"There's a cold plunge bath here where you can enjoy Mt. Fuji's underground spring water flowing freely — are you interested?"
Any sauna enthusiast would say yes without hesitation.
But could a place this dreamy actually exist?
It does.
The facility is called Fuji Natural Water SPA Sauna Takanoyu.
That day, I had visited the sacred Sauna Shikiji in the morning and soaked to my heart's content in its drinkable cold plunge bath. My body was already thoroughly refreshed, inside and out. But I couldn't let the day end without experiencing a cold plunge bath fed by free-flowing Fuji natural water.
I took a taxi from Sauna Shikiji to Shizuoka Station, then hopped on a local train to Fuji Station. From there, I got into a taxi and said, "To Fuji Natural Water SPA Sauna Takanoyu, please." The driver looked momentarily puzzled. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" he replied. "I'd like to go to a hot spring called Takanoyu... let me give you the address. Hisazawa, Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture..." That seemed to do the trick. "Oh, that place! Got it," he said. We were on our way. About fifteen minutes of driving, up a slope, heading toward the mountains. In all my life, I'd only seen Mt. Fuji from the Shinkansen window, but up close, the presence of it is overwhelming. Something that massive — of course the spring water it feeds would feel incredible. I was grinning to myself at the thought when the driver's voice brought me back to reality: "Here we are, sir." "Ah, thank you very much," I said, and stepped inside.
After checking in, I made my way to the changing room, stripped down at lightning speed, rinsed off, and headed to the barrel sauna in the outdoor area. The barrel sauna was set to 100°C with an auto löyly going off every twelve minutes — a seriously intense setup. The moment I stepped in, sweat started pouring out of me. No TV, so it was just me and my thoughts. I sat cross-legged, engaged my core, and let the heat work its way deep into my body. When my heart rate hit its limit, I stepped out. Now, which cold plunge bath to choose?
Fuji Natural Water SPA Sauna Takanoyu offers three cold plunge baths. The first is a large indoor bath at 12–13°C. The second is a cypress wood bath in the outdoor area, around 14°C. The third is a massive tub in the outdoor area — big enough for about eight people — at roughly 16°C. All of them run on free-flowing Fuji underground spring water. I went with the cypress bath, purely personal preference. It's a single-person bath, so the moment I got in, water spilled over the edges in a rush. But since it's constantly flowing, it fills right back up. And cold it was. Yet soft. That same sensation I'd felt at Ogaki Sauna — cold but smooth, the kind you could stay in forever. I soaked for about two minutes and felt chilled to the very core.
Next up: the outdoor rest I'd been waiting for. Several reclining chairs were lined up right beside the barrel sauna. What a perfect flow. I sank my full body weight into a chair and closed my eyes. That sensation I'd felt at Ogaki Sauna and Sauna Shikiji — pores breathing freely for what feels like forever. It's a feeling you only get from natural water cold plunges, groundwater and the like — unmistakably different from tap water baths. The best way I can describe it is the kind of refreshment you'd feel if you were soaking in mint water. And the texture against your skin is different too — smooth and almost silky. Natural water is rich in minerals, and your skin must be absorbing them just from being in the bath. My whole body was rejoicing, I could feel it. Sitting there in the chair, I thought to myself: what an incredibly happy day. Morning at the sacred Sauna Shikiji, evening at Fuji Natural Water SPA Sauna Takanoyu. Only a sauna trip could offer this kind of indulgence.
I had planned to stop at three sets, but the water felt so impossibly good that I came down with a full-blown case of "I don't want to leave," and before I knew it, I had finished five sets. I was starving. Time for post-sauna food.
For the meal, I ordered motsu nabe and karaage at the restaurant inside the facility. Hot pot after a sauna session is the pinnacle of all pleasures. I closed my eyes and took a slow sip of the broth. Nodding repeatedly like a food critic performing for a TV camera — except I wasn't performing at all. I was savoring it with my entire body. Nutrients flowing into a body that had already done eight sets. I started to feel like I could go back and do another three. But I held myself back. The trip was continuing the following day.
After the meal, I stopped by the merchandise corner and bought a badge. It had a Mt. Fuji logo printed with "SAUNA TAKANOYU" — charming. I make a habit of buying something from any facility that moves me. Every time I see that item, it brings back the emotion of that moment and puts me in a happy place. Besides, living in Shikoku, I can't exactly make the trip to Shizuoka regularly. This visit might turn out to be the first and last. When I thought about it that way, I wanted to leave some proof in my life that I had been here. Fuji Natural Water SPA Sauna Takanoyu was, without a doubt, top-tier among every facility I had ever visited. On the taxi ride back to Fuji Station, I made a firm decision: I will definitely come back.
And with that, today's activities were complete — or so I wished. But the day wasn't over yet. Once you hear where I was staying that night, you'll understand why. My accommodation for the evening was Suruga Health Land, one of Shizuoka's finest sauna facilities.
To be continued.
