Japanese at a Swimming Pool: Caps, Lanes, Rest Breaks and Rules

Buying a ticket and finding the lockers

Most public pools sell tickets from a machine, kenbaiki, by the entrance, and you hand the ticket to the staff at reception, uketsuke. The buttons are sorted by adult, ippan or otona, child, kodomo, and often a resident rate, shimin, for people who live in the city, which needs proof of address. Some pools sell a session ticket, others charge for a fixed block of time, and some add a locker fee, so read the machine before you press anything.

Reception hands you a wristband, a key or a locker number and points you to the changing room, kōi-shitsu. Lockers are usually coin-return, meaning you insert a hundred-yen coin and get it back when you open the locker again, though some use the wristband. Shoes come off at the entrance to the changing area and go in a separate shoe locker, so watch for the line on the floor or the shelf of slippers.

The questions staff ask before you go in

Reception at a Japanese pool checks a few things every time, and the questions are short. The first is whether you have a swim cap, because you cannot enter the water without one. The second, at many facilities, is whether you have tattoos, irezumi or tatū, since policies range from a complete ban to allowing small tattoos covered with a patch. The third is what you are carrying: bottles in glass, cameras and phones are normally banned at the poolside, and some pools ask you to leave valuables at the counter or in a small valuables locker, kichōhin rokkā.

Rules on swimwear also vary. Fitted swimsuits and jammers are fine everywhere; long board shorts, cotton clothing and swimwear with metal parts are often refused. Children below a certain age must be accompanied by an adult in the water, and the age differs by city. If you are not sure whether something is allowed, ask before paying, because tickets are rarely refunded.

Showers, hair and the walk to the pool

Between the changing room and the pool there is a shower area, and the sign will tell you to rinse your whole body before entering, nyūsui mae ni shawā o abite kudasai. This is not optional. Many pools also ask you to remove make-up and sunscreen, and to tuck long hair completely into the cap.

Warm showers after swimming are usually available, but soap and shampoo are often forbidden in the poolside showers and allowed only in the changing room ones, if at all, so check the sign before you lather up.

Lane etiquette: walking, slow and fast lanes

The lanes at a Japanese pool are labelled, and the labels matter more than in many countries. A typical twenty-five metre pool has a walking lane, hokō kōsu or wōkingu kōsu, for people doing water walking, then one or more lanes for swimming sorted by speed: yukkuri or teisoku for slow, futsū for ordinary, and hayai or kōsoku for fast. There is often a free area, furī kōsu or jiyū yūei, where people can play or practise without lengths. Some lanes are for one direction only, ippō tsūkō, and the rest are shared in a loop, anticlockwise, with the right side of the lane for going out and the same side for coming back.

The unwritten rules are firm. Do not stop in the middle of a lane; rest at the wall, in the corner, out of the way of people turning. Let faster swimmers pass by waiting at the wall rather than being overtaken mid-length. Keep to the lane that matches your speed, and move if a lifeguard asks you to. Diving is banned in almost all public pools, and so is running on the poolside.

The hourly rest break and lifeguard announcements

Once every hour, usually for around ten minutes, the whistle blows and everyone leaves the water. This is the kyūkei jikan, rest time, and it is universal at Japanese public pools: lifeguards check the water, look for anything dropped and let swimmers rest. An announcement will say kyūkei ni hairimasu or pūru kara agatte kudasai, and staff walk the poolside making sure nobody stays in. Sit on the bench, stretch, drink from your bottle if drinks are allowed at the side, and wait for the second whistle.

The other announcements you hear are about the end of your paid time, riyō jikan shūryō, the closing of the pool, heikan, and occasionally about lightning or an earthquake, when everyone is asked to leave the water immediately.

Signs and words you will see at the pool

Most rules at a pool are written on boards at the entrance, by the showers and along the poolside. The words below appear in nearly every facility, and knowing the kanji shapes lets you check a rule without asking.

Etiquette that regulars follow

The rules on the boards are only half of it. The rest is the unspoken routine that regulars follow, and copying it is the fastest way to feel at home. Most of it comes down to keeping the water clean, keeping the lanes flowing and keeping the changing room dry.

• Rinse off completely before entering, including after using the toilet
• Wear your cap from the moment you leave the shower area
• Rest at the wall in the corner, never in the middle of a lane
• Wait for the whistle after the break rather than jumping in early
• Dry off before walking back into the changing room
• Keep phones and cameras in your locker; photography is banned at the poolside
• Say o-saki ni to the lane if you leave before people you have been swimming with

When something goes wrong

Small problems are common and easily fixed. If you forget your cap, ask whether reception sells or lends one before giving up; if you lose your locker key or wristband, tell staff at once, because there is usually a replacement charge and they need to open the locker for you. If you feel unwell in the water, raise a hand and the lifeguard will come; do not try to swim to the far end first.

If a lifeguard corrects you about a lane, swimwear or diving, the right response is a short apology, sumimasen, and a change of behaviour. Warnings are given politely and once, and arguing is not part of the culture. For lost property, ask at reception for otoshimono, and for a refund question, be ready to hear that tickets cannot be refunded once used.