10 Facilities
Two halves: the swimsuit spa zone 'Yunessun' and the traditional nude 'Mori no Yu'. Wine baths, coffee baths and water slides make it family-friendly and an easy first onsen for visitors. Tattoos allowed if covered with a sticker. Dynamic pricing in 2026: passport (both zones) from ¥3,500, swimsuit zone from ¥2,500, Mori no Yu only from ¥1,500.
A giant bath complex next to Tsutenkaku Tower in Shinsekai. The 'Europe zone' (Rome, Greece, Mediterranean) and 'Asia zone' (Bali, Persia) swap between men and women each month. There's also a swimsuit pool, stone saunas and hotel floors. Open 24 hours, so it doubles as a place to stay after the last train. Tattoos OK if covered with a sticker.
Arima's biggest day-spa complex: gold spring, silver spring and (artificial) carbonated baths — 26 baths plus stone saunas, with loungewear and towels included. Free shuttle from Arima-Onsen Station.
Founded in 1691 and regarded as Japan's oldest surviving hot-spring inn building, this Shima Onsen institution in Gunma stands across a red bridge; the main house, said to be one of the models for the bathhouse in Spirited Away, is an Important Cultural Property. The celebrated Genroku-no-yu, built in 1930 in Taishō-romantic style, has five tubs set into a stone floor lit by arched windows, with water welling up from below. Shima's sulphate water is counted among Japan's three great baths for digestive ailments and can be drunk. Day use 10:00–17:30 (last entry 17:00), ¥1,500 with face towel, covering Genroku-no-yu, the mixed rock bath and private baths. Tattoos accepted if covered with stickers. About 40 minutes by bus from Nakanojō Station to the Shima Onsen terminus.
A large onsen hotel of the Oedo Onsen Monogatari group standing high above the Kinugawa gorge. Day bathing runs in two sessions, 7:00–10:00 and 15:00–24:00 (last entry 22:00), at ¥2,200 weekdays / ¥2,400 weekends and holidays (¥2,600 on peak days), ¥1,100–1,300 for elementary pupils, infants free, towels rented for ¥330. There are eight kinds of tub including a semi-open bath where you hear the river and a rock bath, all with views of the gorge. Guests with tattoos may use the great bath only if they are completely covered with the hotel's paid cover seals. Free parking for 200; 15 minutes on foot from Tōbu Kinugawa-Onsen Station or about 10 minutes by dial bus.
A large inn in Minakami, formerly Gensen-yu no Yado Matsunoi, now part of the Oedo Onsen Monogatari Premium line. Three open-air baths face a garden of 10,000 tsubo, Akane-no-yu, Aono-yu and Wakaba-no-yu, with great baths as well. Akane-no-yu switches between men and women, and the men's open-air bath has a barrel sauna. Day bathing needs no reservation and runs 7:00 to 10:00 and 15:00 to 24:00 with last entry at 22:00, at 1,150 yen for adults on weekdays, 1,400 yen on weekends and holidays and 1,600 yen on peak days. Towels rent for 330 yen. People with tattoos may use the great baths only if they are fully covered with the designated cover stickers, which are sold on site.
A large hot-spring resort at Awara Onsen, where day bathing needs no reservation. It opens from 7:00 to 10:00 in the morning and from 15:00 to midnight, with last entry at 22:00. Prices are 900 yen on weekdays, 1,300 yen at weekends and holidays and 1,500 yen on busy days; elementary pupils pay 500 yen except 580 yen on busy days, and infants and children under three are free. Towels can be rented for 330 yen, and consumption tax and bathing tax are included. There is also a plan combining a dinner buffet with bathing, which must be booked in advance. Entry may be refused when it is crowded.
The natural spring of a resort hotel on a hill named among Japan's 100 best sunsets. Its sky-high open-air bath looks over the Seto Inland Sea; day bathing runs 15:00–20:00 for ¥1,200.
An onsen hotel of the Oedo Onsen Monogatari chain in Awazu Onsen, said to have been opened by the monk Taicho some 1,300 years ago. Its own drilled spring (a chloride/sulfate spring at 54°C) fills the Enjaku-no-Yu and Myorei-no-Yu main baths and an open-air bath; day bathing needs no reservation.
An onsen inn of the Oedo Onsen Monogatari chain, famed for its scenic and herb open-air baths overlooking Lake Shibayamagata. The chloride spring of Katayamazu Onsen fills the panoramic and herb open-air baths; day bathing needs no reservation.