Kumamoto Kumamoto City
Yulax
The jolt of a 171 cm (5 ft 7 in) deep plunge and the MADMAX button: the “sacred ground of the west,” cradled in Aso’s underground spring water
- Open 24 Hours
- Natural Hot Spring
- Aufguss available
- Self löyly available
- Finnish sauna
- Sauna Available
About Yulax
Yulax, in Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture, is a legendary bathhouse revered by sauna lovers across Japan as the “sacred ground of the west.” Its greatest draw is Japan’s deepest cold plunge, generously filled with underground spring water from Aso: 171 cm (5 ft 7 in) deep in the men’s bath and 153 cm (5 ft) in the women’s bath. Press the MADMAX button overhead and 170 liters of natural water a minute crash straight down like a waterfall, the ultimate chill as Aso’s gift runs through your whole body. The saunas are just as impressive, with three carefully crafted rooms, including hourly waves of heat from a professional aufguss team and a meditation sauna where you turn inward in the silence. Together with the natural onsen, they offer a supreme totonou, a state of deep relaxation that stirs all five senses.
Hot SpringONSEN
Yulax Onsen
A weakly alkaline natural onsen welling up from underground. Its soft touch is gentle on the skin and deepens your relaxation after the sauna. In the indoor and open-air baths you can savor the warm gift nurtured by the land of Kumamoto, a blissful moment that loosens body and mind between rounds in the sauna.
SaunaSAUNA
Aufguss Sauna
The main sauna and the symbol of Yulax. Every hour from noon until 1:00 a.m., a professional aufguss team delivers waves of heat. Towels whirl in time with music and scents, a show that goes far beyond simply sweating. In the spacious theater-style room, you take the passionate hot air across your whole body and sweat to the limit.
Meditation Sauna
A silent sauna built around the idea of meditation. The scent of vihta drifts through the dimly lit room, a space where you can turn deeply inward. The löyly here is one you pour yourself: the moment water hits the sauna stones, a soothing sound rings out and soft steam gently wraps around your body. In the calm atmosphere, you can spend sauna time that sharpens the mind.
Great Aso Eruption Meditation Sauna
An original steam room inspired by Aso’s volcano, with natural onsen water flowing underfoot. Bursts of hot steam at regular intervals fill the room, warming the whole body with moist heat that carries the onsen’s minerals. In this one-of-a-kind setting where the warmth of the onsen meets the power of steam, you can enjoy a healing experience that slowly unknots the body to its core.
Cold BathCOLD BATH
Aso Underground Spring Water Deep Cold Plunge (MADMAX)
Japan’s deepest cold plunge, generously brimming with underground spring water from Aso. The water is 171 cm (5 ft 7 in) deep in the men’s bath and 153 cm (5 ft) in the women’s, so you can stand upright and cool your whole body deeply. Its defining touch is the MADMAX button overhead. The moment you press it, 170 liters of natural water a minute pour down hard, an overwhelming rush of Aso’s gift over your entire body. The mellow water only a famed spring can offer, paired with this dramatic effect, carries you into the finest totonou.
Facility Information
- Address
- 722 Honjo-machi, Chuo-ku, Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture
- Business Hours
- Open 24 Hours
Baths closed for cleaning from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. Closed twice a year for maintenance
- Closed Days
- Unknown
- Gender Access
- Gender Separated
- Tattoo Policy (Communal Bath)
- No Tattoos
- Official Website
- View official site
Access
By car
- About 40 minutes from Kumamoto Interchange
By train and bus
- About 5 minutes’ walk from Heisei Station
- About 5 minutes’ walk from the Yoyasu-machi bus stop
- About 5 to 8 minutes by taxi from Kumamoto Station
Free parking (ground level). There is a taxi stand in the parking lot.
Visited by the Editor-in-Chief
The Editor-in-Chief visited in person in December 2025
Japan’s Finest aufguss and the Ultimate Cold Plunge Bath, Once More
Read the full review
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