The “Mirai Human Washing Machine,” which drew major attention at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, will soon be available for public use at a bathing facility in Minoh, Osaka.
Oedo Onsen Monogatari Minoh Onsen Spa Garden will reopen after renovation on Thursday, October 1, 2026. One of the highlights is the installation of the “Mirai Human Washing Machine,” developed by Science Co., Ltd.
Many people at the Expo may have seen it but never had the chance to get inside. This time, instead of only viewing an exhibit, visitors can actually enjoy a “bath of the future” in a private space.
Even if you cannot secure a Mirai Human Washing Machine slot, the large public baths will feature the “Mirabath” and “Mirable Ex,” which use the same fine-bubble technology. The facility as a whole is designed to let visitors experience the bath of the future.
The Expo-famous “Mirai Human Washing Machine” comes to Minoh Onsen Spa Garden
The “Mirai Human Washing Machine” is a bathing device that evolves the concept of the human washing machine shown at Expo ’70 Osaka by combining it with today’s fine-bubble and sensor technologies.
At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, it attracted attention at the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion.
At Minoh Onsen Spa Garden, visitors can use the same type of “Mirai Human Washing Machine” that became a talking point at the Expo, now installed in an actual bathing facility.
What makes the Mirai Human Washing Machine interesting is that it is not simply a machine for washing the body; it is designed as an experience around the concept of “washing both body and mind.”
We also spoke with Yasuaki Aoyama, Chairman and Representative Director of Science Holdings Co., Ltd., the company behind the device.
According to Chairman Aoyama, development took about six years and included joint research with Osaka University. Beyond washing the body, the team aimed to help users feel mentally refreshed by changing the visuals and music according to their condition while bathing.
Mirai Human Washing Machine price, reservation method, and usage time
Public use begins on Thursday, October 1, 2026.
The usage conditions are as follows.
- Price: ¥11,000 (tax included) per slot
- Usage time: 90 minutes per slot
- Machine operating time: 20 minutes per person, once
- Capacity: 2–4 people
- Eligibility: junior high school age and older
- Reservations: same-day first come, first served; no advance reservations
- Reception: Bath Information Desk, 1st floor of Minoh Onsen Spa Garden
There are eight slots per day.
Start times are 7:30, 9:30, 11:30, 13:30, 15:30, 17:30, 19:30, and 21:30.
The 7:30 slot is limited to hotel guests and is accepted on a first-come, first-served basis at the hotel front desk.
For all other slots, apply on a first-come, first-served basis at the Bath Information Desk on the first floor after entering Minoh Onsen Spa Garden. Slots cannot be secured in advance by phone or online.
In addition to the Mirai Human Washing Machine fee, admission to Minoh Onsen Spa Garden is required. Guests staying at Premium Minoh Kanko Hotel can use the Spa Garden without paying an admission fee.
What can you experience in the Mirai Human Washing Machine?
From the name alone, you might imagine a machine that automatically washes your body, but in practice it is an approximately 20-minute bathing experience that also includes visuals and music.
Rather than stopping at the machine’s appearance, knowing what happens inside before you enter can make the technology more interesting to experience.
A futuristic bath surrounded by microbubbles
Once you get inside and the hatch closes, the bathing experience begins.
According to Chairman Aoyama, the water rises to around chest level, and microbubbles approximately 20 microns in size spread through the water.
As the bubbles increase, the water begins to look cloudy white.
Instead of simply soaking in a large tub, the time spent inside the device as fine bubbles fill the space around you is itself an experience unlike an ordinary bath.
Visuals and music change according to biometric data
Another feature of the Mirai Human Washing Machine is a system that measures the user’s condition during bathing and changes the visuals and music accordingly.
The developer aims to create a bathing experience that does more than wash the body—it is also intended to leave the “mind feeling washed clean.”
According to the explanation during our interview, several types of visuals are selected based on the user’s condition, with music combined to accompany the bathing time.
Rather than focusing only on the bubble technology, taking in the images in front of you and the sounds you hear helps make the concept of a “bath of the future” easier to understand.
Twenty minutes of “the future,” right through to the draining process
Toward the end of the bathing session, the water begins to drain.
Chairman Aoyama said that one Expo participant described the sensation of body weight returning as the water drained as feeling “like coming back down to Earth from outer space.”
It is interesting that not only the time surrounded by bubbles, but even the final moment of the bath can feel like part of the overall production.
90 minutes for 2–4 people in a private space to enjoy together
The Mirai Human Washing Machine is not booked for one person alone; one room is used by a group of 2–4 people.
Each slot lasts 90 minutes, but only one person can enter the Mirai Human Washing Machine at a time. The machine runs for 20 minutes per session.
Companions can wait their turn while using the private bath or relaxing in the room.
For two people, you might relax and talk about the experience afterward; with three or four, taking turns while chatting about who goes first and what the visuals were like can also be part of the fun.
Especially among friends, comparing the visuals each person saw and how the experience felt could become part of the memory itself.
Note that the water in the private bath is not hot-spring water.
You can still experience a “bath of the future” even if you cannot get a Human Washing Machine slot
There are only eight Mirai Human Washing Machine slots per day.
However, one appealing aspect of this renovation is that the facility is not designed so that missing out on the Mirai Human Washing Machine means missing out on everything.
Science’s fine-bubble technology will also be introduced extensively in the large public baths.
Commercial Mirabath systems in the large public baths
Each of the men’s and women’s large public bath areas will have one bath equipped with “Mirabath.”
Mirabath is a bathing system that generates fine microbubbles inside the tub.
During our visit, we actually tried this commercial Mirabath.
As the bubbles spread, the water gradually takes on a whitish appearance. The bubbles feel very soft to the touch and create a pleasant sensation.
The feel was different from ordinary bathwater, and after bathing, our skin felt smoother.
Even without entering the Mirai Human Washing Machine, it is interesting to bathe while experiencing the bubbles and thinking, “So this is the technology behind the Human Washing Machine.”
Mirable Ex installed at all 68 shower fixtures
In addition, “Mirable Ex” will be installed at all 68 shower fixtures in the facility.
The Mirai Human Washing Machine applies fine-bubble technology to different parts of the body, while at the Spa Garden visitors can experience Mirabath in the tub and Mirable Ex in the shower one after the other.
First relax in the Mirabath surrounded by bubbles, then wash your hair and face with Mirable Ex.
The developer explains that this combination allows visitors to experience the technology used in the Mirai Human Washing Machine in a form closer to an everyday bath.
Rather than treating it only as a substitute when you cannot get a Mirai Human Washing Machine slot, it can be enjoyed as a separate way to “try the bath of the future in the large public bath.”
Especially worth noting for people who wanted to try it at the Expo
At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, only a limited number of people were able to actually enter the Mirai Human Washing Machine.
In our interview, Chairman Aoyama recalled that demand to try it was extremely high, with many people accessing the additional application opportunity as well.
For those who “saw it from the outside,” “learned about it in the news,” or “applied but could not get in” at the Expo, its arrival in Minoh offers another chance to access that futuristic experience.
And this time, it is not an exhibit at the Expo venue, but part of a bathing facility.
After the experience, you can head straight to the large public bath to try Mirabath or Mirable Ex, or relax in the rest area. Rather than ending after a single taste of future technology, you can make bathing and relaxation part of the flow of your day.
Minoh Onsen Spa Garden renews itself as an “onsen retreat”
The October 1, 2026 renovation will also significantly change how visitors spend time throughout Minoh Onsen Spa Garden.
The facility is shifting from a place that foregrounded the fun of a “festival” to an “onsen retreat” where guests can relax and play surrounded by nature.
In addition to the hot springs, the facility will feature new relaxation areas and a kids’ park.
- Large kids’ park “Dekoboko no Asobiba”
- “Dandan no Oka,” with stepped bench seating
- “Harappa” and “Yasuragi no Shiba,” where visitors can lie down and relax
- “Hitoyasumi no Kodachi” and “Kokage no Tsukue,” for reading and quiet conversation
- An area with a food court and comics
Even if the Mirai Human Washing Machine is your main goal, rather than leaving after the 90-minute session, planning to spend half a day to a full day including the hot springs and relaxation areas will make it easier to enjoy the character of the renewed facility.
For families with children, the Mirai Human Washing Machine is limited to junior high school age and older, but the facility also has play areas for younger children.
Rather than everyone in the family doing the same activity, the facility allows you to combine different ways of spending time—for example, a futuristic bath for adults and children of junior high school age or older, and the kids’ park for younger children.
Access and admission fees
Oedo Onsen Monogatari Minoh Onsen Spa Garden is about a five-minute walk from Hankyu Minoh Station.
The address is 1-1 Onsen-cho, Minoh, Osaka.
It is easy to reach by train, making a day trip for the hot springs and the Mirai Human Washing Machine possible.
Admission fees are as follows. All prices shown include tax. A separate bathing tax is required.
Day admission (until 5:00 p.m.)
- Adults: ¥2,420 on weekdays; ¥2,860 on weekends and holidays; ¥3,190 on peak days
- Elementary school children: ¥1,320
- Preschool children: ¥770
- Under age 3: Free
After 5:00 p.m., the night discount is ¥2,090 for adults, ¥1,320 for elementary school children, ¥770 for preschool children, and free for children under age 3.
If you use the Mirai Human Washing Machine, an additional ¥11,000 (tax included) per slot is charged.
With two people, the Mirai Human Washing Machine portion works out to ¥5,500 per person; with four people, it is ¥2,750 per person.
The larger the group, the lower the per-person share, but with fewer people it may also be possible to experience the machine twice, so that is something to consider.
A group of two or three may suit those who want to relax and enjoy the private space, while four people may make sense if the priority is for everyone to experience the machine once.
Check the official Minoh Onsen Spa Garden website
What to know before enjoying the Mirai Human Washing Machine
If the Mirai Human Washing Machine is the main purpose of your visit, the first thing to remember is that slots are “first come, first served on the day.”
After entering the facility, check the available slots first, then plan the large public bath, meals, and relaxation areas around the time you secure.
There is also a 7:30 slot reserved for hotel guests, but this too is first come, first served. Staying at the hotel does not guarantee the experience.
Use is limited to junior high school age and older, and minors cannot use it without an adult.
Happyell editor-in-chief’s tips for enjoying the experience
Rather than focusing only on the Mirai Human Washing Machine, try Mirabath and Mirable Ex before or after your session as well. Experiencing “the future inside the machine” and “the future in a form closer to an everyday bath” one after the other makes the aim of this renovation easier to understand.
If you saw the Mirai Human Washing Machine at the Expo, this time you may want to go beyond the exterior and find out what was happening to the person inside—from the bubbles and visuals to the sound and the draining process.
Summary
The “Mirai Human Washing Machine,” which drew attention at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, will begin public use at Oedo Onsen Monogatari Minoh Onsen Spa Garden on October 1, 2026.
The price is ¥11,000 (tax included) per slot, the usage time is 90 minutes, and each slot is for 2–4 people. It is open to junior high school age and older, with same-day first-come, first-served reception inside the facility in principle.
The biggest attraction is the chance to experience for yourself the futuristic bath that became a talking point at the Expo, rather than simply looking at it.
In addition, the large public baths will feature commercial Mirabath systems and Mirable Ex at all 68 shower fixtures, so visitors can experience fine-bubble technology throughout the facility, not only in the Mirai Human Washing Machine.
For those who wanted to try it at the Expo—and anyone wondering what a “bath of the future” feels like—this looks set to become a new way to enjoy Minoh Onsen.
Mirai Human Washing Machine FAQ
Can I make an advance reservation for the Mirai Human Washing Machine?
No. Advance reservations are not available. From October 1, 2026, same-day slots will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis inside Minoh Onsen Spa Garden. Only the 7:30 slot is reserved for hotel guests and is accepted first come, first served at the hotel front desk.
How much does the Mirai Human Washing Machine cost?
It costs ¥11,000 (tax included) for one 90-minute slot. Groups of 2–4 people can use it, and admission to Minoh Onsen Spa Garden is charged separately. Guests staying at Premium Minoh Kanko Hotel can use the Spa Garden without an admission fee.
Can one person use it alone?
No. Each reservation requires 2–4 people, so it cannot be used by a solo guest. Think of it as an experience for at least two people, such as friends, family members, or couples.
Can all four people enter the Mirai Human Washing Machine?
Each session lasts 20 minutes, and up to four people can use the machine within one reservation slot. With four people, the machine’s operating time alone totals 80 minutes, so most of the 90-minute slot will be spent taking turns.
Can I still enjoy the facility if I cannot get a Mirai Human Washing Machine reservation?
Each of the men’s and women’s large public bath areas has one bath equipped with a commercial Mirabath system, and Mirable Ex is installed at all 68 shower fixtures. You can experience the fine-bubble technology used in the Mirai Human Washing Machine in the large public baths as well.
Can children use the Mirai Human Washing Machine?
It is available to junior high school age and older. Minors cannot use it by themselves and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. If visiting with younger children, consider combining the experience with the new kids’ park and other areas.
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