Forgot your towel or brought a swimsuit to an onsen in Japan? What to do

At a public bathhouse (sento) or a town bathhouse, ask at the counter first. Tokyo's bathhouse association says most public baths sell a towel for bathing, shampoo, soap and other goods such as disposable razors, and that some now provide shampoo and body soap free of charge; adult entry in Tokyo is 550 yen. Dogo Onsen Honkan in Matsuyama, a public bathhouse that is also a national Important Cultural Property, lists its counter goods on its official site: a rental towel for 110 yen, a rental bath towel for 320 yen, a small mikan soap for 70 yen, plus a razor, a hairbrush and a shower cap.

Some bathhouses have nothing to sell or lend. The thirteen free soto-yu at Nozawa Onsen, run by local families and free to use (donations are welcome), are a good example: the Japan Tourism Agency's visitor text for them reminds bathers not to forget a towel and soap. In the same village, Furusato no Yu, an admission-fee bathhouse, does have soap, shampoo and shower booths. So if you're heading out to a village bath, take your towel from the inn.

Some inns help here. Dogokan in Dogo lends towels and baskets for the public bathhouses. At Shibu Onsen, Kokuya's guests get a key to the town's nine public bathhouses, which our report says have no washing areas, so wash at the inn and carry a towel with you.

Ryokan normally put towels in your room for you to carry to the bath, and many inns don't keep any in the changing rooms. In our directory that includes Furuya in Atami (no bath towels in the changing room; bring yours from the room), Tateshina Shinyu in Nagano (none at the baths) and Kaishu in Shirahama (carry the basket from your room). At Hotel Sakurai in Kusatsu it's the other way round: the baths provide bath towels only, so bring a face towel from your room. Other inns, such as Fukuichi in Ikaho and Kashiwaya in Shima, stock towels in every changing room. If you've left your room towel behind, call the front desk before you buy one.

Toiletries vary more than towels. At Gora Kansuiro in Hakone the open-air baths have no soap or shampoo, and 2025–2026 reviewers noticed that some amenities are now sold rather than provided. Itamuro Daikokuya near Nasu says itself that its amenities are minimal, so bring your own skincare. If you rely on a particular shampoo, cleanser or make-up remover, pack it.

Hair is the other thing people forget. JNTO says to keep your head, hair and small towel out of the water; long hair can be wrapped in the towel, and while some facilities offer free hair caps or hair bands, it advises bringing your own.

Convenience stores sell some bath basics. FamilyMart's own clothing brand, Convenience Wear, includes Imabari towel handkerchiefs, face towels and bath towels, which the chain announced for its stores across Japan (about 16,500 at the time of its 2023 release); in 2024 it listed a soft face towel at 1,089 yen including tax. At 7-Eleven, the Seven Premium Lifestyle range covers skincare, shampoo, body soap, towels, bath towels and razors, according to a FUN! JAPAN guide to the chain, which notes that not every store carries every item. If the first konbini doesn't have what you need, try another or a drugstore.

Before you leave town for a mountain inn, check how far the nearest shop is. Yachi Onsen in the Hakkoda mountains says its amenities are minimal (a toothbrush), and the nearest convenience store is about 35 minutes away by car. From Yumoto Choza in Okuhida it's about 30 minutes by car, and Yunishigawa has no convenience store in the village at all.

Inn shops can fill gaps too. Hatcho no Yu in Okukinu sells bath wear in its shop and rents towels (400 yen on the official site), and several inns sell tattoo cover stickers at the front desk (see below).

In ordinary single-sex baths, leave the swimsuit in your bag. Tokyo's bathhouse association says swimsuits and underwear can't be worn. A Japan Tourism Agency visitor text for a Hakuba hot spring puts it simply: swimwear is not allowed in hot spring facilities. The same text adds the other rule that catches first-timers: your towel shouldn't touch the bath water or be wrung out into it; put it on your head or at the side of the bath.

A swimsuit is useful in a few places. JNTO says the rare mixed-gender baths may let you wear a swimsuit or a covering they provide. In our directory, since 13 September 2025 Ochiairo in Yugashima has turned its Tengu-no-yu cave and river bath into a mixed bath where swimsuits or bath wear are required. In the riverside baths at Yumori Tanakaya in Shiobara, everyone of primary-school age or older must wear a bath towel (free to rent), a bathing wrap or a swimsuit. At Kawayu in Kumano, the dig-your-own river pools and the winter Sennin-buro are public, so swimwear or rental wraps (guests only at Fujiya, 150–300 yen) are the norm. At Kaniyu in Okukinu, on the other hand, swimsuits are allowed only in the seasonal lukewarm pool, which closed for 2026 on 4 October.

One related exception is worth knowing. Shizuoka Prefecture asks bathers to be understanding towards people who wear a specially made bathing garment (nyūyokugi) to cover scars from operations such as breast cancer surgery, and says it is considered hygienic when put on just before bathing and rinsed of soap before entering the bath. That is not a swimsuit; if you need one, ask the facility.

Where a mixed bath allows a covering, the rule is the inn's. Some lend their own and allow nothing else: at Takaragawa Osenkaku in Minakami everyone must wear the inn's bathing garment, and your own garment or swimsuit isn't allowed; Magoroku in Nyuto requires its bathing robes, with no swimsuit option. Chorakuen in Tamatsukuri provides wraps for women in several sizes, including children's, and paper trunks for men. At Hanatsubaki in Yamanaka the robes come in adult sizes only, so bring swimwear for children.

Others allow a towel. Hatcho no Yu allows towel wrapping, sells bath wear in its shop and warns that dark towels can lose colour. Awanoyu at Shirahone lends a thick towel-style wrap free to overnight guests, while day visitors pay 800 yen for a towel. At Kaniyu you may wear only a single-colour bath towel in the mixed baths, not bath wear or swimsuits.

And some keep the old rule. At Hoshi Onsen Chojukan bathing garments and wrapped towels are not allowed, and at Tsurunoyu in Nyuto towels may not be worn. If a covering matters to you, check the inn's rule before you buy anything; our guide to mixed bathing at a ryokan has the details.

Covering a small tattoo is a common compromise. In guidance to bathing facilities, the Japan Tourism Agency lists covering the tattoo with a sticker so that other bathers can't see it, not asking anything special for a small tattoo (about palm-sized, for example), suggesting quieter times, and pointing guests to private baths or rooms with their own bath. JNTO adds that some facilities offer cover seals, a skin-coloured plaster for smaller tattoos, but advises checking with the facility and buying them in advance.

Inns set their own limits. In our directory, three ask you to bring your own: Kinugawa Onsen Hotel Manyotei and Yamashiro Onsen Yuzankaku accept one tattoo fully covered by a single sticker of up to 8 × 10 cm, and Kinsuikan on Miyajima says guests must use their own cover stickers because none are provided. Others sell them: Yoshiike in Hakone-Yumoto accepts tattoos that two 10 × 14 cm stickers can cover, at 250 yen each from the front desk, and Asaya in Kinugawa sells them in its sixth-floor shop for a single small tattoo. Kozantei Ubuya at Lake Kawaguchi accepts tattoos that two 10 × 10 cm cover stickers can hide; ask at the front desk.

Some inns refuse stickers too — Gero Onsen Suimeikan doesn't accept them — so check before you rely on one. Our guide to tattoo-friendly ryokan lists the inns where a room with its own bath is the answer.

If you can wait a day, order online. Amazon.co.jp's next-day delivery arrives roughly between 7:00 and 22:30, though some places such as remote islands aren't covered by its expedited shipping. With Amazon Pickup you can collect at Lawson, FamilyMart or MiniStop, a Yamato Transport centre, an Amazon Locker or Counter, or PUDO, for items shipped by Amazon.co.jp (some are excluded by type, size or weight). Collect within 4 days at a Lawson, FamilyMart or MiniStop counter, 3 days at an Amazon Locker, FamiLocker or PUDO locker, and 7 days at an Amazon Counter.

Rakuten Ichiba also offers konbini pickup at Lawson, FamilyMart and MiniStop; which ones you can use depends on the shop. The pickup window is 2–3 days from arrival, and it isn't available for parcels over 100 cm or 10 kg, for date- or time-specified delivery, or for cash on delivery. If you'd rather have it sent to your inn, ask the ryokan first whether it will hold a parcel for you, and allow extra time for remote inns.

To avoid a repeat, keep a small bath kit in your day bag: a face towel, a hair tie, travel-size toiletries and, if an inn allows them, cover stickers that meet its size rule. A waterproof bag keeps it all together and holds a wet towel on the way back from a town bathhouse.