Onsen with swimsuit on

Hello,
My friends and I are looking for a Private mixed onsen or one which allow swimsuit as we are not comfortable exposing our body.

Reading through the forum, someone suggest Amagiso in Izu Peninsular, but unfortunately only allows staying guests in their onsen.

I was wondering if there are similar ryokan/onsen which allow non staying guests wearing swimwear?

Thanks!

Yunnesan in Hakone - big onsen theme park place. Otherwise get over your inhibitions - it really isnt that bad - no one will be looking at you - unless you try to wear a swimsuit!

I cannot think of any genuine hot spring bath (that's what onsen is...) that you can day-visit while wearing swimwear. Then what you are looking for is a spa facility, such as Yunessun in Hakone or Laqua in Tokyo.

http://www.yunessun.com/english/
http://www.laqua.jp/spa
Laqua spa website in Japanese only

what's the problem? Millions of others are doing it and survive. You get a little towel to hide behind too!

Some people are shy, there is nothing wrong with that! I think if they could just get over it they would not have asked for advice in the first place. I think private onsen are your best bet.

Remember all of us come from different culture...and not all people comfortable naked in the public.

I once read somewhere that the fibers from fabric are detrimental to the bath. Don't know why that would be but it's one reason why swimsuits are not worn.

I know this isn't on topic but honestly, the question gets asked so often and here's my opinion: onsen=nude. If you can't be nude in public, don't go to an onsen. Simple as that. It's like saying, I want to go to Japan to eat the best sushi, but I don't like rice or fish, so can you make it with something else please?

Anyway, at Takaragawa, in the mixed onsen, women may wrap themselves in the large beach towels. I don't know why guys couldn't, at the same time, so you could be there, by a roaring river, in a lovely onsen, wrapped in annoying big towels.

Some people are shy, there is nothing wrong with that! I think if they could just get over it they would not have asked for advice in the first place. I think private onsen are your best bet.

Even in a private bath (family bath) you are not supposed to wear anything into the water, so this should only be an option if you are comfortable being naked with your friends. Otherwise you will probably enjoy the places AK recommended.

Remember all of us come from different culture...and not all people comfortable naked in the public.

If you are not comfortable being naked in public, then you probably shouldn't visit places that require you to be naked in public.

I can understand why you are shy with being naked with your friends, especially if you have male and female friends. I think even Japanese people aren't comfortable with being naked with the opposite gender, that is why seperated onsen are far more common than mixed Onsen. I am also not completely sure, how it is in a mixed Onsen, but I think normally everyone uses a towel even in the water, correct me if I am wrong.
So I think that shouldn't be a problem than, since you don't have to be fully naked.
But even if you are fully naked, I think a similar thing can be found also in other countries, for example saunas, where also both genders uses the same place and are naked.

Thanks for all the replies.

Yes I know it's weird asking this question. I know I should get over it, but it's not easy.

I've sort of given up on the idea because of it, but my friend told me there might be one which we can go to, so I'm just trying my luck.

It's still a long way to the trip, who knows, maybe we will get enough courage to overcome it by then, wish us luck!

Thanks everyone, really appreciate the replies.

Being naked in an onsen may be the least of your worries..the water temperature is, in some places, much too hot for some people.
Visualize me....here I am, naked but for a tiny towel that hardly hides anything at all, but I can't even dip a toe in the water..1 hr later I am still trying to dip a finger or toe without feeling a horrible pain ...

"If you are not comfortable being naked in public, then you probably shouldn't visit places that require you to be naked in public."

That is why the person was ASKING if it was ok to wear a swimsuit - they didn't know it was a requirement. A simple "no" would do, rather than telling someone to change how they feel about being naked in public. Sometimes peole can be very snippy on this forum - it exists to help others I think.

I agree it's probably better to actually answer the OP's question rather than try to impose your own values.

A simple "no" would do, rather than telling someone to change how they feel about being naked in public.

In this case a "simple no" would suffice, but we would be letting the OP down if we don't try to encourage her have this cultural experience.

kat,
Yes, we know you may be uncomfortable being naked with other people, but the onsen is not some nudist camp pool party, rather its usually a quite reserved place where people go to relax. Generally speaking, no one will stare, and you should be somewhat covered by your towel when out of the water, and covered by the water when in the baths. You should try to build up the courage to experience this if you feel you can, and if not there are spa resorts where you can wear swimsuit. Just know that these are not onsen and it is not the same experience.

This is not me imposing my values on you, rather encouragement to open up to a cultural experience. But I also agree that if you really feel uncomfortable being naked in public, then you may not want to visit the onsen as it a place to be naked. If you don't think you can enjoy it then why go? Thats a valid suggestion.

If you're going to be in Kagoshima at all, the Furusato Onsen on Sakurajima provides you with a white Yukata in which to bathe (the onsen has a shrine in it so you can't be naked). It also has mixed bathing.

This may also interest you: http://eyeonjapan.com/category/top-10s/top-10-non-naked...