YAMATO Lab. is bringing a new pop-up event to Kinosaki Onsen in Hyogo Prefecture starting Saturday, August 1, 2026, with a companion event opening August 7 at YAMATO Lab. TOKYO in Kagurazaka, Tokyo. Called "Yadotsunagi — Memories of a Stay, the Sound of Geta Echoing —," the event centers on Yadotsunagi, a project that gives yukata retired from hot spring inns across Japan a new lease on life.
Kinosaki Onsen, the setting for the main event, is a hot spring town with more than 1,300 years of history, built around the idea that "the whole town is one big inn." Visitors stroll between the town's public bathhouses dressed in the local uniform of yukata and geta, a tradition that once drew in numerous literary figures, including Naoya Shiga, who stayed in the town and wrote their stories there.
The event introduces a special Yadotsunagi collection made from yukata donated by 14 ryokan in Kinosaki Onsen.
In Kinosaki, Yadotsunagi noren curtains will hang at nine spots around town, including the six public bathhouses, and items will be on display and for sale at the pop-up space MMM.
At YAMATO Lab. TOKYO in Kagurazaka, Tokyo, the event introduces the history of Kinosaki Onsen along with the ryokan that donated yukata in support of Yadotsunagi.
Both venues are launching a new pair of geta called the Yatsuore Geta, inspired by Kinosaki's identity as a "town of yukata and geta," alongside a full lineup of 12 Yadotsunagi items including shirts and pants, plus limited collaboration sets with popular Kinosaki food and drink brands.
Event Information
Hyogo – Kinosaki Onsen
- Name: Yadotsunagi — Memories of a Stay, the Sound of Geta Echoing — POP UP EVENT at KINOSAKI
- Dates: August 1 (Sat) to August 16 (Sun), 2026 (closed August 6 (Thu) and August 13 (Thu))
- Hours: 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM (closed 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM)
- August 8 (Sat) only: 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM (closed 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM)
- Venue: MMM (537 Yushima, Kinosaki-cho, Toyooka, Hyogo 669-6101)
- Instagram: @mmm_kinosaki
Tokyo – Kagurazaka
- Name: Yadotsunagi — Memories of a Stay, the Sound of Geta Echoing — POP UP EVENT at TOKYO
- Dates: August 7 (Fri) to August 16 (Sun), 2026 (closed August 11 (Tue) and August 12 (Wed))
- Hours: 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM
- Venue: YAMATO Lab. TOKYO (3-2 Akagimotomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-0817)
- Instagram: @yamato.lab
About Kinosaki Onsen
Located in Toyooka, Hyogo Prefecture, Kinosaki Onsen is a hot spring town with more than 1,300 years of history.
The idea that "the whole town is one big inn" remains deeply rooted here: "the station is the entrance, the streets are the hallways, the inns are the guest rooms, and the public bathhouses are the grand baths." It reflects a wish to welcome every visitor as an honored guest of the town as a whole. Dressed in the local uniform of yukata and geta, visitors make their way around the town's seven public bathhouses.
Note: Of the seven public bathhouses, Sato-no-yu is currently closed for an extended period.
Yadotsunagi Comes to Kinosaki
Kinosaki Onsen, the stage for this event, is one of Japan's leading hot spring towns, where the culture of touring the town in yukata and geta is still alive today. Each ryokan's yukata carries its own history and memories of hospitality.
This event was born from a wish to carry those garments, one by one, into the future and to share the story of Kinosaki as a place.
New Release
Yadotsunagi Yatsuore Geta — ¥30,800 (tax included)
Named for Kinosaki Onsen's identity as a "town of yukata and geta," the new Yatsuore Geta joins the lineup.
Notches cut into the base make the geta fit the foot and walk more comfortably than a standard pair. The name "yatsuore" ("eight-folded") is said to come from a time when each geta was "four-folded," making a pair "eight-folded" together; they are also sometimes called "yatsuwari."
Yadotsunagi Item Lineup
- Shirt / 3 types of pants / dress / coveralls: ¥35,200–¥66,000 (tax included)
- Cap: ¥9,350 (tax included)
- Furoshiki wrapping cloth, azuma bag, and drawstring pouch: ¥8,800–¥14,300 (tax included)
Yadotsunagi items are made by unpicking yukata received from hot spring towns and inns across Japan and piecing the fabric back together, one panel at a time. Because the pattern falls differently on every piece, no two items look quite alike. On the back of each piece, the makers hand-stitch a semamori thread mark, a traditional symbol meant to protect a child's healthy growth, sewn in one stitch at a time.
About Yadotsunagi
Yadotsunagi, a YAMATO Lab. initiative, receives yukata that have finished their service at hot spring towns and lodging facilities across Japan and gives them a new form. So far, with the cooperation of 35 locations and facilities from Hokkaido to Fukuoka, it has turned yukata shaped by each region's character into new clothing and everyday goods.
This project introduces Yadotsunagi items made from yukata received from 14 ryokan in Kinosaki Onsen.
https://www.kimono-yamato.co.jp/yadotsunagi_yamatolab/
Ryokan in Kinosaki Onsen that donated yukata for this project (in no particular order, honorifics omitted):
三木屋／小林屋／旅館 喜楽／西村屋本館／西村屋ホテル招月庭／温もりの宿 おけ庄／ときわ別館／しののめ荘／つちや旅館／泉都／大西屋水翔苑／山本屋／和みの宿 おおかわ／旅館つたや
Topic 1: A Noren Tour of Nine Spots Around Kinosaki Onsen
During the event, Yadotsunagi noren curtains, made from yukata received from 14 ryokan in Kinosaki Onsen, will hang at nine spots around the hot spring town. Yukata that had finished their service take on a new form and once again add color to the town of Kinosaki.
Noren tour locations: MMM (pop-up event venue), the six public bathhouses (Ko-no-yu, Mandara-yu, Ichi-no-yu, Jizo-yu, Yanagi-yu, and Goshono-yu), 城崎麦わら細工伝承館, and 城崎文芸館.
A Yadotsunagi noren made from yukata received from Kinosaki Onsen ryokan
Ichi-no-yu on an ordinary day, where the Yadotsunagi noren will hang
Topic 2: Limited Collaborations with Kinosaki's Popular Food and Drink Brands
Limited-edition items will be sold in collaboration with three popular Kinosaki brands: the tea brand SAN, the pastry cafe PARADI, and Tango Jersey Farm's Milk Kobo Sora.
At the Kinosaki venue, the items are offered as travel souvenirs; at the Kagurazaka venue, they let visitors enjoy a taste of Kinosaki's appeal in Tokyo. Customers who spend ¥8,800 or more (tax included) at YAMATO Lab. TOKYO in Kagurazaka during the event will also receive a gift of SAN tea wrapped in limited Yadotsunagi packaging.
On sale at MMM in Kinosaki Onsen:
- A limited set pairing SAN's assorted tea box (six single-variety teas) and six kinds of PARADI baked sweets, wrapped in a small Yadotsunagi furoshiki: ¥15,000 (tax included)
- Six flavors of Milk Kobo Sora gelato (one milk flavor and five seasonal Kumihama flavors) — available August 8 (Sat) and 9 (Sun) only
On sale at YAMATO Lab. TOKYO in Kagurazaka:
- A limited set pairing SAN's assorted tea box (six single-variety teas) and six kinds of PARADI baked sweets, wrapped in a small Yadotsunagi furoshiki: ¥15,000 (tax included)
- Six varieties of SAN tea in Yadotsunagi packaging: ¥1,600 (tax included)
- Three kinds of PARADI baked sweets in Yadotsunagi packaging: ¥1,500 (tax included)
- Milk Kobo Sora cup ice cream
SAN (tea): a tea brand devoted to 100% domestically grown, specially cultivated tea leaves and natural flavorings, offering everyday tea that's easy to enjoy.
PARADI (baked sweets): a pastry cafe in a corner of Kinosaki Onsen that serves as a hub for creators active in Japan and abroad.
Milk Kobo Sora (gelato and ice cream): a brand of Tango Jersey Farm, which raises Jersey cattle on the Tango Peninsula in Kyoto Prefecture.
Purchase novelty (tea): Customers who spend ¥8,800 or more (tax included) at YAMATO Lab. TOKYO in Kagurazaka will receive a gift of SAN tea wrapped in limited Yadotsunagi packaging.
