Korean spa etiquette: what to expect on a first visit

Shower first. The baths are used without clothes and are separate for men and women. Everywhere else you wear the shirt and shorts the spa gives you.

A first Korean spa visit, step by step

1. Pay at the desk. You get a locker key on a wristband, towels and a uniform. Anything you buy inside is charged to the key.
2. Shoes off. They go in a small shoe locker by the entrance.
3. Find your locker. Men and women split here. Everything comes off and goes in the locker.
4. Shower before the baths. With soap, sitting or standing. This is the one rule people do get told off for skipping.
5. Soak. Move between the hot tubs, the cold plunge and the steam room at your own pace.
6. Dry off and put on the uniform to go to the shared floor, the sauna rooms and the restaurant.
7. Settle up on the way out. Hand back the key and pay for any extras.

Do you have to be naked at a Korean spa?

In the bath area, at most Korean spas, yes. Swimwear is not allowed in the tubs there. The bath areas are single gender, and regulars pay no attention to anyone else. If you would sooner stay covered, the shared floor and its sauna rooms are used fully dressed in the uniform, and a few spas allow swimwear in some pools. 39 of the spas we list publish their dress rule, and it is on each spa's page.

Korean spa etiquette inside

• Tie long hair up before getting in a tub, and keep towels out of the water.
• No phones or cameras in the locker rooms or bath area.
• Keep your voice down. People come to rest, and some are asleep.
• Rinse off after a sauna room or a scrub before getting back in a shared tub.
• Lie on a towel or mat in the hot rooms.

What to bring to a Korean spa

Very little. Towels, a uniform, soap and shampoo are normally provided. Bring a hair tie, your own skincare if you are particular, and a card or cash for food and tips. Drink water through the day.

Children, tattoos and going alone

• Children: rules differ a lot. Some spas are adults only, others admit children with a parent of the same gender. 37 of the spas we list publish an age rule, shown on each spa's page.
• Tattoos: rarely a problem at Korean spas in the US. If a spa publishes a rule, follow it.
• Going alone: completely normal. So is going with friends and splitting up at the lockers.

Common first-visit questions

Can you wear a swimsuit at a Korean spa?

Not in the single-gender bath area at most spas. A few have mixed pools where swimwear is required. Each spa's page here shows its rule where the spa publishes one.

Can you go on your period?

Yes. Use a tampon or a cup in the baths, or stay out of the tubs and use the showers, the sauna rooms and the shared floor.

Can you bring your phone?

On the shared floor, usually yes. Never in the locker rooms or bath area, where people are undressed.

Can couples and mixed groups go together?

Yes. You split up for the baths and meet again on the shared floor, dressed in the uniform.

How long should a first visit be?

Allow three hours. That covers a soak, two or three sauna rooms and something to eat. Add an hour if you book a scrub.

Do you tip at a Korean spa?

Not for admission. For a scrub or massage in the US, 15 to 20 percent to the person who did it is common, often in cash.

Is it awkward to be the only first-timer?

Less than you expect. Staff are used to new visitors, and nobody minds you watching what others do and copying it.

Thinking about a scrub?

Read what a Korean body scrub is and what it costs, then find a spa near you. New to the whole idea? Start with what a jjimjilbang is.