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The story
In Japan, it’s not unusual for people with tattoos to be turned away from pools, hot springs, and public bathhouses, and some beaches also restrict entry depending on the facility. On 5ch, this custom sparked discussion: against the claim that “tattoos are accepted as fashion overseas,” others countered that refusing entry over dress codes is common overseas too, and pointed to the historical background of tattoos once used to identify fishermen or Edo-era firefighters, or as a symbol of yakuza gang membership. Many comments found merit on both sides — those who ban tattoos and those who have them — making this a debate that doesn’t reduce to simple right and wrong.
What people said
apparently
Even overseas, places refuse entry over fashion (dress codes) all the time
Japan's tattoo bans are basically the same thing
You see parents losing it over their kid getting a tattoo all the time though
Then just go overseas
They're accepted there, aren't they
Apparently it's normal in America
Even cops there have tattoos
It's not like they're actually hurting anyone
Cops aren't as noble a profession as you seem to think
Especially in America
Tattoos actually work pretty well as a way to identify a body after death
That's just common sense in any country
The "tattoos are just fashion" argument doesn't hold up
I've seen groups with full traditional wabori tattoos, let alone regular ones
Depends on the beach
Then again, plenty of hot springs and bathhouses do allow tattoos
Actually, old-school public baths (not the fancy "spa-sen" type) are basically fine with tattoos by default
Still, beaches don't really have any enforcement power
They're not private property
So to ordinary people, they just come off as intimidating
Also, Edo-era firefighters had tattoos too
Same reason as the fishermen — it made identifying bodies easier
Bans tattoos under pool rules
Dyed hair and piercings too
They should really allow dyed hair and piercings though
You can hide hair color under a cap, and just take piercings out while swimming
Not sure about hair dye, but piercings are an infection risk
There's a risk both of catching something and spreading it
If you've got time to worry about fashion, go practice
You're funded by the government, after all
This, completely
If you're going to preach freedom, recognize the other side's freedom too
In Hollywood movies tattoos are basically used as an easy visual shorthand for "this guy's a villain"
By that same logic, beaches banning them doesn't make sense either
It's weird to get a tattoo knowing full well some places will turn you away, and still want to go there anyway
Oh, a rare constructive opinion for a tattoo thread
"If it's publicly funded it has to accept absolutely everything" is a weird take too
Even then, plenty of places still ban them out of concern it undermines discipline
Even in the military, guys with obvious tattoos get mocked as meatheads
Apparently that actually happens
Cutting off a finger is an act of apology for screwing up — meaning it marks you as someone whose screw-up was too big for just bowing your head, you know?
For example, it was only in 2014 that a beach in Zushi started banning tattoos and it became big news — that's a pretty recent development
Plenty of people got their tattoos long before that
This whole "don't complain after the fact" argument is just rubber-stamping the status quo, and it doesn't even seem to understand the history — makes no sense
and was shocked tattoos were allowed
There were more tattooed guys than regular customers
Felt like I went there to see ink, not the scenery
And then Japanese customers stop coming
and at some point foreign tourists stop coming too, so the place is in trouble, it makes the news, and there's a nationwide "let's help them out" mood — and then their whole tattoo-friendly-hot-spring era gets exposed and it's "serves you right! go under, idiot!"? Is that how this plays out?
Actually there were plenty of foreigners, but
there were also plenty of guys who looked like your typical crude Japanese construction-worker type
Well, that said, it's not like they were super intimidating or anything, but it still wasn't a great atmosphere
so I figure regular customers will end up drifting away
That's basically the same thing Kyoto City has been saying
"Inbound tourism is great!" → "No one's here because of COVID, Japanese people please come" → "COVID's over, inbound tourism is great again!"
Background and key points of this topic
The custom in Japan of turning away tattooed people from pools, hot springs, and public bathhouses has its roots in the historical conflation of tattoos once used by fishermen and Edo-era firefighters for identification with the body art associated with yakuza gangs. One of the events that made “tattoo bans” at beaches widely known was in 2014, when a beach in Zushi, Kanagawa Prefecture, made news for restricting entry to tattooed visitors and formalizing the rule — commenters note this is a relatively recent development. On the other hand, it’s often overlooked that beaches themselves are usually not private property and largely lack any real enforcement power, and that many old-fashioned public bathhouses still don’t make an issue of tattoos today. In the thread, the very premise that “tattoos are tolerated as fashion overseas” was pushed back on, with counterexamples such as dress-code-based entry refusals happening overseas too, and the fact that even in the military, visible tattoos aren’t looked upon favorably — revealing that this can’t be reduced to a simple Japan-versus-the-West divide. Concerns were also raised that lifting tattoo bans at hot springs in tourist areas could drive away local customers, adding a more practical point about balancing inbound tourism demand with consideration for existing regulars.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyō G, a general live-discussion board) thread “Japan: “People with tattoos are banned from pools, hot springs, and beaches too” ← this.”
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