I'm drawn to retro places with a sense of history rather than shiny new facilities.
Gosho Takarayu in Gose City, Nara Prefecture, is exactly that kind of place.
Gosho Takarayu is a renovated sento that operated from 1916 (the 5th year of the Taisho era) until 2008. While preserving its classic retro atmosphere, the sauna is a Finnish-style clay wall sauna with self-service löyly — and that clay wall is the real highlight. The cold plunge bath sits at around 14°C, and there's also an outdoor relaxation area. I'd known about this place for a while and thought it sounded like a fantastic bathhouse sauna. This trip, starting at Yao Grand Hotel, made getting to Gosho Takarayu a natural fit. There was no reason not to go. I climbed into the car buzzing with excitement.
About an hour from Yao Grand Hotel, I arrived in Gose City, Nara. It was 11 a.m. Since Gosho Takarayu has no parking lot, I found a coin parking lot near Gose Station and decided to stroll around the town. The old streetscape still lingers here — you can really feel the history. It also looked like finding a good meal before or after the sauna wouldn't be a problem. About a five-minute walk from Gosho Takarayu is Shinchi Irifune, a long-established diner. Apparently, curry udon and oyakodon are the specialties. A tough choice. But I figured I could decide what to eat once I was out of the sauna.
After enjoying the walk around town, the time had finally come to get in the sauna. As I approached the entrance, I noticed a small crowd gathered outside. What's going on? The place should open at 11 a.m., and it was already past that. I walked past once, pretending to be a passerby, and snuck a glance inside — it looked like a TV crew was filming. I could see a large camera. I rounded the corner at the end of the block, did a U-turn, and headed back. Please don't tell me they're closed for filming today. I only have this one chance to come. Thinking that, I approached the entrance, ducked under the noren curtain, and was just about to step inside when two men called out to me.
The two men: "We're filming a travel program, and we'd love to interview a regular customer. Would you be willing?"
Me: "Hello. Actually, I'm not a regular here. I might look like one, ha — but I'm on a sauna trip and this is my first time visiting."
The two men: "Oh, is that so... But the story of someone traveling from far away just to come to this place — that's interesting, isn't it? How about we do the interview with that angle?"
Me: "I appreciate it, but that's a bit tough for me. I've retired from public life. I prefer to stay under the radar."
The two men: "That's a shame... One last try — is there really no way?"
Me: (I just told you no, come on.)
I nearly said it out loud, but held back just in time. I smiled, waved them off, and stepped inside. The place was packed with TV crew members. A recognizable celebrity was sitting in a chair nearby. I was a little surprised, but I'm a seasoned sauna-goer. A TV crew filming here means nothing to me. My only job was to be 100% focused on enjoying the sauna. I checked in with a composed expression, rented a towel, bought a drink, and headed into the changing room. As luck would have it, the filming seemed to have wrapped up — the bath area was all mine. First in.
Stepping into the bathing area, the retro atmosphere of a neighborhood sento washed over me. Yet since the place has been renovated, the facilities are clean. Retro ambiance and modern cleanliness woven together — it felt like past and present had merged. I got to enjoy a leisurely first soak for a while. Before long, an older man who appeared to be a regular came hurrying in. He spoke to me the moment he stepped into the bath area.
Regular: "Did you do the interview?"
Me: "No, I didn't. Ha."
Regular: "You should've! They came to me too!"
Me: "I'm not a regular, though. Today's my first time here."
Regular: "Ah, I see. Well, I didn't do it either, ha."
Me: "Wait, you turned them down too?"
Regular: "There's always someone who's eager to get in front of a camera. So I leave it to those people. We'll just enjoy the sauna at our own pace."
I couldn't have agreed more. We headed into the sauna together.
Inside the sauna room, a pleasant scent of lemongrass filled the air, and a gentle heat wrapped around me. The reason for that softness is the clay wall. Clay has high heat retention — unlike metal or concrete, it doesn't heat up sharply on the surface but instead releases warmth gradually and steadily. Clay also absorbs and releases moisture, so the steam from löyly spreads gently and evenly throughout the room. The result is a sauna that warms you to the core in the most comfortable way imaginable. With that perfect balance of temperature and humidity, I sweated freely and deeply. As my heart rate climbed toward its limit, I moved to the cold plunge bath. Felt like around 14°C. Seriously cold and incredibly good. Right next to the plunge bath, a wooden log stool is set out. It's a neighborhood sento, so there's not a lot of space — but somehow that limited space feels all the more cozy. And unlike a super sento, there are very few people. Right now, it's just me and the regular. In the quiet, I focused on my heartbeat and my breathing.
After about ten minutes of rest, I moved into my second set. The regular was still in the sauna — powering through his first set. A true warrior. When he eventually stepped out, I took the opportunity to do a self-service löyly. I poured the aromatic water over the sauna stones. Lemongrass filled the room all at once. The temperature rose, and so did my heart rate. This really is a great sauna. A hot sauna isn't necessarily a good sauna. What makes a great sauna is comfort, quiet, the right kind of darkness, the scent, and that deep warmth that reaches your core. Gosho Takarayu has all of it. I found myself thinking: I want to come back. I want to sit in this sauna again.
In the end, I completed three full sets and reached totonou each time. When I came out of the bathing area, the TV crew had left and the place had returned to its quiet self. I told the person at the front desk, "That was the best sauna. I'll be back." They asked, "Did you reach totonou?" I replied, "Completely and utterly. Thank you." I'm pretty sure they know exactly how good this sauna is. They gave a slow nod and fixed me with a look of quiet triumph. The staff here love saunas, and they have genuine pride in theirs. That's the kind of place people keep coming back to.
Since the place had emptied out, I ended up chatting with the front desk person for a while about the sauna and the cold plunge. It's not the kind of conversation you can have at a big super sento. At a neighborhood sento, the person at the front desk is often the owner, and you can sometimes hear the story of how it all started. That kind of connection is one of the real joys of a sauna trip.
I was starving. Next up: the post-sauna meal, as tradition demands.
Just a short walk from Gosho Takarayu is Shinchi Irifune, a celebrated curry udon spot. The shop has clearly been loved for a long time — you can see the years in its weathered walls. I was in the mood for curry udon, so I went with the house specialty.
For what it's worth, I've eaten curry udon many times in my life, but I've never once drained the soup to the last drop. I'd simply never encountered a curry udon that made me want to. After a little while, a voice rang out: "Hey, your curry udon's ready — come and get it!" Ah, so you pick it up yourself. I like that.
Back at my seat, the moment the curry soup hit my tongue, it was like electricity running through my body. I'd never tasted a soup this good. It's curry, but the bonito dashi comes through beautifully, giving it a distinctly Japanese character. And the spice level is so perfectly calibrated that you could keep drinking it forever. A few minutes later, I had drained every last drop. A perfect morning.
So — where to next? I'd planned as far as Gosho Takarayu, but beyond that, I had nothing figured out. Head home? No way. This trip is too good to cut short. That meant I needed to pick both my next sauna and somewhere to sleep. I ducked into a nearby coffee shop to plan.
Coffee in hand, I opened Google Maps and searched for somewhere accessible from Gose City, Nara. My next destination came to me quickly: Takanoguchinoyu in Hashimoto City, Wakayama Prefecture. I make a habit of researching sauna facilities regularly, and I save the ones I want to visit as favorites on Google Maps — so wherever I end up, there's always a sauna nearby. I've got that many saved. An earlier search had flagged Takanoguchinoyu in Wakayama as a place with real promise: a sento that houses an iki sauna by Harvia and an exceptional cold plunge bath fed by natural groundwater.
Checking the route, it was less than an hour's drive from Gose City. All I had left was to find somewhere to stay. A quick search on a booking site turned up a business hotel in Kinokawa City, Wakayama — still available. Given it was a holiday weekend, I'd been half-expecting everything to be full. I was grateful for the luck.
Next stop: Takanoguchinoyu, the extraordinary old-townhouse sento. To be continued.
