Bathhouse - Definition and Overview

A bath house is a place where people bathe. The term is most commonly used for public bath houses, where people bathe publicly. Public bath houses offer varying degrees of privacy; some are segregated by sex and/or age, while others offer private baths, and are only public in the sense that anyone may use the facilities.

Bath houses are relatively rare in Western societies; most people in such cultures utilize private bathing facilities. However, other cultures have a long tradition of public bath house use; for example, see the sentos of Japan. The sweat lodges of various Native American cultures may be considered bath houses, although they do not involve immersion in water.

See also

• Gay bathhouse
• Sauna