Daikoku-yu

Daikoku-yu epitomises Showa-era (1926–1989) neighbourhood bathhouses. Its walls are lined with old photos of celebrities, random oil paintings, baseball merch and other knick-knacks the affable owner has picked up over the years. Said owner is also more than happy to provide an unprompted tour of the facilities.

Inside the bathroom, a mosaic mural depicts a European landscape, which he tells us was ‘very trendy and new’ when it was first completed over 40 years ago. The men’s shower wall features a painting of Kyoto’s Kinkakuji Temple; the women’s side is decorated with images of Nikko.

Below the artwork, the men’s bathing area has 20 hot-water sitting showers, a few standing showers and three baths. The hot bath features a few jet-massage seats, and its 45-degree temperature is a good indicator of the kind of seasoned pros who frequent the establishment. On one side of that, there’s an 18-degree bath; on the other, a mist room housing a 40-degree bath with a fairly strong electric current on one half.

Exiting the bathing area through the locker room and lounge (replete with ancient dumbbells and aerobics equipment), you’ll find the sauna area. The sauna room is split into two chambers. The rock stove is in the slightly larger room, which was well over 100 degrees on our visit, according to the thermometer. The slightly smaller room fits around 8 people comfortably and stays at around 80 degrees. Outside the sauna room, there’s a deep one-person cold plunge and a wider cold bath; both are incredibly cold.

Daikoku-yu is cash only and has bike parking around the back. It’s a roughly 5-minute walk from Yoyogi-Uehara Station on the Chiyoda and Odakyu lines.