Discover the Scents of Japan through Aroma Blending and a Private Spa Retreat Overlooking Kyoto’s Kamo River

A Healing Private Spa on the Banks of the Kamo River

The atmospheric old Kyoto cityscape is well-preserved alongside the Kamo River. It is here on a serene stretch of riverfront just south of Gojo Bridge just outside the hustle and bustle where Sayu Kamogawa sits, ensconced in greenery. If the exterior setting is serene, the interior that unfurls within the entrance is exquisite. Sayu Kamogawa is a private spa facility founded to offer moments of healing during the pandemic to those who found themselves unable to go out, deprived of emotional refuge, and exhausted by the days of social distance.

The “sayu” in Sayu Kamogawa’s is a Japanese term referring to plain warm water with nothing added. In the tea ceremony traditions of Kyoto, tea utensils are ritually purified with sayu before use. By analogy, the notion of returning both body and mind to a clean and unblemished state inspired the spa’s name. This ritual of self-purification is the perfect way to ease away the fatigue of the everyday

Craft an Original Aroma with Fragrance Designer Kyoko Kato

Kyoko Kato is your instructor for the aroma blending experience. Based in Kyoto, she helms the fragrance firm Planta, producing aroma-based spatial and product designs. Kato took up aromatherapy while in Australia, where she was inspired by the scent of eucalyptus. After returning to Japan, she intensified her study of aromatherapy and obtained international qualifications. Today she practices the craft in a wide range of fields, such as by producing spatial designs for hotels or companies, and teaching aroma blending.

Each aroma has its own distinct qualities. Geranium is known for helping support hormonal balance, while sweet orange is often used to calm the mind. In this experience, guests create their own fragrance with Kato’s guidance and expertise in the properties of and affinities between each component. Along the way, Kato also introduces fragrances unique to Japan. “Calming your heart and turning inward through blending fragrances can become an opportunity to discover what it is you really need in the present,” says Kato.

Blend a Unique Fragrance and Fill Your Space with a Scent that’s Truly You

The experience begins with a simple introduction to the rules of blending, using reference materials. Essential oil fragrances are divided into three types according to how quickly they evaporate: top notes, middle notes, and base notes. Blending in balanced proportions enriches the final aroma: Top notes are short-lived and often citrusy whereas middle notes forming the core of the blend tend floral or woody; base notes are stable and lingering scents, each with a role all its own.

After learning the basics, sample each of the approximately 30 essential oils selected by Kato by applying them to mouillettes, or fragrance testing strips, while also learning about their properties. Choose around seven or eight fragrances you like before experimenting with combinations as you move ever closer to your ideal. “It’s no problem to start off intuitively, choosing first of all by whether or not you like the scent,” says Kato. Follow your own sensibilities and create a fragrance that pleases you.

Among the five senses, smell is said to reach the brain the fastest. A single added drop can transform a scent completely, and the possible combinations are virtually endless. In fragrance blending, a delicate harmony of intensity and subtlety is essential. When in doubt, you can always turn to Kato for attentive advice, so enjoy the process and rely on her as much as you need.

Your completed fragrance is diluted with ethanol and sealed in a 10 ml glass bottle. Fragrance blends take about 30 days to fully integrate and mature – be sure to shake yours occasionally as you wait, looking forward to the aroma that will emerge. Some find that their preferences change with the season: from fresh, crisp fragrances in summer to deeper, richer scents in winter. Returning again and again to the blending processes can reveal new fragrances that suit the season and your state of mind.

Luxurious Relaxation of Body and Mind at a Private Spa

After blending your fragrance, refresh your body and mind in an exceptional spa experience. This Wabunka plan gives you exclusive access to Sayu Kamogawa so your group can enjoy the spa in a private setting. Sayu Kamogawa is equipped with a groundwater pool, a warm-water pool, and a sauna/warming room. Temperatures in the facilities are carefully controlled to warm the body to the core. Guests are welcome to perform löyly themselves — pouring water over heated sauna stones to create steam — allowing them to adjust the conditions to their preference.

Once warmed, relax with an air bath on the open second-floor terrace overlooking the Kamo River. Enjoy a deep sense of natural ease as you soak in environmental birdsong and the babble of the river. Surrounded by sky and greenery, discover a level of comfort that may make you reluctant to go home.

Restore Body and Mind in Intimate Privacy in this Unique Experience

The fragrance created during this experience can be used in everyday moments, such as refreshing yourself at work or freshening your bedding before sleep. You’ll find its fragrance gentler than commercial perfume, lightly diffusing within an area of about 30 to 40 centimeters – ideal for daily use. Filling the space around you with a scent you love is apt to bring new dimensions of richness, color, and relaxation to your day-to-day.

This plan combines aroma blending and a spa experience for a private healing time all your own. It is a special retreat that gently cares for a body and mind tired from sightseeing and travel. This rare experience of unhurried reflection and refreshment is sure to become a special memory of your trip — one that brings the scenery of Kyoto softly back to mind even after you return to the hustle and bustle of life. Come visit Sayu Kamogawa and soothe your mind and body alike to your core.