Kyoto · Rurikei Onsen, Nantan
ASOBIYUKU Kyoto Rurikei Onsen
ASOBIYUKU 京都るり渓温泉
A hot-spring resort on the Rurikei plateau in Nantan at about 500 m, roughly an hour by car from Kyoto city, at the entrance to the scenic Rurikei gorge trail. Formerly 'Kyoto Rurikei Onsen for REST RESORT', it was renovated and renamed in 2025. The water is a mildly radioactive radon spring; besides the gender-separated 'Ruri-yu' halls, open-air baths and single-person ceramic pot baths, there is a swimwear zone where couples and families bathe together, along with a pool and saunas. Day admission (including the pool and swimwear area) is ¥800 for adults and ¥400 for children on weekdays, ¥950 and ¥500 on weekends and holidays; towel set ¥300, swimwear rental ¥400. Bedrock baths and the lantern terrace cost extra. Open 11:00–20:00 on weekdays and 10:00–21:00 on weekends and holidays, every day. Barbecue, a kids' area, the GRAX glamping site and a hotel share the grounds, and at night the 'Synesthesia Hills' illumination is a draw. Keihan Kyoto Kōtsū bus to 'Rurikei Onsen', or about 30 minutes by car from Kameoka IC.
- Price (adult)
- ¥800
- Hours
- 07:00–23:30 (last entry 23:00)
- Closed
- Open daily
- Access
- About 30 min by car from Kameoka IC (Kyoto Jūkan Expressway); Keihan Kyoto Kōtsū bus from JR Sonobe Station (direct services from Kyoto and Katsura stations run on some days — check) to 'Rurikei Onsen'; about 1 h 15 min by car from Osaka
- Water type
- Radon spring
- Tattoos
- Ask ahead
- Admission
- Day bathing (great bath, rotenburo, bade zone and pool / swimsuit onsen area included) adults (12 and up) ¥800 weekdays / ¥950 weekends and holidays, children (4 and up) ¥400/¥500, under 3 free. Bedrock bath and sauna are included in day bathing (items charged separately depend on the plan — see on-site notices). Towels sold or rented, shampoo provided, lockers. All-you-can-drink lounge, restaurant, large net athletics course (charged). Cash and cards
- Baths
- A leisure and spa resort inside the Kyoto Prefectural Rurikei Nature Park, which holds the Rurikei gorge (about 4 km) an hour by car from central Kyoto, in Nantan, Kyoto. A renewal in April 2025 refreshed the onsen facility 'Ruri-yu' and added a large net athletics course and an all-you-can-drink lounge, making it a one-day 'onsen plus activity' facility. A great bath and rotenburo with a swimsuit bade zone and pool, plus bedrock baths and sauna, with cottage stays, camping and barbecues also available. A spring with radon content among the highest in the country, designated a National Health Spa in 2000
- Spring water
- Rurikei Onsen, a radioactive spring containing radon (among the highest radon content in Japan). Rurikei Kogen Onsen is a simple radioactive spring (hypotonic, weakly alkaline, low-temperature; 23°C at source, 159 litres a minute), and Rurikei Flower Onsen a simple weakly radioactive cold-mineral spring. Colourless and light with little irritation, suited to long bathing and to cure bathing by inhaling radon. Indicated for neuralgia, muscle and joint pain, fatigue, stiffness and poor circulation. Designated a National Health Spa in 2000
- Access & parking
- By car 20 min from Sonobe IC on the Kyoto Jukan Expressway (via prefectural roads and Route 372), 1 h from central Kyoto, 1 h 30 min from Osaka. Public transport: free shuttle bus about 30–35 min from Sonobe Station on the JR Sagano Line or Nissei-Chuo Station on the Nose Railway (timetable and reservations on the official site). Free parking. Right at the trailhead of the Rurikei gorge; the Sonobe castle ruins and Goma-go 20 min by car
- Phone
- 0771-65-5001
- Official site
- rurikei.jp ↗
- Open in Google Maps
- Google Maps ↗
Essentials
Find a stay on Trip.com
Search and book accommodation across Japan on Trip.com. Day-use bathing needs no booking.
Opens partner booking site (affiliate)
Why go
- Plateau resort with a swimwear bathing zone
- Radon-spring halls and ceramic pot baths
- ¥800 weekdays; open daily; night illuminations
Onsen plus activities in a gorge National Health Spa, with radon content among Japan's highest
ASOBIYUKU Kyoto Rurikei Onsen is a leisure and spa resort inside a Kyoto prefectural nature park holding the Rurikei gorge — about 4 km long, appearing after some 40 minutes to an hour of driving from central Kyoto — in Nantan, Kyoto. The area was designated a National Health Spa in 2000; the water is a radioactive spring containing radon, with a content said to be among the highest in the country. A major renewal in April 2025 refreshed the onsen facility 'Ruri-yu' and added a large net athletics course (an obstacle course played on nets) and an all-you-can-drink lounge, so it is now a family resort for enjoying 'onsen plus activities' in a single day. The bathhouse runs from the great bath and rotenburo into a swimsuit bade zone and pool, with bedrock baths and a sauna too, and day bathing is ¥800 for adults on weekdays and ¥950 at weekends and holidays — cheap for what is included. Open from 7 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. (last entry 11 p.m.), both an early-morning and a late-night bath are possible; there are effectively no closures (though it may close in snow), and a shuttle runs from JR Sonobe Station and Nissei-Chuo Station on the Nose Railway in 30–35 minutes, so check the times. The gorge walking path (the 'Twelve Scenes of Rurikei', about two hours round trip) is right beside the facility, completing a day of 'walk, bathe, play, eat', and with cottage stays, camping and barbecues available it is a good place to spend a day in the Kyoto mountains. The classic plan is to pair it with temple sightseeing in the city and spend one day at a mountain onsen; spring greenery, summer streams, autumn foliage and winter snow are all beautiful here.
Moving between onsen, pool and bedrock baths, and walking the Rurikei gorge
Park in the free car park or step off the shuttle and ask for day bathing at reception (¥800 on a weekday). Towels are sold or rented, shampoo is provided, and you use a locker. A recommended order: wash and warm up in the great bath (main tub, bubble bath); step out to the rotenburo for the gorge air and the forest; walk and play in the swimsuit bade zone and pool (bring or rent swimwear); sweat it out in the bedrock baths and sauna; then rest in the all-you-can-drink lounge or the restaurant. Families should insert the large net athletics course (charged) part-way so children do not tire. The water is a radon-bearing radioactive spring, colourless and light; the source is cold so it is heated, leaving almost no irritation, so children and seniors can soak at length — and since radon is also absorbed by breathing, the cure method here is to breathe the bathroom air deeply and take several soaks of 20–30 minutes. From the rotenburo you see the Rurikei forest and gorge; in summer the stream sounds loud, and in November the foliage surrounds the tub. The Rurikei path beside the facility (the Twelve Scenes, about two hours round trip) is mostly gentle boardwalk, easy with children, with falls and rocks along the way, so a soak after the walk is especially refreshing. A cottage stay combines dinner, breakfast and the onsen into 'a day in the mountains', and there are camping and barbecue areas. Hours are 7:00 to 23:30 (last entry 23:00) with effectively no closures, but it may close in snow, so check before a winter visit. Weekends, holidays and the summer break are busy with families; weekday mornings are most comfortable.
Practical details and a Kyoto mountain route
Hours are 7:00–23:30 (last entry 23:00), open year-round (may close in snow); day bathing adults ¥800 weekdays / ¥950 weekends and holidays, children ¥400/¥500 (under 3 free), net athletics and similar charged separately, parking free. Access is 20 minutes from Sonobe IC, an hour from central Kyoto, and 30–35 minutes by free shuttle from JR Sonobe Station or Nissei-Chuo Station. Suggested routes: (1) one day of a two-day Kyoto trip — day one in the city (Kiyomizu-dera, Fushimi Inari), day two an early shuttle to Rurikei, the gorge walk (Twelve Scenes), bathing and the net athletics, a night in a cottage or the evening shuttle back to Kyoto; (2) a family day — a bath right at the 7 a.m. opening, the net athletics in the morning, lunch in the restaurant, pool and bedrock baths in the afternoon, the evening shuttle; (3) autumn in November — a foliage walk in the gorge, the rotenburo, soba in Sonobe; (4) summer — playing in the stream (check the safe zones), a bath, a barbecue (reserve); (5) winter — the snowy gorge and the rotenburo (check for snow closures). Notes: swimwear needed for the swimsuit zones (check rental); confirm the shuttle timetable and reservations; possible closure in snow; weekends and the summer break are crowded; cash and cards accepted. Rurikei Onsen gathers 'a radon spring, a gorge and family activities' in one place and is the leading resort near Kyoto, and the most satisfying choice when you want to spend a day of a Kyoto trip in nature.
Before you go
- No official tattoo policy is published — ask at reception.
- Payment is usually by ticket machine in cash — bring coins.
- Last entry is 30–60 minutes before closing.
Features
Rules & private
Sauna & wellness
Mood & scenery
Who with
Price
Convenience
Amenities
✔ Verified operating: 2026-09 Operating status and rates cross-checked against the official site and onsen guides (full source notes in Japanese on the JA page)
Prices and hours change. Check official sources before visiting.
More in this area
Kyoto Arashiyama Onsen Fufu-no-yu
Four minutes from Hankyu Arashiyama Station and a short walk from Togetsukyo Bridge, Arashiyama's only dedicated day-use onsen. Mildly alkaline simple spring water in indoor, open-air, silky and sauna baths. Easy to slot between sights, with towel rental so you can come empty-handed. The changing room is small, so avoid peak hours. ¥1,200 weekdays, ¥1,400 weekends and holidays.
Sagano Onsen Tenzan-no-yu
Four minutes from Arisugawa Station on the Randen tram near Arashiyama, a day spa in Kyoto-style timber architecture. Chloride water from 1,200 m below fills rock rotenburo, pot baths and a spacious indoor pool; the men's side has a 'theater' sauna, the women's two saunas. Open until midnight, so it works after a day in Arashiyama. Restaurant on site. ¥1,200 weekdays; closed the third Monday.
Amanohashidate Onsen Chie-no-yu
The only public bath in Miyazu, right next to Amanohashidate Station on the Kyoto Tango Railway — the gateway to one of Japan's Three Views. Named after the Monju bodhisattva of wisdom, it looks like a small ryokan. Magnesium-rich chloride water fills an indoor bath and hand-and-foot bath, with a free footbath outside. ¥800, 12:00–21:00. Perfect for a rinse while waiting for your train after walking the sandbar.
