Why is it that mornings on a travel day always bring such a refreshing awakening? In my usual retired life at home, I can barely muster the energy to do anything in the morning. But when it comes to a sauna trip, that's a different story entirely. The fulfillment of doing something I love, and above all, the way high-quality hot springs and saunas completely reset the deep fatigue in my body and deliver truly exceptional sleep — mornings like this are proof of all that. The wake-up time is the same as always, but the surge of energy I feel the moment I open my eyes under the covers is nothing like what I experience on an ordinary day. I spring out of bed in an instant, get myself ready, and start the car. My destination is Taketori Onsen Akari no Yu in Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture. I set off to arrive for the 6:00 a.m. opening. Speeding down the roads in the early morning with little traffic, I roll down the window and let the cold air hit my face. On days when I visit facilities that open early in the morning, my standard routine is to structure the day in three acts: morning sauna, midday sauna, and evening sauna. First, I use Taketori Onsen Akari no Yu to violently — or rather, gently — jolt my sleeping body awake. Exactly 6:00 a.m., opening time. When I arrive at the facility, there are already quite a few cars in the parking lot, and I can spot fellow enthusiasts making their way toward the entrance. Silently calling out to them — "So you too know the glory of the morning sauna" — I follow in their footsteps and slip through the noren curtain. After checking in at the reception, I step into the main bath area. The interior is spotlessly clean, and a refreshing scent of wood drifts through the air. I strip down at lightning speed in the changing room and head into the bathing area. The indoor baths offer a wide variety of tubs, and the space is wonderfully expansive. Sauna, cold plunge bath, natural hot spring — everything you need is here, a perfect lineup. First, I wash up properly, then sink into the high-concentration carbonated bath and slowly coax my body into waking. The fizzing bubbles cling to my skin, and I can feel my circulation gradually improving. From there, I move to the natural hot spring and soak up the morning sunlight filtering through the leaves, enjoying a luxurious bath in every sense of the word. Once the core of my body is thoroughly warmed, I finally pull open the door to the sauna room. The dry sauna has its lighting dimmed to a comfortable level, with a large stove sitting front and center — set up for automatic löyly every 30 minutes. The moment I step inside, my first impression is that the humidity feels just a touch lacking. It's going to take a little longer than usual to break a sweat. But that's perfectly fine. I gaze vaguely at the morning news program on the TV and take my time, slowly and steadily drawing the heat into my body. The reason I am so devoted to the morning sauna: it lets you feel life itself, directly. In the morning, it takes far longer to start sweating compared to an evening sauna. Even though your mind has woken up and started its day, the cells deep inside your body are still in a profound sleep. You endure the sauna's heat in silence and savor the process as sweat gradually, gently seeps out — it is nothing less than a ritual in which your sleeping cells awaken one by one. After sitting there for a while, as if my body had finally made up its mind, sweat began to pour from every inch of me like a waterfall. Proof that every cell had fully come alive. I had hit my limit, and I burst out of the sauna room. I rinse off the sweat in the shower immediately and head to the long-awaited cold plunge bath. The cold plunge bath here is named Iwashimizu, after the pure spring water drawn from this very land at the foot of Iwashimizu Hachimangu Shrine. My expectations are sky-high even before I get in. The thermometer reads 16°C. I lower myself in slowly. ...Magnificent. Not too cold, not too warm — an ideal temperature you could stay in forever — and the silky, mellow feel on the skin that only spring water can offer. On top of that, it is more than generous in both depth and width. The size of a cold plunge bath is an absolutely critical factor in determining the quality of a sauna experience. There is a world of difference between hunching into a cramped bath while keeping an eye on those around you, and stretching out your arms and legs freely in a spacious one — the depth of the totonou state you reach afterward is completely different. This cold plunge bath is flawless in every regard: temperature, size, and water quality. I absorbed the gift of the spring water with every cell in my body and cooled myself down until I felt sharp and alert. Out of the cold plunge, I settle deep into a chair in the outdoor area. Reveling privately in my own arguably abnormal passion for sauna — the kind that drives me to come all the way out here just to catch the 6:00 a.m. opening — I sank deep, deep into the world of perfect totonou. I finished this morning's sauna at two sets. The morning's purpose is simply to wake the body up, and if I exhaust myself here, it will put a serious dent in the grueling sauna journey that lies ahead.

Why is it that mornings on a travel day always bring such a refreshing awakening? In my usual retired life at home, I can barely muster the energy to do anything in the morning. But when it comes to a sauna trip, that's a different story entirely. The fulfillment of doing something I love, and above all, the way high-quality hot springs and saunas completely reset the deep fatigue in my body and deliver truly exceptional sleep — mornings like this are proof of all that. The wake-up time is the same as always, but the surge of energy I feel the moment I open my eyes under the covers is nothing like what I experience on an ordinary day. I spring out of bed in an instant, get myself ready, and start the car. My destination is Taketori Onsen Akari no Yu in Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture. I set off to arrive for the 6:00 a.m. opening. Speeding down the roads in the early morning with little traffic, I roll down the window and let the cold air hit my face. On days when I visit facilities that open early in the morning, my standard routine is to structure the day in three acts: morning sauna, midday sauna, and evening sauna. First, I use Taketori Onsen Akari no Yu to violently — or rather, gently — jolt my sleeping body awake. Exactly 6:00 a.m., opening time. When I arrive at the facility, there are already quite a few cars in the parking lot, and I can spot fellow enthusiasts making their way toward the entrance. Silently calling out to them — "So you too know the glory of the morning sauna" — I follow in their footsteps and slip through the noren curtain. After checking in at the reception, I step into the main bath area. The interior is spotlessly clean, and a refreshing scent of wood drifts through the air. I strip down at lightning speed in the changing room and head into the bathing area. The indoor baths offer a wide variety of tubs, and the space is wonderfully expansive. Sauna, cold plunge bath, natural hot spring — everything you need is here, a perfect lineup. First, I wash up properly, then sink into the high-concentration carbonated bath and slowly coax my body into waking. The fizzing bubbles cling to my skin, and I can feel my circulation gradually improving. From there, I move to the natural hot spring and soak up the morning sunlight filtering through the leaves, enjoying a luxurious bath in every sense of the word. Once the core of my body is thoroughly warmed, I finally pull open the door to the sauna room. The dry sauna has its lighting dimmed to a comfortable level, with a large stove sitting front and center — set up for automatic löyly every 30 minutes. The moment I step inside, my first impression is that the humidity feels just a touch lacking. It's going to take a little longer than usual to break a sweat. But that's perfectly fine. I gaze vaguely at the morning news program on the TV and take my time, slowly and steadily drawing the heat into my body. The reason I am so devoted to the morning sauna: it lets you feel life itself, directly. In the morning, it takes far longer to start sweating compared to an evening sauna. Even though your mind has woken up and started its day, the cells deep inside your body are still in a profound sleep. You endure the sauna's heat in silence and savor the process as sweat gradually, gently seeps out — it is nothing less than a ritual in which your sleeping cells awaken one by one. After sitting there for a while, as if my body had finally made up its mind, sweat began to pour from every inch of me like a waterfall. Proof that every cell had fully come alive. I had hit my limit, and I burst out of the sauna room. I rinse off the sweat in the shower immediately and head to the long-awaited cold plunge bath. The cold plunge bath here is named Iwashimizu, after the pure spring water drawn from this very land at the foot of Iwashimizu Hachimangu Shrine. My expectations are sky-high even before I get in. The thermometer reads 16°C. I lower myself in slowly. ...Magnificent. Not too cold, not too warm — an ideal temperature you could stay in forever — and the silky, mellow feel on the skin that only spring water can offer. On top of that, it is more than generous in both depth and width. The size of a cold plunge bath is an absolutely critical factor in determining the quality of a sauna experience. There is a world of difference between hunching into a cramped bath while keeping an eye on those around you, and stretching out your arms and legs freely in a spacious one — the depth of the totonou state you reach afterward is completely different. This cold plunge bath is flawless in every regard: temperature, size, and water quality. I absorbed the gift of the spring water with every cell in my body and cooled myself down until I felt sharp and alert. Out of the cold plunge, I settle deep into a chair in the outdoor area. Reveling privately in my own arguably abnormal passion for sauna — the kind that drives me to come all the way out here just to catch the 6:00 a.m. opening — I sank deep, deep into the world of perfect totonou. I finished this morning's sauna at two sets. The morning's purpose is simply to wake the body up, and if I exhaust myself here, it will put a serious dent in the grueling sauna journey that lies ahead.