Maga Onsenkan (Yubara Onsen area)

The lord’s curtained rock bath for eight — slippery 38 °C water welling up underfoot

Maga Onsen is a tiny spa six kilometres south of the Yubara spa town along the Asahi River, a handful of inns squeezed onto a narrow strip between river and hills, and Maga Onsenkan is the communal bath at its heart. Its claim to fame is “Maku-yu” — an indoor mixed rock bath named after the curtain (maku) that the Edo-period lords of Tsuyama and Katsuyama domains had hung to screen them while bathing. In a small tub of about 1.6 by 2 metres but a full 1.2 metres deep, pH 9.4 alkaline water rises by itself from cracks in the rock floor and spills over via bamboo pipes. The source is 39.5 °C and the tub about 38 °C — tepid — yet the water is reckoned the most “nuru-nuru” (slippery) in the whole Yubara area, so much so that people queue for Maku-yu even when the men’s bath is empty. Capacity is eight, one hour maximum, and women use it too. The adjoining gender-separated regular baths connect to Maku-yu underneath and share the same water, slightly cooler, for ¥250; families and couples have three private baths (¥1,300 per hour, up to 3). It is a bare-bones place with neither soap nor lockers, so wash beforehand or combine it with Yubara’s other facilities. Opens at 08:00 for a morning soak; closed Tuesdays.

Tips & cautions

- Maku-yu is mixed, capacity 8, one hour max — wait if it’s full. Follow on-site guidance about towels (in such a small tub bathing nude is the norm).

- 1.2 m deep — take care with children and shorter bathers; sit on the ledge.

- No soap or shampoo (and using them is frowned upon); no lockers — leave valuables behind.

- Tepid 38 °C — take 30 minutes or more; in winter dress quickly afterwards.

- Closed Tuesdays (open if a holiday, per notices); last entry 20:10.

- Tattoo policy unconfirmed — a private bath (¥1,300) is the safe choice.

- The classic “three Yubara baths” circuit: Suna-yu (free), Yumoto Onsenkan (¥800) and here.

Getting there

Maniwa community bus toward Hiruzen Highlands ~30 min from Chugoku-Katsuyama Station (JR Kishin line) to “Maga Onsen”, then 3 min on foot (Nakama, Maniwa). By car ~10 min south on Route 313 from Yubara IC (Yonago Expressway); ~6 km from the Yubara spa town. Small free lot. Enquiries: Maniwa Tourism Bureau, 0867-62-2526.