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Worry-Melting Hot Spring — Korean Bathhouse Rest Online

The Worry-Melting Hot Spring is a rest area at Goyosa in Hapjang (합장), the browser-based online temple. It has 17 seats in the warm bath, 6 in the hot bath, 4 foot-bath seats and 2 spots for drinking sikhye (a sweet rice drink). Take a seat in a bath and rest side by side with other visitors.

Where
The hot spring rest area at Goyosa
Seats
Warm bath 17, hot bath 6, foot bath 4
Sikhye
2 seats
Also
Cold-water dipper, sauna clothes
Together
Other visitors sit in the same baths

Why is there a hot spring at a temple?

Hot springs inside Korean temples are rare. The Worry-Melting Hot Spring is not a copy of any real temple facility; it brings Korea's long-loved bathing and sauna culture into Goyosa as a place to rest. Unlike practice time in the Dharma hall, this is a place to simply sit in the water and do nothing at all.

Korean bathhouse culture and sikhye

In Korean public bathhouses and jjimjilbang (Korean saunas), it is common to move between a lukewarm bath and a hot one, rest in sauna clothes, and then drink a cool sikhye. Sikhye is a sweet traditional drink made by fermenting cooked rice with malt, and many people think of it as the drink to have after a bath. Pouring cold water over yourself with a gourd dipper is another familiar sight.

Seats at the Goyosa hot spring

The Goyosa hot spring has 17 seats in the warm bath, 6 in the hot bath and 4 foot-bath seats where you just soak your feet. There are 2 spots for drinking sikhye, plus a cold-water dipper and sauna clothes. The number of seats is fixed, so if the one you want is taken, choose another bath or wait a moment.

Where to go after the hot spring

After the hot spring, try the Campfire Nook and Music Courtyard, where people sit around a log fire. If you would rather rest looking at the sea, there are sea benches on the Guanyin Seaside Path. For ideas on choosing a short rest, see Take a 5- or 10-minute break.

Try it in Hapjang

Inside the hot spring, walk up to an empty bath seat or foot-bath seat to sit down. At a sikhye spot you can rest while drinking sikhye. You will end up sitting side by side with others in the same bath, so be considerate of each other's space. It is an on-screen rest area, so if you have been sitting for a long time, drink a real glass of water and have a stretch too.

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Frequently asked questions

How many seats does the Hapjang hot spring have?

There are 17 seats in the warm bath, 6 in the hot bath and 4 foot-bath seats, plus 2 spots for drinking sikhye.

Why does a temple have a hot spring?

It is not a common facility at real mountain temples. Goyosa in Hapjang is an original temple ground inspired by many Korean mountain temples, and it includes Korean bathing and sauna culture as a place to rest.

What kind of drink is sikhye?

It is a sweet traditional Korean drink made by fermenting cooked rice with malt. People often enjoy it at bathhouses and jjimjilbang (Korean saunas).

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