Aqua Higashinakano: A Sento Where You Can Swim Outside
Aqua Higashinakano has a swim-friendly outdoor pool, 14°C cold bath and ¥600 entry. Sauna adds ¥500 with towel; its softened groundwater is not a natural onsen.
Aqua Higashinakano is an easy choice if you want a sento with room to move. Its outdoor pool is about seven metres long on the men’s side and five metres on the women’s side, and swimming is allowed. That gives the bathhouse a different rhythm from a sauna-focused sento nearby: you can use the pool as a gentler cool-down, then return to the warmer baths without committing to a deep or especially cold plunge.
Two ways to cool down
The indoor cold bath is kept around 14°C. It is roughly 80 cm deep in the men’s bath and 70 cm in the women’s bath. Outside, the pool changes with the season and weather, usually around 18–28°C. The difference gives visitors a choice: use the cold bath for a short, sharper cool-down, or take a slower dip in the pool and rest by the water.
The outdoor pool is not a lap-swimming facility. It is a small bathing pool where swimming is allowed, and junior-high students and younger may use the outdoor pool and open-air bath only until 6 p.m. The open-air bath also changes its herbal bath ingredients; on the 11th and 26th of each month, the facility schedules a traditional herbal bath. Check its notices if you are coming for a particular seasonal bath.
A proper sauna, plus a slow carbonated soak
| Facility detail | Men’s bath | Women’s bath |
|---|---|---|
| Sauna temperature | About 105°C | About 90°C |
| Sauna capacity | About 14 | About 11 |
| Cold bath | Around 14°C | Around 14°C |
| Carbonated bath | Around 38°C | Around 38°C |
The far-infrared sauna runs automatic löyly about three times an hour. Roasted-tea löyly is held periodically, not on a daily schedule. The outdoor pool is another, warmer cool-down option.
| Admission | Bath | Sauna add-on |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | ¥600 | ¥500, includes a rental bath towel |
| Junior-high student | ¥500 | ¥400 |
| Elementary-school child | ¥200 | ¥300 |
| Preschool child | ¥100 | Not permitted |
Shampoo and body wash are provided.
One useful distinction: all the facility’s water comes from natural groundwater and is softened, but Aqua does not publish a hot-spring analysis identifying a legally designated natural onsen source. It is best described as a soft-water sento, not a natural hot spring.
A quick walk from Higashi-Nakano Station
The bathhouse is about two minutes from the east exit 2 of JR Higashi-Nakano Station, or five minutes from Higashi-Nakano on the Oedo Line and Ochiai Station on the Tozai Line. It opens 3 p.m.–midnight and closes Mondays; when Monday is a public holiday, it closes the following day. The outdoor bath closes at 11 p.m., sauna reception at 11:30 p.m. and bath admission at 11:50 p.m. There is no longer a car park on site.
If you are weighing the nearby options, Matsumotoyu in Higashi-Nakano is known for its deep cold bath and compact sauna circuit. Aqua’s outdoor pool makes it the more obvious pick when swimming and a milder outdoor cool-down are the draw.
Sources
- [Aqua Higashinakano: current hours, fees and amenities](https://www.aqua-higashinakano1010.com/info.html) - [Aqua Higashinakano: pool, baths and sauna details](https://www.aqua-higashinakano1010.com/facility.html) - [Aqua Higashinakano: station access and parking status](https://www.aqua-higashinakano1010.com/access.html) - [Tokyo Sento Association: Aqua Higashinakano profile](https://www.1010.or.jp/map/item/item-cnt-360) - Images: Aqua Higashinakano official facility images; additional listing image from Sauna Ikitai. Checked: 2026-09-27Tags: Aqua Higashinakano, Tokyo sento with pool, Higashi-Nakano sauna, Tokyo soft-water bath, outdoor bathing pool
