Japan

[Scorpio0522]

Thanks for your advice, thats what i was thinking as i know they are a conservative country and don't want to step over the mark.

I still find it a little strange given that all the onsen’s are nude. And some of the very traditional ones can still mixed gender.

Mixed gender onsens are for families. If you go in by yourself it is considered creepy.

From what I have read there are still true mixed gender onsens but they are rare and located mostly in rural villages.

[dapotatoman23]

Just to chime in about thongs in Japan:

In Japan, fundoshi (a thong-like loincloth as many have correctly pointed out) was traditionally worn as men's underwear and swimwear up to the war, after which people started switching to Western briefs/boxers. It's also worn occasionally as festival wear for certain festivals around the country, and still worn nationwide as the outfit for Sumo. Many Japanese are comfortable about being nude (due to public baths).

So, in such sense, thong-like underwear for men is very ingrained into the culture. Because of that, I don't think there's a problem wearing a thong at the pool in the hotel. In the worst case scenario, it's likelier that you'll be told off by another foreigner as most Japanese keep to themselves.