I worked hard again this week. Though I should admit, even during work hours, my mind keeps drifting to saunas and cold plunge baths. As the weekend draws closer, I get more and more excited thinking about where to go this time. I love that feeling. Sometimes I think it would be wonderful to go on a sauna trip every single day. But it's precisely because I have my regular daily life that the weekends feel so special. That's undeniable. If I were traveling every day, it would just become routine, and I'd lose the excitement, the freshness, the moments of discovery. Gratitude would fade too. Humans are creatures of adaptation, so the weekend sauna trip — alternating between the ordinary and the extraordinary — is the most optimal solution. That's what I keep telling myself. Visiting somewhere different on weekends also makes my sauna sessions at my home sauna feel more fulfilling. Maybe it's a bit like the foolish human tendency to only appreciate your partner after straying — but let's not dwell on that.
This week, I decided to head to Kyoto. Lately I've been completely hooked on groundwater cold plunge baths, and when I think of groundwater, Kyoto immediately comes to mind. It's said that beneath Kyoto lies an underground water reservoir rivaling Lake Biwa in volume, and there are many hot spring facilities that make lavish use of this groundwater. I could have left on Saturday morning, but that would eat up too much travel time. So instead, I start the trip Friday night. That's how my sauna journeys begin.
During Friday afternoon, I searched for a hotel to stay at that night. Ideally somewhere I could stay overnight and enjoy a sauna and cold plunge bath. While browsing Kyoto sauna facilities, a listing caught my eye: carbonated cold plunge bath. Warm carbonated baths are common enough at various hot spring facilities. But a carbonated cold plunge bath — now that's something truly rare. What would it feel like? I had to find out. And so I made a reservation. That hotel was SPA&HOTEL Suishun Matsuiyamate.
I finished work at 6 PM and got in the car. I crossed into Awaji Island via the Naruto Strait and drove for a while. Getting hungry, I decided to eat first and took the Sumoto interchange exit. There were a few restaurants right near the exit — hamburger steak places, a tonkatsu shop. I thought the fried pork might be a bit heavy before a sauna, but I ordered the roast tonkatsu set meal anyway. That was a mistake I hadn't yet realized. The food didn't go down as easily as I expected — my body seemed to be rejecting the oil. Still, I slowly made my way through all of it. My stomach felt a little heavy. But I figured I had nearly two more hours to Kyoto, plenty of time to digest, and let my guard down.
Back on the highway from Sumoto, I drove straight to Tarumi. Crossing the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge at night and entering the Kobe area — the thrill of that never gets old. Every time, I let out a shout of excitement. But my stomach still felt heavy. From Tarumi, I took the Daini Shinmei Expressway, passing through Nishinomiya, Takarazuka, and Suita, gradually closing in on Kyoto. The roads were clear, so it looked like I'd make it without any rest stops.
I arrived at SPA&HOTEL Suishun Matsuiyamate just before 9 PM. After checking in, I was eager to dive into the sauna and carbonated cold plunge bath — but that's when my stomach decided to rebel. I spent about 30 minutes shut in the bathroom, and finally things settled down. Whether it was my condition from the start or the tonkatsu from Awaji Island, I couldn't say, but it was an unexpected setback.
After resting for a while and feeling better, I headed to the main bathing area around 10 PM. The moment I walked in, I was stunned by the crowd. There were few overnight guests, but the number of day visitors was enormous. Groups that looked like high schoolers or college students stood out in particular. The reviews I'd read mentioned it gets crowded, and they were right. I muttered something uncharitable to myself. I'm all for people enjoying a facility. But I wish groups who treat a hot spring like their personal hangout spot would take it somewhere else. Occupying space in clusters, talking at full volume — this isn't an izakaya. Groups who come to a sauna just to socialize tend to have poor manners in the sauna room and the baths too. The place they should be heading is an izakaya, not a sauna.
I shook it off, cleaned myself up, and looked for a less crowded bath. SPA&HOTEL Suishun Matsuiyamate has an enormous variety of baths — likely the largest selection in Kyoto. Carbonated bath, milky bath, jet bath, free-flowing natural hot spring, steam sauna, high-temperature sauna, cold plunge bath, and more. The free-flowing hot spring was open, so I slowly warmed my body there. A hot spring soak when your stomach is off tends to support your body's natural healing. Going hard on sauna and cold plunge rounds is great, but tonight, my body was telling me it wanted to soak quietly.
After about 20 minutes of a half-body soak, I felt considerably relaxed. Given my condition, I thought maybe one set would be enough for today. I made my way to the sauna room and took a seat on the upper bench. The sauna at SPA&HOTEL Suishun Matsuiyamate is a far-infrared dry sauna that's been modified to heat sauna stones, making löyly possible. It seemed like löyly was performed on a regular schedule, as the aroma and humidity were maintained at a wonderfully balanced level. It felt fantastic. Except it was extremely noisy. I forced my eyes shut and turned my attention inward. After a while I'd built up a solid sweat, so I moved on to the cold plunge bath — the carbonated cold plunge bath I'd been so looking forward to. The thermometer read 13.7°C. I slipped in, half-expecting it to be fizzy. And then something completely unexpected happened.
About 10 seconds into the plunge, a sharp pain shot through my nether regions — specifically the, well, the family jewels. A crushing, constricting pain. It became impossible to stay in, so I got out. What on earth was that? I calmed down a bit and tried again. Still painful. I wondered if other customers were experiencing the same thing, but no one around me seemed to be reacting that way. Though it was true that nobody was staying in the cold plunge for very long. Thinking about it rationally: carbonated baths have a vasodilating effect, while cold water baths cause vasoconstriction. The clash between cold-water constriction and carbonation-induced dilation must have thrown the blood vessels and nerves into a state of confusion, causing the delicate zone to register it as intense stimulation — that is, pain.
Curiously, despite the packed facility, the cold plunge bath was noticeably empty. Everyone was probably hiding it, but I suspect they were experiencing the same pain in their own family jewels. If that logic held, a second set would hurt just as much, so I decided to test it. Back into the sauna, push my body to its limit. Then rinse off and into the cold plunge. Instantly, that crushing sensation returned, pain flooding in. I couldn't endure it and got out.
I don't think the low water temperature is the cause. I've done singles — cold plunges under 10°C — at various facilities over the years without ever experiencing that kind of pain. The lowest I've gone was 5°C at Welby Fukuoka, and my family jewels were perfectly fine. There is no doubt about it: carbonation and the cold plunge bath simply do not mix.
Since I couldn't linger in the cold plunge, I cooled down with a cold shower instead and called it a session. Between the stomach trouble, the massive crowds, and the somewhat unsatisfying carbonated cold plunge experience, the evening ended on an incomplete note — but that's part of what makes a sauna trip a sauna trip. Not every facility delivers exactly what you imagined. There are things you can only discover by actually going and experiencing them yourself, and new realizations to be had along the way. I went back to my room and crashed hard. A good night's sleep would surely sort out the stomach too.
The next morning I woke up at 6 AM. After last night's sauna session, I'd started reading and was overcome by drowsiness almost immediately, drifting off just like that. About seven hours of deep sleep meant a solid wake-up. My stomach seemed to be fine — fully recovered. Proof of that: it was growling loudly with hunger.
Morning began with the usual routine. Drink some water, brush my teeth, head out for a morning walk. At home it's the park near my house every day, but when I'm traveling, exploring a new neighborhood has a freshness to it that I love. I'd never been to Matsuiyamate in my life, so I walked a little longer than usual. It felt like a quiet, composed bedroom community. Elegant apartment buildings lined the streets, with no sketchy establishments in sight. The kind of place where salarymen from major companies commute to Kyoto and Osaka.
After the walk, I decided to take a morning bath. Being able to enjoy a hot spring first thing in the morning is genuinely wonderful. The bathing area looked completely different from the night before. Few people, and almost all of them overnight guests, each quietly enjoying their morning soak. I cleaned myself first, then slowly settled into the carbonated bath. I relaxed for about 15 minutes, watching the morning news. After that, a soak in the free-flowing natural hot spring, a cold shower, and I was done. I would have liked a cold plunge, but the carbonated cold plunge bath does a number on the family jewels, so that was a no.
Then came the breakfast buffet, enjoyed at leisure, followed by a slow cup of coffee. Back in my room, I finished writing up my blog post and noticed it was nearly time to check out.
I already know where I'm headed next. Moving into central Kyoto for a morning sauna and an exceptional cold plunge bath. When you talk about exceptional cold plunge baths in Kyoto, you're talking about Hakusanyu. The Takatsuju location is closed today, so I'll be visiting the Rokujo location. Feeling completely recovered and in good spirits, I checked out of the hotel and drove toward Hakusanyu Rokujo.
