Due to their association with criminality, tattoos have long been stigmatized in Japan, but restrictions are loosening at public bathhouses around the country as facilities aim to benefit from the influx of tourists in the run-up to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Most venues still ban people with "irezumi," or traditional full-body tattoos sported by yakuza, which can be hidden under clothes but are particularly conspicuous in nude situations such as bath houses.
However, some facilities are allowing tattooed people to enter, provided their ink is covered by patches.