“Solaniwa Onsen OSAKA BAY TOWER” is Instagrammable Like a Theme Park!

“Solaniwa Onsen OSAKA BAY TOWER“, the largest class of hot spring facility in Kansai, opened in Bentencho, Osaka, where is also near Universal Studios Japan and Kaiyukan Aquarium.

While it is located inside the building that is directly connected to Bentencho station of JR and Osaka Metro, it is said that it is surprisingly as wide as about 5000 tsubo (16,529 square meters)!

I have infiltrated to find what kind of facility it is.

Full of unusual feeling! The concept is end of 1500s

“Benten Dori”, the main street of Solaniwa Onsen.  There are lined up with the sale of goods and restaurants.

The inside of the building where good-old Japanese town and modern Japanese are perfect fusion is felt as if you are time traveled into the past.

You will be surprised by so high the quality that you may find it like filming location, not like just an onsen facility!

Solaniwa Onsen is located on the 2nd to 5th floors of OSAKA BAY TOWER North.

There are a bedrock bath, relaxation space, and the area of dining and sale of goods on the 2nd floor, reclining seat space is on the 3rd floor,  a rooftop Japanese garden is on the 4th floor, and public and private baths of natural hot spring are on the 5th floor.

It is so wide and fulfilled that you may enjoy a whole day long!

Especially on the 2nd floor, there are fulfilled with a traditional Japanese restaurant that uses carefully selected foodstuff, inexpensive Izakaya, Kikizake (sake tasting) corner, Japanese general goods and cosmetics, and souvenirs shops.

You can enjoy feeling as if you come to play in the town of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (approx. 1558-1600)!

The front entrance, “the main guardhouse”.  Here is already looking like a theme park, so you will already become excited.

As it puts a value on a characteristic of Osaka, which is a town of Akindo (a merchant in the Osaka region), greetings by stuff are “Oideyasu (welcome in Kansai dialect)”!

They will talk to you very frankly.

Please try greet to Japanese locals saying “Oideyasu” when visit Osaka!

You can choose the loungewear of Yukata (an informal cotton kimono) from three kinds for men and six kinds for ladies.

In the usual large size Japanese spa and bath, you can rarely find such many varieties, so it is fun to select!

Every design is so cute that you will be attracted by every design unintentionally.

The prepared Yukata is also cute, but if you like to enjoy pretending completely you are that person, please go to “kimono shop Kyo Nishiki” on the 2nd floor.

Here, there are lined up with many rental costumes that you can enjoy fashion at that time!

There are “costumes for upgrading” (Yen 1000), such as Jinbei (informal summer clothes for men), samue (monk’s working clothes), and Yukata for a couple.

Besides these, there are “transforming costumes” (from 2000 Yen) in full scales, such as a lord, a princess, Shinsengumi (Edo period police and military force dedicated to suppressing anti-shogunate activities), and Oiran (high-ranking hostess in Japan).

So you can find many rare costumes.

While you are here, it may also be good to try being soaked completely into the atmosphere of that time, by your transforming with a bit unusual costumes.

Pay your attention also to stores and performances of characters!

People who existed once are the models.

One of the specialties of Solaniwa Onsen is the vivid live shows!

At “Kakuuchi Yamazentei”, “Zenemon Konoike”, who was a young entrepreneur and started shipping business to expand Japanese sake nationwide, introduces finely selected Japanese sake.

Please don’t miss out also “Kikizake show (sake tasting show)” that Zenemon himself tells his passion toward Japanese sake!

At the bedrocks baths area, there is also held Detox Roryu Show.

At “Jingu-bo” of the bedrocks baths area, disciples of Dosan Manase, who is known as an ancient famous doctor, perform fire show that surprisingly they throw each other flames.

At the Roryu Show that is full impact and explosive laughter with no doubt, you will be refreshed by many big waves of laughter while sweating!

Ukiyo Gozen: Yen 2980.

Sekisai Tsubouchi, a legendary chef, who is said that a model of “a chef of Nobunaga”, opened the traditional Japanese restaurant to serve the real Japanese dishes to people of today.

There, you can eat creative set menus that are used condiments, cooking methods of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (approx. 1558-1600), and specialties of Osaka.

Inside the building, there are also three other inexpensive Izakayas, but here is recommended to the one who wishes to enjoy dining relaxed and thoroughly.

A cosmetics store “Beni Oshiroi Benika Honpo”.

As there are many products with retro and cute packages, it is also perfect for a present.

It is a store that “Tora Minagawa”, who was a career woman of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (approx. 1558-1600) and made flourished by opening a cosmetic store, introduces carefully selected Japanese cosmetics.

Cosmetics that are used Japanese materials, including rice bran, Japanese sake, and gold foil, are carefully selected line ups, all of which you cannot get at the drug stores.

As there are also lined up products of the four seasons, such as sakura (cherry blossoms) motif, please try checking.

Relaxed in the natural hot spring, bedrocks baths, and a roof-top garden

“Gensen Buro (a hot spring bath directly from the source)” that you seem to expect beauty effect on the skin (without heating and adding water, and without re-circulation filtration)

After checking the area of the restaurant and sale of goods on the 2nd floor, next, let’s go to the baths.

The natural hot spring “Bihada no yu” is sprung from 1000 m underground and is alkalescent.

You can enjoy six baths, including, to begin with, an open-air bath flowing directly from the source, a garden view bath that overlooks the spacious garden, carbonated spring, and a bath of the day.

There are also sauna and body scrub treatments.

For families and couples, there are also fully equipped with private baths for two to five persons.

You can relax and slowly enjoy an open-air bath set in an inner garden.

A wide public bath is also good, but the private bath may make you feel as if being traveled a short trip!

A charge is from Yen 7000 for two hours (Reservation and admission on the same day that you visit.)

“Tsuboniwa-bo” where you will be healed by greens

There are seven types in a total of bedrocks baths, including “Jingu-bo” where events like Roryu are performed, and “Enden-bo”.

Including “Kawadoko-bo”, “Tsuboniwa-bo”, and “Zashiki-bo” of a tatami-mat room, Such Japanese designs, which cannot be seen in the other facilities, that should be in Japan can be found only in Solaniwa Onsen.

The Japanese garden of about 1000 tsubo (approx. 3300 square meters) that makes you forget that you are in the city center.

On the 4th floor, there is a spacious garden that cannot be thought that it is inside of the building!

While you are soaking slowly in foot-baths, you can enjoy flowers and trees of the four seasons, so it is no doubt that you will be healed.

It is said that attraction shows and projection mappings, etc. will also be performed on a stage located in the center.

As there is also a tea house nearby, it is also recommended to view the garden while enjoying desserts, such as Solaniwa parfait (Yen 580) and a soy milk pudding (Yen 480).

Relaxation and powder rooms… good services for ladies

Healing place Keirakuin

The main target of Solaniwa Onsen seems tourists from overseas at a glance, but from a thought that “working women” should be healed, it is elaborately designed with services for ladies.

At relaxation space “Healing place Keirakuin”, the largest class nationwide, it is said that you can have more than 50 kinds of services, including body care of the Japanese style that will not be a burden to a body, and a beauty‐treatment in full scale!

Charges for body care of neck and shoulders, etc., foot care of soles of the foot, are from Yen 2000 for 20 minutes.

So, you can easily try getting such services.

Free of charge space of the power room.  As the skincare set is fully equipped, you do not need to bring anything with you.

In the far end of women’s locker room, there is the powder room of about 100 square meters, of the largest class in Japan!

The design of the Japanese taste is also cute, so you may be able to become more feminine.

In the paid space, there are also equipped with the rental beauty equipment of the Japanese main manufacturers and cosmetics.

Because you washed off make-ups in the hot spring, it is very convenient easy to try the equipment and cosmetics that you are curious about.

Instagrammable spots and cute souvenirs

In the rooftop garden, there are lined up red torii gates, replicate to the Senbon Torii (a thousand torii, a gateway of a shrine) of Kyoto Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine.  If you walk through in a Yukata costume, you may be able to shoot one picturesque photo!

“Hoian Dori”.  From Benten Dori toward the front entrance, there expands fantastic space on a path where colorful lanterns are swinging.

On Benten Dori, there is also a service that a cameraman of “Shashin Osaka-ya Shaba” shoot your photo!

You will be given a present of 1 sheet of “Solaniwa Kawara-ban (newspaper)” that is used the taken photo.

If you like the photo, you can also buy a larger size (2L size: Yen 1300).

Besides listed here, inside the building, there are many points where you can shoot beautiful photos!

Please try finding your preferable place.

At “MEIKA (Candy and Snacks) Solaniwa confectionery”, there are many original confections with also cute packages.

It is very fulfilled with souvenirs that you did not see in any of a large Japanese spa and bath facility until now, so you will be excited just by seeing them.

As there are many fashionable items in designs, I found many liked items not just for presenting others but for myself!

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Wrapping up

With the quality of the inside of the building that you cannot think that it is a hot spring facility, you will be anyway surprised.

It is also the charm that you can enjoy not just as a hot spring, but in various ways, including enjoying shows and going-around shops, and finding the Instagrammable spots!

Of course, those who live around the Kansai area, but also those who go for a trip to Osaka, please, by all means, stop by, as it can be accessed in 60 minutes from Kansai Kuko station and 15 minutes from Shin-Osaka station.

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