Japan sits on thousands of hot springs, and bathing in them is one of the great pleasures of travelling here. An onsen town is the whole experience: a ryokan with its own baths, dinner in your room and an evening walk between public bathhouses in a cotton yukata.
Each spring has its own water, from milky sulphur to iron red and clear alkaline, and the locals will tell you what each one cures.
When to goAll year, but best in winter, especially an outdoor bath in the snow.
Where to go
-
HakoneKanagawa · 神奈川The easy trip from Tokyo, with Mt. Fuji views on a clear day. -
Beppu and YufuinOita · 大分Japan's hot spring capital and its quieter neighbour. -
KusatsuGunma · 群馬One of the most famous springs, with steaming water fields in the town square. -
KinosakiHyogo · 兵庫Seven public baths and a willow-lined canal, best in yukata. -
DogoEhime · 愛媛One of Japan's oldest onsen, in a wooden bathhouse from 1894. -
NyutoAkita · 秋田Remote, milky-white baths in the mountains.
Good to know
- Wash and rinse fully at the showers before getting in, and keep your small towel out of the water.
- Bathing is nude and baths are split by gender. Some ban tattoos; private baths (kashikiri) avoid the issue.
- Drink water before and after, and don't stay in too long the first time.