Experiential Art Installation: "Genki-ro"

It was a wonderful experience to enjoy a steam sauna while forest bathing. Moving around inside Genkiro was also good exercise and a fun activity.

My first visit to Genki-ro! 30 minutes and 600 yen by bus from Utsunomiya Station towards Oya. My first impression was, first and foremost, "in the middle of the forest!" After finishing the cabin-style reception, I put my valuables in a locker with a key. Then, after receiving various explanations, it was time for the sauna! Up to 8 people per session. This time there were 7. I participated alone. My impression of the sauna is that it's a steam bath. Since I usually only go to dry saunas, this was fresh. The sauna room, no, the sauna cabin, no, the sauna furnace, in a word, is it art? It's a first-time experience, hard to describe. According to the staff, the second tier feels like around 80 degrees Celsius, but with the steam at 80 degrees, if you fan it a little, it feels like it easily exceeds 100 degrees. You can also go outside from the top tier, and surprisingly, there's a tap outside. The water you can directly pour over yourself from there is amazing. On the other hand, there's also a proper cold bath. Actually, there's also a shower behind the stove. This was the most normal and most comfortable. I'm not sure if it's underground or on the first floor, but I thought it was fine not to know. It's probably art. To the staff, thank you for diligently feeding the firewood while we were in the sauna. I once again realized that the saunas we usually go to are the best environments created to help one achieve that deeply relaxed and balanced state. It's true that the flow/layout isn't great, but there was charm here that outweighed that. Lying down where I exited from the top tier, I looked at the sky and the swaying trees. Did it even rain a little partway through? This facility, where art and sauna merge in nature, was amazing.

The Genki-ro, the staff, the waiting space, the atmosphere of the place – everything was simply beyond amazing. Next time, I will definitely visit again in a different season! It was truly the best experience.

I was overwhelmed from beginning to end by how incredible it was, five times more than I had imagined. Being a Thai-style mist sauna, it was very novel and also hot, simply the best!!

Genkiro: 75/100 A sauna with a wonderful atmosphere where nature and art are in harmony. The steam sauna in particular was just right in temperature, herbal aroma and balance, and very comfortable. There were no other guests this time, so the two of us had the place to ourselves and enjoyed a truly luxurious time. The outdoor cooling area is surrounded by nature. Listening to birdsong and the rustling of the trees, it is a superb environment where you feel almost at one with nature. The one disappointment was that we could hear the young staff member tending the firewood talking the whole time. It was a quiet space where you could listen to the sounds of nature, so it was a shame that the conversation drowned out the birdsong and the wind. If only that were improved, I feel this facility would easily go from 75 to 95 points.

A reactor that, like a nuclear reactor, generates energy through steam and cooling. It was a mysterious experience. I wished I had the words to describe what happens here in place of nuclear fission 😆 In a space where art, sauna, nature, the artificial and love for the local area all merge and the boundaries blur, I looked at my half-naked self reflected in countless mirrors and wondered, "Wait, where is my own boundary?" — a strange question I exhaled with a sigh while cooling off outdoors 😮‍💨

[Genki-ro Unit 6 is not a sauna. It is art.] "It's not a sauna. It's art." Hearing that, my interest in this extremely edgy facility grew even stronger. This is Genki-ro Unit 6, an art space born in a quarry ruin, integrating with nature. I had heard that it was a steam sauna. But don't underestimate it. A powerful wood-burning stove steams it up relentlessly. The humidity is high, the heat is heavy, enveloping you to the core. The perceived temperature reaches 100 degrees. It's the first time I've experienced such a deep flush from steam. I sweat as much as in a regular wood-fired sauna, and achieve a profound state of relaxation amidst the humidity. But this is not a sauna. I didn't come here to achieve 'totonou'. Even the beads of sweat overflowing from my fingertips must surely be one of the exhibits. The surroundings mist up thickly and white, and the outline of the quarry ruins slowly becomes ambiguous. Natural objects and man-made structures merge. Boundaries disappear. That is precisely what art is. Yes, this is, after all, an art experience. This facility, standing outdoors, changes its scenery with the weather. I visited on a rainy day. The smell of wet trees. The slightly melancholic atmosphere of the forest. The gentle drift of herb mist after each breath. ・Lemongrass ・Eucalyptus ・Holy Basil It was filled with the scents of my favorite herbs. Sight, smell, tactile sensation. Everything becomes part of the art. Moving my whole body throughout the facility, I plunge into the cold water bath, a water jar buried in the ground. Cold. Deep. Quiet. Ah, what a mysterious and wonderful experience this is. Genki-ro Unit 6 is not a sauna. It is an experiential art that blends nature and the body.

Genki-ro was wonderful! Although they said art was the main focus, the sauna was also very pleasant. The mist felt good, and the staff member in charge was kind and explained various things, making it a very meaningful time. It seems the atmosphere changes with each season, so I'd like to visit again!

I had quite a good experience. Also, the staff members provided good service. I enjoyed myself.

Absolutely wonderful! The staff were friendly, the location was beautiful, and I left fully relaxed.

It was my first time experiencing a sauna with ultra-high temperature and ultra-high humidity. Moving around on the slippery wooden planks in the mist was thrilling and fun. The staff were also easy to talk to, and being able to achieve a state of deep relaxation and clarity in the quiet atmosphere was the best.

Looking forward to booking again!

It was an experience in the dark~

A herb steam sauna experience where you become a part of ART. The permanent Genki-ro is only here. Units 1 to 5 seem to have been displayed as temporary works at events, etc. And it seems that Unit 7 and beyond will appear somewhere in the future. Photography is prohibited in the steam sauna facility, so it's a mystery, but I think it's good that only those who have been there will understand it. It felt better than I expected. 120 minutes feeling nature and ART. Definitely!

I thoroughly enjoyed the handcrafted feel. It truly is 'art.' The incredible effort they put into it made for an extraordinary experience. To be frank, when I made the reservation, I thought the price was high. However, after it was over, I felt it was worth more than enough. I experienced something that you normally can't experience, no matter how much money you pay.

The reception staff were very friendly, and I had a very relaxing time. The idea of setting up a sauna inside an on-site art installation was quite interesting. The herbs added to the sauna during my session included rosemary, mint, eucalyptus, mugwort, fig leaves, and loquat leaves. The sauna room space was a bit small. At 168 cm, it was just about right for me, but taller people might find it a bit difficult to move around. This can serve as a reference. After the sauna, the scenery with the huge quarry ruins, the fireplace, and the ambient sounds was very much worth experiencing :)

Our guides were so friendly and knowledgeable. We had a tasty bbq together at the end. The sauna was very enjoyable!

Being able to enjoy a smoke sauna in a quarry — a space between nature and the artificial (artificial though it is, there is hardly any mobile signal, so it is cut off from modern information) — was truly moving. It was the first session of the day, so I could feel the inside getting hotter and hotter, which was fun. This may not fit the concept, so take it as idle talk, but if I could ask for one thing, I would have appreciated a shower separate from Genkiro where I could rinse off at the end.

Overall: there are many things I would like improved, but on the whole the experience outweighed them and I'm glad I did it. The staff were also polite and attentive. Good points: I could feel nature and Zen, and came away refreshed. Points to improve: - I'd like to be able to go outside directly from the cold plunge. - I'd like to be able to shower downstairs as well. - A capacity of 8 felt like a lot. I'd like sessions staggered by an hour or limited to 6 people. - It would be nice if the paths from each changing room to the bonfire were paved. - Temperature control is subjective, and it felt much hotter than the 40–50°C of a typical steam sauna.

This was an incredible experience. The installation itself is dramatic and beautiful, like nothing you'll see anywhere else. Breathtaking in its beauty set against the stark rock faces of the old quarry. The location is peaceful and calm, with the sun dappling through the leaves giving it all a serene and calming energy. The immersive sauna experience was incredible. Various levels within the structure allow you to choose the heat and you can cool off in the cold plunge pool or lay outside on a platform soaking up the natural environment around you. The staff were warm and friendly and made me feel welcome and relaxed. I enjoyed sitting chatting with them by the furnace talking about the construction of the installation as well as chatting about the local area and travel around Japan. I was lucky enough to be the only person visiting at the time I was there and therefore I benefitted from enjoying this experience in complete serenity - blissful! Highly recommend and a huge thanks to Joni and team who made me feel so welcome. I loved it and will certainly return.