Covid accelerated a decline but a new breed of bathhouse is reimagining a Japanese tradition It is a Japanese ritual that stretches back centuries: stripping off in the company of friends and ...

Wim Wenders’ latest film, Perfect Days, is a languid sketch of a typical Tokyo toilet cleaner’s life. It shows the minutiae of the working-day rituals of its protagonist, Hirayama: wiping toilet bowls ...

Does the thought of getting nude with other people in your local sento, or public bath, raise a smile or make you cringe? Whatever your personal take, the process of bathing in true Japanese form has ...

Go to a bathhouse, rent a locker and running gear, go for a run, return for a bath or shower, and sauna. This is sento running, big in Japan One way to get around and familiarise yourself with a new ...

High fuel costs are imperiling the Japanese sento, a long-declining industry that remains a vital social lifeline for the country’s isolated elderly. Credit... Supported by By River Akira Davis and ...