front of me, the heat waves rushed directly onto my body. And even the heat waves not directed straight at me bounced off the walls and ceiling to rush toward me as well.

It was truly a dance of steam and joy.
I think it's in the realm of art.

(2) Tejaku Joki (Hand-ladled Steam)

106°C sauna.

You can perform self-löyly with the hot water in the front right of the photo using a hand ladle. Here, there is an exchange like at 'Garden Sauna Kamata' where people say, 'I'm going to pour,' and 'Please do.' When you pour the löyly, steam rises and the perceived temperature rises sharply. It feels great.

(3) Meditation

60°C sauna.

I wondered what 'designed so you can slowly enjoy a world of your own' meant, but when I went inside, I thought, 'I see...!'

Each sauna seat is partitioned off.
It's like the flavor-concentration booths at Ichiran ramen shops.

Each seat is separated from the person next to it by a partition. No one talks to their neighbor (conversation is prohibited in all Sauna Tokyo saunas, but it is even more strictly quiet here), andthere was a world of one, where I was not in anyone's line of sight, and no one was in mine.

All I can see are my own outstretched legs and the wall, and all I can hear is the background music of birds chirping, my own breathing, and the sound of my heartbeat.

I meditated for a while.

Also, each seat has its own shower (the white hose in the photo), so you can rinse off your sweat before leaving. It is truly well thought out.

(4) Todana Steam Bath

A 54°C sauna.

A half-body bath sauna. The lower body is in hot water, and the upper body is steamed. Did ancient Japanese people really bathe in such a luxurious way...? I'm curious if there are any authentic ancient-style saunas left in Japan, and I'd love to visit one.

(5) Showa Far-Infrared

A 108°C sauna.

There is a TV inside the wooden frame in the photo. The far-infrared gas heater heats the room to a high temperature. It is tiered, and it gets hotter as you climb higher.

The layout is exactly like my local home sauna, and for the first time, I objectively realized that the genre of sauna I usually go to is a 'Showa-style dry far-infrared high-temperature sauna.'

It was hotter than my usual spot, very comfortable, and I sweated for one full rotation of the sauna clock.

④ There are 3 types of cold baths, and the single-digit temperature one is super cold

The cold baths are located in the center of the five saunas, optimizing the flow of sauna → cold bath → sauna → cold bath → sauna → .... The layout is designed so that no matter which sauna you exit, you can head straight to a cold bath.It's amazing. This couldn't be achieved through patchwork renovations.

There are three types of cold water baths with different temperature ranges. Cool: 21.8°C/6 people, Cold: 12.3°C/10 people, and Frozen: 9°C/6 people.

At first, I tried the Cool bath, then moved on to the Cold and Frozen baths. The Frozen bath is 8°C. A so-called single-digit bath. My first time experiencing it.

When I soaked in it, I felt a numbing sensation as my core cooled down within about a minute, but when I got out, I felt sharp and energetic despite shivering, and I felt like I could go to the next sauna as many times as I wanted.

In the photo, the one in the foreground is Cool (21.8°C), the one in the back left is Cold (12.3°C), and the one in the back right is Frozen (8°C).

⑤ Types of relaxation spaces and the environment for 'totonou' (achieving a meditative state)

I also went to the relaxation space several times during my sauna and cold bath loop.

The relaxation space is also amazing. There is an indoor bathing area and a freezer room.

Since the entry pass in ① that you wear on your body also acts as a payment key, you can pay right there at the counter in the relaxation space. You are handed a cup, and you can drink as much Pocari Sweat and detox water as you like. Since Pocari Sweat is a sugary drink, I drank many cups of the detox water.

You can doze off sitting in the chairs in the photo, or you can lie down in the back of the photo.

There are no photos of the freezer rooms on the official website, but there were two rooms. The back room was 9°C, and the front room was 15°C. There were two veranda chairs in each, and here I was able to achieve a meditative state with a feeling of outdoor bathing, touching cool air, which was different from the indoor bathing area.

Summary of acquired sauna experience points

With that, I fully enjoyed the high-grade "Sauna Tokyo." As for the experience points gained:

✅ Sauna room maximum temperature 108°C (home sauna 85°C)!
✅ Heat wave masters dancing! A realm of art!
✅ Todana-buro, a bathing method popular in the Edo period!
✅ Meditation in an Ichiran-style sauna!
✅ Cold water bath minimum temperature 9°C (home sauna 18°C)!
✅ Freezer room!
✅ ReFa shower heads are incredible!

When you achieve a meditative state in a sauna, you must be undisturbed, free, and, how should I put it, saved. Alone, quiet, and rich...

Solitary sauna. How rich it is.
I'm planning to go on an expedition again if I have some spare time. Ah, I really want to go on a business trip.

In search of a sauna experience I have yet to know.

And, I seriously want this shower head for my home.

For those who are sauna enthusiasts in the Tokyo area, or those visiting Tokyo for business, I highly recommend you experience "Sauna Tokyo" at least once.

The cutting edge of saunas is here.

Or so I think, even though I've only been on two expeditions so far. lol

To be continued