I will start this post saying I know that most baths/hot springs do not allow tattoos, but here we go. I also didn’t want to put all my personal stuff in the title.
Onto the post:
I (34f) love traveling to Japan, like, a lot. I go every couple years and it’s always a good time and I always go to onsens to relax. I never really thought about the tattoo ban because I have none. However, I am having a double mastectomy soon and was wondering if 3D nipple tattoos would be banned? I’m already scared enough at the prospect of going to them with scarring since even if I get a reconstruction I know there will be marks, but the thought of not being able to go into onsen makes me feel so sad.
Also, has anyone gone to Japan after having a double mastectomy?
Thank you for reading.
EDIT: Thank you so much for the answers everyone, I’m so happy that I posted here. This put me at ease because now I know at the end of the tunnel there’s a trip to a hot spring waiting for me!
25 comments
Lord no- I don’t think anyone would have issue with that. I have subtle tattoos and nobody had issue… those policies are mostly meant to stop Yakuza/mob tattoos that can be an implied threat to people.
Enjoy the onsen! So relaxing. And I hope your recovery goes smoothly.
I can’t imagine anyone would look closely enough to notice. Women tend to mind their own business in onsens.
I hope your surgery goes well.
what would they even say to a customer who has a look-alike nipple? “Sorry, your nipple doesn’t look right – please get out?”
Even heavy tattoos are becoming more acceptable, especially in areas where tourists frequent. I was in Hokkaido on a ski trip last year and all of my friends are heavily tattooed. If you have a towel, just try to cover the tattoo in the bath. Also, you can check many onsen websites and they will generally tell you if they have a no tattoo policy. However, for what you are talking about, you would have no problem simply going to the bath. No one will notice or be rude enough to say anything.
It may make you feel better to know that the nipple tattoos are so realistic, they won’t know.
I was in Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo in January with a pretty heavily tattooed friend, and we were given some seriously shitty looks even in those massive, cosmopolitan cities. I don’t think the public opinion of tattoos has relaxed at all in Japan.
But like the others said, your nipple tattoos are designed to mimic what would generally be on a human body, 95% of people won’t even notice.
Enjoy your trip, I know I can’t wait to go back!
No ones going to be looking close enough to see that they are tattoos (plus they’d have to be reeeally close because nipple tattoos are very realistic). If you’re still concerned, look for onsens that allow tattoos – I had no problem finding several that let me in with mine.
You could always look for a hotel with a private onsen bath but honestly, I think you’ll be absolutely fine.
I hope your recovery goes well and you have an awesome time on your next Japan trip!
Highly doubtful it will be an issue. The tattoo ban is there for a purpose – visible tattoos have a connection to crime there. And that context is important, because it generally means highly visible, artistic tattoos are problematic – the kinds of pieces that are meant to stand out and be visible with the intent to let people know you’re involved in crime.
You won’t get kicked out of a place because you have, for example, permanent makeup tattoos or microblading, because the context and intent are different. And although I don’t have any personal experience here, I highly doubt anyone will kick you out for reconstructive tattoos of this nature, because the context and intent is clearly different than someone getting, say, a full sleeve.
I’d say, as others have in this thread: don’t worry.
Unless you look like a local, a lot of onsens won’t mind your tattoos (that’s my experience at least, as someone who is clearly foreign).
And even if they did mind regular tattoos, almost no one is going to notice a tattooed nipple, and if they do they’ll know why you have it and (you can bet on this) they’ll never comment about it.
Good luck with the surgery!
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Somehow on that subject, I remembered an article about onsen allowing bathing wear for woman who had breast cancer surgery. I am not sure if there is specific products that might be more allowed than a normal bikini top. So in case you do not feel comfortable with showing the scars, that might not be ruled out completely. I’ll try to find more info as the article I found said something about government but I would like to know more.
That being said, as most people said, because of the nature of the tattoo, that should not be a problem. I wish you good luck.
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Sorry if the link is weird, it need an account to read, but if you show original in Google translate you can read it : [https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=fr&sl=en&tl=fr&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.japantimes.co.jp%2Fnews%2F2015%2F12%2F17%2Fnational%2Fmastectomy-patients-challenge-go-naked-rule-japanese-hot-springs%2F&anno=2&prev=search](https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=fr&sl=en&tl=fr&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.japantimes.co.jp%2Fnews%2F2015%2F12%2F17%2Fnational%2Fmastectomy-patients-challenge-go-naked-rule-japanese-hot-springs%2F&anno=2&prev=search)
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Edit : This article is about Bright Eye, the company mentioned in the other article, the product they offer make it easy to wash yourself while wearing it : [https://soranews24.com/2018/01/23/garment-aims-to-help-breast-cancer-survivors-enjoy-japans-hot-springs-without-self-consciousness/](https://soranews24.com/2018/01/23/garment-aims-to-help-breast-cancer-survivors-enjoy-japans-hot-springs-without-self-consciousness/)
Lived in Japan for 4 years. Had a native Japanese partner who had medium sized and colorful tattoos on calves for those 4 years. We went weekly to onsens and then went to onsens in other cities. We never had an issue except once where he willingly left.
In my opinion small tattoos are not an issue. Cosmetic tattoos are not an issue. I think you will be just fine. But it is possible chatty obasans might inquire therefore you might want to learn to explain it in Japanese.
I went to Onsen with a tattoo and a gigantic scar from having a third of my right lung removed. My scar goes from under my right breast all the way around my body and up my back to the just under my shoulder bone. I covered my tattoo with makeup (mins isn’t big). The makeup came off like immediately. I got a few looks but I think they were looking more at my American fat ass more so than the tattoo and giant scar.
Good luck in your recovery!
I don’t think you’ll be banned because of this, if they ask, you can just tell them about your surgery, they may understand that, btw you also can make a reservation of an accommodation where has onsen inside the room, that’s so awesome!
Rules are rules. If the rules say no tattoos. And you have tattoos, you can be asked to leave.
Now in your case I find that to be very very unlikely that anyone will notice or care, but spiteful old women out to complain to the manager are a universal constant similar to gravity so I would not say it’s impossible.
I’m sure yours will look very realistic! I wouldn’t worry.
The type of tattoo matters too. Even if you’re a foreigner, if you have Japanese style tattoos, that’s a big no no. But that doesn’t seem to apply to you, so you should be fine. I’ve had a friend with a cute butterfly tattoo go in with no problems.
I went to Japan a couple of years ago and was very nervous about the whole onsen experience since I have a few tattoos. I didn’t experience any trouble at all; no looks, no comments, no nothing. In fact, in one of the really old traditional onsens I visited the locals were super friendly and helpful even though I broke like every rule in there within the first couple of minutes (not on purpose obviously, but out of sheer ignorance).
To be fair the tattoos I had at the time were rather small, two of them might even be unnoticeable as they are both on my lower legs. But I have one right on my chest as well. I really don’t think it’s that big of a deal anymore. Especially if you’re a tourist. I might be wrong and might just have been lucky, I don’t know. But I definitely wouldn’t worry about it if I were to go back one day.
Can’t talk about the tattoo part but I’ve got a pretty bad scat on my right leg just below the hip (I’m a man BTW), a third degree burn with skin graft that’s bigger than my hand and yet, since the place is so close to my genitals, I’ve never felt looked at or noticed any weird glance so I’d guess Japanese people really keep to themselves
I mean, I’ve also got another scar on my shoulder but that still gets me more looks at the beach or the pool here than in Japan
As a middle aged woman with back tattoos who has been to many sentos and onsens – I assure you that you will not have an issue. No-one is going to look at your nipples, let alone inspect if they are tattoos or not. Go, have fun, and enjoy your public bathing!
No worries. Japan is totally cool the imperfections of life. Most people won’t bother looking and will keep to themselves.
You’ll be fine. I hope your procedure goes well.
Most women arn’t going to be staring at your nips. Well unless you have very large breasts then you might get a few stares from some of the women (stares of disbelief/shock but not of judgement) which happened to a few friends of mine. But none are going to be staring at your nips long enough to judge if it is a tattoo.
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For what it’s worth I live in Japan and I have a small tattoo on my ankle. No one cares. In the onsen, at the gym. You should seriously not be worried about it.
Just don’t get a big neck tattoo that says YAKUZA.