Tochigi · Nasu Onsen
Kojika-no-yu
小鹿の湯
A day-use facility on the same source as Shika-no-yu, open every day until 9 pm with an open-air bath and private rooms. Ideal for families or anyone daunted by Shika-no-yu's rituals — the milky water is identical.
- Price (adult)
- ¥500
- Hours
- 09:00–21:00(last entry 20:00)
- Closed
- Open daily
- Access
- Bus from JR Kuroiso Station (35 min) to Nasu-Yumoto Onsen, 5 min walk
- Water type
- Sulfur spring
- Tattoos
- Ask ahead
- Admission
- Adults ¥500 / children (3 to elementary) ¥300, same on weekends. 7-visit weekday book ¥2,800. Lockers ¥100 (non-refundable)
- Baths
- Indoor wooden tubs plus open-air baths (wooden for men, ceramic for women); rotenburo until 19:00. Showers and washing area — unlike Shika-no-yu you can wash here
- Water
- Free-flowing water piped from the same source as Shika-no-yu (simple acidic sulfur, hydrogen-sulfide type). Milky, and gentler in temperature than Shika-no-yu, so good for longer soaks; praised for silky skin
- Entry limits
- Entry may be restricted 14:30–18:30 on Saturdays and holidays when crowded. Attached to the Tachibanaya Hanaya Hotel on the Nasu highway; free parking for 10–15
- Phone
- 0287-76-2333
- Official site
- www.kojikanoyu.com ↗
- Open in Google Maps
- Google Maps ↗
Essentials
Stay in this onsen town
Compare and book stays in Nasu Onsen. Day bathing itself needs no booking.
Opens partner booking site (affiliate)
Why go
- Same source as Shika-no-yu, open till 9 pm
- Open-air and private baths
- Family and beginner friendly
Shika-no-yu’s water, with showers and time to linger
Kojika-no-yu (“fawn bath”), three minutes from Shika-no-yu and attached to the Tachibanaya Hanaya Hotel on the Nasu highway, uses free-flowing water from the same strongly acidic sulfur source. The difference is how you bathe: where Shika-no-yu is a hot cure bath with no washing area, here you get showers, a washing area and gentler temperatures for an unhurried soak in the milky water. There are wooden indoor tubs and open-air baths (wood for men, ceramic for women), and it stays open until 21:00 — ideal for washing off after Shika-no-yu’s heat, or for families with children and seniors.
Tips & cautions
- Reception until 20:00; rotenburo until 19:00. Possible entry limits on Saturday/holiday afternoons — go in the morning or after 19:00.
- Same strongly acidic sulfur water: tarnishes silver, mind your eyes, smell lingers, stains white towels.
- Lockers ¥100, not refunded. Bring a towel.
- Pair with Shika-no-yu (¥500) for a ¥1,000 “cure plus wash” combo. Right by the “Yumoto 1-chome” bus stop.
Getting there
Bus ~27–35 min from JR Kuroiso Station toward Nasu-Yumoto to “Yumoto 1-chome”, right there (Yumoto 77). ~10 km / 15 min from Nasu IC. Free parking for 10–15.
Before you go
- No official tattoo policy is published — ask at reception.
- As a communal bath there is no soap or shampoo — bring your own or buy at the shop.
- The water runs hot (43–45°C). Don't add cold water; take short repeated dips instead.
- Payment is usually by ticket machine in cash — bring coins.
- Last entry is 30–60 minutes before closing.
Features
Price
Convenience
Rules & private
Amenities
✔ Verified operating: 2026-09 まっぷる・るるぶ・駅探
Prices and hours change. Check official sources before visiting.
More in this area
Moto-yu Shika-no-yu
The 1,300-year-old birthplace of Nasu Onsen. Inside the wooden bathhouse, tubs are graded from 41 to 48°C, all fed with milky, strongly acidic sulfur water. No showers, no soap — start with the traditional head-dousing ritual.
Kinugawa Onsen Niouson Plaza (day bathing)
A small riverside hotel on the south side of Kinugawa Onsen, five minutes from Tobu World Square Station. While the big hotels stop day bathing around 15:00, this one welcomes walk-ins 9:00–21:00 for ¥700. Its own alkaline sulfur spring (43.6 °C) flows 100% free into a quirky set of baths: a rotenburo made from an actual Kinugawa river-cruise boat, a rock rotenburo, indoor baths and a swimsuit mixed bath. The slightly cool, silky water is highly rated by onsen fans.
Ōmaru Onsen Ryokan, Oku-Nasu (River Bath)
A lone inn at 1,300 m, the last stop in the Nasu hot-spring range. Spring water gushes out behind the building in such volume that it forms a river, dammed into the vast outdoor 'Kawa-no-yu' — nothing else like it in Japan. Mixed bathing since the inn's founding, but bathing wear is included so beginners can relax. Day use is limited to three hours (reception 11:30–14:30), ¥1,300 with face towel and bathing wear. The outdoor bath closes in bad weather or for cleaning, so phone ahead. Autumn colour and snow seasons are the draw.