Healthy spa Tateba — Local services in Osaka

I found the place quite lovely, particularly the electrified part of the spa baths. No joke, that electrified part saved my shoulder from aching every time I took my big bag out for a day trip somewhere.

The place itself is quite good, you get a ticket from a vending machine to use the baths. The baths cost around ¥650 if you include towels. You can also access the sauna for a bit extra but I found that I didn’t need to with the different options for a bath inside.

The downstairs vending machine only takes cash while an upstairs one can take card but has limited options. You give the ticket/s to one of the ladies upstairs and they’ll let you through.

It’s a little daunting to face a naked stranger of the same gender when you walk into your biological gender section but you quickly get used to it knowing that everyone else is here for the same reason you are: to take a bath.

Once properly dizzy from the heat and changed you can enjoy a little something from the cafe section of the bathhouse or enjoy their little manga collection (although all in Japanese). I had a strawberry soft serve there and like all strawberry soft serves in Japan it tasted like strawberries. I also had one of their rectangular milk like bottles too. It wasn’t milk though, the white one is actually yogurt while the chocolate looking one is coffee milk.

I do recommend it if you’re...

This establishment is conveniently located in Osaka City and is tattoo-friendly. Mainly locals here when I visited. They offer shampoo and soap for free. You pay an extra fee for towel rental so you can get adult spa ticket or adult ticket with towel rental. They offer a dry sauna for extra fee.

On the day I went, I was on the side (men/women rotate sides) that had a large green colored tile soaking area that had spa jets for your back, feet, etc. this is perfect for long days on your feet. There was also a smaller yellow tile area where there’s an electric current, I did. It try this. Also a blue section where the water was too hot for me. Also a steam room. Outside had a cold plunge and warm soaking area again with jet streams. Being outside, it’s a cooler area. The dry sauna is also outside. Seems to be popular with locals. It was 300 yen extra and they give you a special device to open the sauna door.

Please note you will be in your birthday suit, washing yourself while sitting down as well as in all the soaking areas. No one cares, everyone is naked so don’t worry about it. Even if you’ve never done it, let it go. again, no one cares because it’s what the Japanese do. Enjoy...

I came here the first time on Wednesday this week (I think) and I loved it so much that the next day I came again with my boyfriend and he loved it to.

Now he and I have been to a bunch of tattoo friendly onsen places (kinosaki, arima onsen etc.) but this one has it all!

If you have tattoos this is probably the best place to go in Osaka.

The cold water baths are amazing and as a foreigner who finds the water in the onsen always a bit to hot, cooling down in the really cold baths and switching between warm and cold feels so refreshing.

On the left side (which side which gender uses switches every day) you also have a deep and wide pool for you to stretch in the warm water.

Almost Every small basin has instructions that tell you why they are good for your body (only in Japanese tough!) and the locals were also friendly and ready to help me (besides me having a a tattoo going over all of my upper arm).

The denki ofuro is scary! I didn’t even see any of the locals fully submerge in that! But it’s worth it to try it out so I’m really glad they have it here.

Staff are very nice aswell.

Sometimes the men can be a bit enthusiastic...