kallang

Author: James

To our local friends who have been to Japan, Bangkok and yet still missed visiting the Onsen Spa? OR rather the local Japanese population missing your therapeutic hot bath back in hometown? Rest assured! You guys are going to get your wish granted immediately with the opening of 1st Singapore Onsen Spa – Yunomori Onsen & Spa !

Location

Spanning a huge space of 16,000 square feet, the Onsen Spa is nestled within the Kallang district. To be more exact, it is located in the ever-buzzing Kallang Wave Mall within Singapore Sports Hub. For those commuting by our MRT system, you can alight at Stadium MRT station (not Kallang Station).

When I first heard about this Onsen Spa, it got it really excited! This is simply because I have always been catching this Open Bath concept on ‘Japan Hours’ & snippets of it in Japanese-themed movies BUT never officially get to try it before!

Now, the opportunity just came and I am ready to knock at its door! Yesss!! And here we are..





Facilities & Space within Spa

Wondering what does Yunomori means in Japanese? It simply refers to the hot water in the forest. Ah! Sounds like exactly what our urbanized Singapore with its wide array of skyscrapers need!

This Onsen spa has easily the largest number of pools as compared to any other popular local spas with a total of 11 pools and up to 6 different variations serving very different health and wellnessfunctions.

And this is not all! They have no lack of other facilities such as steam room, sauna, resting and treatment rooms etc to help you pass time easily and relaxingly.

Just to share one interesting fact, I was told that the part of this ‘forest’ customers get to see & experience is only ONE/FORTH of the entire space!

What happen to the other 3/4 space then?! Think about the technologies & machineries that goes behind literally to treat these hot & cold bath. They sure does put a lot of serious effort into closely mimic those original natural ones in Japan!

With this said, are you ready to dwell deeper into this brick and mortar ‘forest’ with me? If yes, ‘Dozo Yoroshiku~!’ (which means ‘Glad to meet you’ in Japanese). Let me be your guide for today and let’s move on!!





Outfit within Spa (Yukata)

Notice that I am wearing the beautifully-designed traditional Japanese outfit which is commonly known as the ‘Yukata’. You are going to see customers walking around the spa, dressed in this outfit.

If this is the first time you are wearing a yukata like me, you are going to face a tiny bit of trouble putting it on especially the part on wrapping the obi(slash) around your body. Fortunately, they have instruction posters and friendly staff to help you along for this part. With that, I am well-cladded & ready to take that very Instagram-worthy #OOTD shot! 😛





Entry to Spa (What to expect and What to Do)

After you head over to the counter to sign in, the staff will direct you to place your shoes in these shoe lockers outside the spa. This is to ensure the cleanliness of the spa’s interior environment (with wooden planks). As such, not only does the interior feel fresh and clean but it also makes you feel at home too!

They will also give you a wristband tag which you will need to access your own locker in the changing room (based on the number on the wrist band tag) and for making additional payment (not covered within the entry fee) such as for the food. For convenience, please do remember to wear your tag at ALL times even into the pool as they are all water-proof!

Bath Zone

It is a straightforward procedure after you access the locker. But please note that once you are at the locker area, you can NO LONGER be using your phone for privacy reasons. Remember this is an Open concept bath!

For the whole duration in the spa, you will only be given 1 big and 1 small towel. (Any additional towel will have to be purchased at a cost). So don’t say I did not warn you in advance: Make sure you do not throw them into the baskets lying around the locker rooms unnecessarily!

For a start, I did felt slightly a bit uncomfortable as this is the first time I am stripping down to almost full nudity around many other men. However, this awkward moment is going to only last a few minutes as you will notice no one is really feeling awkward or mindful.





You will pass two doors before you reach the actual Bath & Pool zones. Beyond this point, what is left around your body should just be yourself and that small towel & wristband tag. Not even your own underwear is allowed! This is mainly for hygiene purposes!

To ensure hygienic practices is maintained, all customers are encouraged to head to the shower area and wash clean first before entering any of the pools!

I was a bit clueless as to what to do within my own bathing compartment. You will notice stools at every compartment. Yes! Those are for you to seat down while you bath which is quite the unique japanese showering experience! So don’t be a weirdo by standing + bath in here! Basins are also given for you to wash your towels.

Pool Area

Finally, the main highlight of Yunomori Onsen & Spa: The Pools! You are going to see 6 & 5 different variation of pools in the male and female onsen respectively.





The recommended soaking procedure is to start from the Soda Spa first where the water is the least warm among all the other hot pool. Let your body temperature slowly adapt along the increasing temperature.

Like I shared, every pool has its health benefits. Take for instance the Soda Spa is enriched with high concentration of CO2 which helps to increase your blood oxygen level and hence improve circulation, reduces high blood pressure and detoxifies the blood.

*For sanitary purposes, do not dip your own towel into the pool! I know I am being a bit naggy here with all the sanitary instructions. But well, if you want a clean pool/environment, then please do respect the instructions!

My Favorite Pool

If you ask me what is my FAVOURITE pool?

It definitely has to be the Hot Onsen Bath itself. It is the most mineral-enriched pool, so much so the water is purple in color which signifies the presence of these minerals. The temperature of this pool is approximately 40-43 degree celsius. The heat helps to relaxe the mind and muscle whilst the mineral content of the water works to alleviate numerous aliments. Definitely the best pool for your elderly!

I shall leave the other pools e.g. Cold Bath, Bubble Bath, Jet bath and so on for you to explore on your own! >< More can be read up here: http://www.yunomorionsen.com/2015/sg/yunomori-onsen-spa-feather-bath.php )

Other Facilities

The Steam Room where you get to open your pores and detoxifies the skin and body. They even have a bucket of Salt to further help you in this function! End of it all, you are going to feel your skin well rejuvenated and your joints and muscle pain relieved!





Resting Area





Treatment Rooms





All-Day Dining Area

The Dining area houses a nice little cafe for customers to enjoy Japanese food & drinks. The best part is these items such as the coffee milk (shown below) is not commonly found in outside supermarkets nor Japanese restaurants.





The quality of the food is excellent & you are given a good variety of palatable Japanese delicacies!





Portion is also very generous which ensure you get your every penny spent worth its value! The pricing for these dishes are also very reasonable; they do not cost more than any outside Japanese restaurant. Mostly, roughly in the range of S$10-20+.





Pricing

Now for the most critical question all local Singaporeans are most concerned with: Pricing of Entrance Fee.

Glad to share that the entrance fee is priced reasonably at S$38+ (for Adult) & S$28+ (for Seniors of 65 years & above and Children of 15 years and below). This will entitle you to full access to all their Hot & Cold baths plus the facilities such as sauna, steam bath and such. However, if you are interested to try their massage and treatments, these will come at additional costs which starts from $68 and above.

Conclusion

One day MIGHT NOT be enough or at best JUST enough for you to explore the whole Onsen & Spa.

I like their level of cleanliness, customer service and the concept of health benefit conveyed through Hot baths. I will be more than happy to be back to try out their treatments the next round!

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