Swimming pools

Hi,

I would like to know about the japanese customs for using a swimming pool.

Do you have to wash like at an onsen? do you need a swimming cap? etc...?


Thanks

The indoor pool at my gym requires everyone getting in the water to take off all jewelry and wear a bathing cap. Most people wear a mesh cap (where your hair still gets wet) rather than a latex/plastic cap, but I assume either type is acceptable. You are supposed to rinse off before you get in, and the exit from the locker room to the pool is actually equiped with an automatic shower that activates as you walk through, so everyone effectively HAS to shower.

When I use outdoor hotel pools in the summer no one wears a bathing cap. Sometimes there are showers near the pool area, sometimes not. If there are, I make a point of using them, but it seems to me the "rules" of outdoor pools are less strict (except for the fact that the pool I frequent will not let you wear sunglasses in pool).

Hope that helps!

I used to go swimming at Spa World in Osaka. You needed to rinse off, but no one wore a cap.

don't we take a light shower before entering a pool everywhere ?

generally its considered good pool etiquette, however it is not universal by far and comes down to each individual pool's rules.