Jjimjilbang guide: how a Korean spa works, etiquette and staying overnight

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A jjimjilbang is a Korean bathhouse and sauna complex, and one of the most local experiences a visitor can have. It is part spa, part public lounge: families, students and office workers come to soak, sweat, eat, nap and watch TV. Some are open around the clock, which also makes them a cheap place to spend a night.

What is inside

Baths (mogyoktang): separate men's and women's areas with hot and cold pools, showers and sometimes a steam room. Bathing here is nude.
Common area (jjimjil zone): shared by everyone, in the clothes the spa gives you. It has heated floors, several sauna rooms at different temperatures, a snack bar, TVs and sleeping areas.
Sauna rooms: a hot dome lined with clay or stone, a salt room, a charcoal room, and often an ice room to cool down.
Bigger places add massage chairs, a gym, a PC corner, a children's play area or a rooftop.

How it works, step by step

Pay at the front desk. You receive a towel set, a T-shirt and shorts, and a key, usually on a wristband.
Put your shoes in a small shoe locker near the entrance.
Go to the changing room for your gender and use the main locker for your clothes and bags.
If you want to bathe, undress completely and go into the bath area.
To go to the common area, put on the spa clothes and take the stairs or lift.
Food and extras are usually charged to the wristband and paid when you leave.

Bath etiquette

Wash first: shower thoroughly with soap before getting into any pool. This is the one rule everyone notices.
No swimsuits in the baths. Nobody looks; it is entirely ordinary for Koreans.
Keep the small towel out of the water. People fold it on their heads or leave it at the edge.
Tie long hair up so it does not touch the water.
Seshin (body scrub) is a paid extra done by an attendant in the bath area. It is vigorous and removes a surprising amount of dead skin.
Do not take photos anywhere near the changing rooms or baths.

Common area etiquette

Speak quietly, especially where people are sleeping.
Lie on the mats provided; pillows are often small, hard blocks.
Phones are fine in the common area, but never in the baths.

Staying overnight

Many jjimjilbang run 24 hours, and some travellers use them instead of a hotel. You sleep on the heated floor of a shared room or a quieter sleeping room, in your spa clothes. Expect lights, snoring and people coming and going. It is fine for one night, a missed last train or an early start, but bring earplugs and keep valuables in the locker. Some places charge extra after a set number of hours or at night; ask at the desk.

What to eat and drink

Sikhye: a sweet, cold rice drink served with grains of rice floating in it. The classic spa drink.
Maekbanseok gyeran: eggs baked in the sauna kilns until the whites turn brown, eaten with a little salt.
Ramyeon, bibimbap and naengmyeon from the snack bar.

Tattoos

There is no national rule. Many jjimjilbang do not mind tattoos at all, while some post signs refusing people with large tattoos, a rule aimed at gangsters rather than tourists. In practice small tattoos rarely cause trouble. If yours are large, check reviews or ask at the desk first.

Which one to go to

Neighbourhood jjimjilbang are everywhere, often in a building with a sign showing the steam symbol (a bowl with three wavy lines). Large modern spas are cleaner and more comfortable, with English signs; Dragon Hill Spa by Yongsan Station has long been popular with visitors. Places open and close, and some long-standing ones near Seoul Station have shut, so check recent reviews on a map app before you go.

Health

Stay hydrated, step out of the hot rooms if you feel dizzy, and skip the hottest rooms if you are pregnant or have heart problems. Been to a jjimjilbang, or nervous about your first one? Ask your questions or share tips in the comments.