​KIWAMI SAUNA, which opened in Sengen-cho, Nishi-ku, Nagoya City in December 2022, is a much talked-about sauna facility renovated from an old private house built more than 70 years ago.

Inside the building, there is a sauna room with an excellent setting, a deep water bath, and an outdoor air bath space that takes advantage of the garden, all of which will thrill the hearts of sauna lovers. Although it is basically for men only, a ladies' day is held on the fourth Sunday of every month. Female sauna lovers can also enjoy the atmospheric space.

A unique sauna facility
With refurbished old house

"KIWAMI SAUNA" is located in a residential area in Nishi Ward, which retains the atmosphere of a downtown area.

Although we visited this sauna, which we heard was "a sauna in a renovated old private house," it blends in with the townscape so well that we might have inadvertently passed it by. At first glance, you would not recognize it as a sauna facility.

First, you will be accepted at the front desk, which also serves as a bar counter. Payment is made afterwards.

The building is quite simple. Next to the changing area is a shower booth, and beyond it is a garden used as a totonoi space (revitalizing space)*. There are no bathtubs other than the water bath, so you should cleanse yourself in the shower booth before heading to the sauna room.

* Sauna bath → A place to rest after a cold bath

The sauna room where you can do self-loyly is moderately dark and calms your mind. There is no TV installed, so you can concentrate on sauna bathing.

The sauna is so comfortable that you don't want to get out. I will tell you more about this secret later.

There is a water bath right in front of the sauna room. The large exposed beams reminded me of being in an old house, which I had almost forgotten while in the sophisticated atmosphere of the sauna room.

The temperature is set at around 15 degrees Celsius. The deepest part is 2 meters deep, so you can fully immerse yourself up to your head (be sure to rinse off your sweat by pouring hot water over yourself before entering). If you look closely, you can see that the color of the tiles varies slightly from place to place, forming a color gradation.

It's even more magical when the natural light comes in. It is a beauty that seems to be sucked in.

And the true value is this open-air bathing space. Such a fascinating space was hidden in an old house in a residential area! You can't imagine it from the outside.

When you order a drink at the front desk, it will be placed in a special cup. The "Totonoi Chair" is equipped with a drink holder. On days when the weather is fine, you can take your time to enjoy the outdoor air in a vacation-like atmosphere.

In the Kansai region, there are many facilities where you can enjoy a drink in the bathhouse, but in the Tokai region it may be rare.

Asking Mr. Atsuo Nakajima, the Instigator

A sauna room, a deep and clean water bath, and a spacious open-air bathing area - these are just a few of the features that make this facility a great place to relax and enjoy.

The “ideal sauna” was created by Akio Nakashima, also known as “Sau-nii (sauna brother)”.

After graduating from university, he got a job at a major bank, but he spent his days busy and there was a time when he became mentally unstable.

What saved Mr. Nakajima was a sauna. Mr. Nakajima decided to raise crowdfunding to operate a sauna facility. Perhaps his enthusiasm was felt, and the number of supporters increased at an astonishing speed.

As a result, he collected more than 10 million yen, which is unusual for a crowdfunding project for construction of a sauna facility, and became a hot topic. Thus, “KIWAMI SAUNA” opened in December 2022.

I asked Mr. Nakajima about the sauna.

Yasuda (author): "The sauna room was so comfortable that I ended up staying for a long time. Do you have any secrets?"

Mr. Nakajima: "I believe that the comfort of a sauna room is proportional to the level of oxygen concentration. There is an image that saunas are 'suffocating' or 'a place to endure,' but in the end, the oxygen level is not high enough. When we built the new sauna, we were very particular about filling the room with fresh air.

Sauna rooms generally have one exhaust vent and one air supply vent. KIWAMI SAUNA sauna rooms are equipped with two air supply vents for every one exhaust vent. (However, the number of air supply vents should not be increased, as new air can only enter as much as leaves the exhaust vents.)

According to Mr. Nakajima, this is an original setting that pursues "fresh air," such as adjusting the size of the exhaust port and air supply port.

Mr. Nakajima:"One of the things we are particular about is that we designed the ceiling to be as low as 2m or less. It's an image that the steam comes down not only on the upper level, but also on the lower level. It's a drawback that the towel hits you when you Aufguss (distributing the vapor by towels) (laughs)."

Crowdfunding tends to attract attention, but I was able to notice that Mr. Nakajima is also looking at the "sauna" from a scientific and physical point of view. A “good sauna” is always accompanied by logic—

"Everyone's favorite food" is available
"Shokudo KIWAMI"

On the 2nd floor of the building, there is “Shokudo KIWAMI”. Large beams are exposed, and it is a space where you can feel the taste of an old private house.

The bill is completely separate from the sauna facility, so you can use it only for meals.

There is also a private room perfect for parties of 6 to 8 people. Under the glass above the table is a transom carving from over 100 years ago. This also matches the atmosphere of an old private house.

"KIWAMI extra-thick fried horse mackerel" (1,100 yen)

"KIWAMI extra-thick fried horse mackerel'' (limited quantity) is likely to become a specialty. Crispy fried horse mackerel over 20cm in size, this is an extremely filling dish. They use horse mackerel from Tottori or Nagasaki.

"KIWAMI no kakuni (stewed diced pork)" (880 yen), which is cooked in three stages to lock in the flavor, is also popular. It is a gem that makes the octagon work well.

"Everyone's favorite food is available, and each one has a taste that is 'one rank higher,'" says Mr. Nakajima.
The lineup itself, such as fried chicken, potato salad, and doteni, is certainly not unusual, but it is impressive that each item is carefully made with attention to the ingredients.

“When an acquaintance introduced me to an old folk house that hadn't been lived in for over 10 years, I thought, 'It's impossible to turn it into a sauna,'” says Nakajima.

However, as a result of the steady renovation, a one-of-a-kind sauna facility was born, where visitors can enjoy a sauna while feeling the unique atmosphere of an old private house. Mr. Nakajima also credits his friends for their financial and DIY support.

"KIWAMI SAUNA'', which aims to be "Kiwami (extreme)'' beyond "Totonou (revitalization)", has just set sail. Future developments will also attract attention.