A city-run day bath in front of Awara-Yunomachi Station, two stops from the Hokuriku shinkansen at Awaraonsen. 'Heaven' and 'Earth' bathrooms alternate weekly between men and women, each with rotenburo and sauna. Chloride water keeps you warm long after. ¥600 and open until 23:00 — a rare walk-in option in a town dominated by ryokan. Try the hot-spring eggs. No tattoos.
Ten minutes by car from Tsuruga, the Hokuriku Shinkansen terminus, a municipal spa on a hill above Tsuruga Bay. Alongside the open-air and indoor baths and sauna there's a swimsuit 'Bade pool' of thermal water, so it's popular with families. Mild simple spring water; a Japanese restaurant and tatami hall for resting afterwards. ¥750 on weekdays, 10:00–22:00, closed Tuesdays — a handy first stop on a Hokuriku trip from Kansai or Nagoya.
A town-run day spa attached to the Echizen roadside station on the coast famous for Echizen crab. The open-air bath juts toward the Sea of Japan, facing sunsets over the horizon and, after dark, the squid-boat lanterns ('isaribi') that give it its name. Silky 'beauty water', an indoor bath and sauna for a wallet-friendly ¥520. Busy in winter with visitors pairing a soak with a crab lunch.
A public resort inn in the pine woods of the Echizen-Kaga Coast park, five minutes by car from the Tōjinbō cliffs. The glass-walled indoor bath and open-air Araiso-no-yu face the Sea of Japan and its sunsets, with cherry blossom in spring. Day use 11:30–15:00 (last entry), ¥900; closed to day visitors on Tuesdays for maintenance. Well stocked with shampoo and conditioner; towels are rented (¥310) or bring your own. Eight minutes by car from Mikuni-Minato Station — an easy stop between Tōjinbō and an Echizen crab lunch (Nov–Mar).
A day-use hot spring in Fukui city's Koshino district on the Echizen coast, famous for its wild daffodil fields. The mildly alkaline water is soft on the skin, and there is an indoor bath facing the Sea of Japan, a sauna and a small open-air tub. Adults pay just ¥640 and shampoo/body soap are provided. Open 10:30–20:30 on weekdays and 09:30–21:30 on weekends; closed 1st/3rd/5th Tuesdays (next day if a holiday). Winter (Dec–Feb) brings the daffodils and Echizen crab season, and many visitors stop here to finish a coastal drive. About 40 minutes by car from central Fukui; buses are infrequent, so a car is realistic.
A town-run hot-spring inn next to Hanahasu Park in Minami-Echizen, Fukui, where more than 130 varieties of lotus bloom. The alkaline simple water from about 1,000 m down clings softly to the skin; there is a roomy indoor bath, a garden-style open-air bath, the signature 'lotus bath' floated with lotus leaves and flowers, plus bubble bath, lie-down bath and sauna. Day bathing is a modest ¥650 for adults and ¥350 for children, and the long 08:00–22:00 hours (last entry 21:00) are a bonus. Closed Tuesdays (open on holidays, during the July lotus festival and at New Year). The restaurant serves set meals with sashimi boats and 'lotus udon', and overnight stays are possible. About 5 minutes by car from Imajō IC on the Hokuriku Expressway or 10 minutes by taxi from JR Imajō Station — an easy stop between the Echizen coast and Tsuruga. Lotus season runs from late June to early August.
A municipal spa retreat in the mountains at the eastern edge of Ōno, Fukui, close to Lake Kuzuryū. Ringed by the clear Kuzuryū River and forested hills, it offers colourless, soft alkaline simple spring water in an indoor bath and an open-air bath overlooking the valley through fresh greenery, autumn colours and deep snow (the outdoor bath may close on winter weekdays). There are a sauna, a tatami rest hall and a restaurant, and the site forms part of the Kuzuryū Hoyō-no-Sato complex with cottages and the Hotel Flairal Izumi next door. Adults from outside the city pay ¥800 (residents ¥700), children from age 3 ¥400 (¥350). Open 10:00–21:00, from 12:00 on Wednesdays; closed Tuesdays (next day if a holiday) and 1 January. About 17 minutes on foot from Echizen-Shimoyama Station on the JR Etsumi-Hoku Line, or right off the Kuzuryū IC on the Chūbu-Jūkan Expressway. An easy stop after the Kuzuryū roadside station, an autumn drive around the lake or a climb of Mt. Arashima.