A public bath in the heart of Gero, one of Japan's three famous springs. The alkaline simple spring (pH over 9) leaves skin silky — the classic 'beauty bath' — for just ¥470. Indoor pool only, popular with locals. Combine it with the ¥1,500 'yumeguri' pass that admits you to three ryokan baths. 10 minutes on foot from Gero Station.
The largest day-use facility in Okuhida. Sixteen open-air pools (7 men's, 9 women's) scattered through the forest, all fed directly from the source. Hida beef restaurant on site. The classic stop after Kamikochi or Shin-Hotaka.
A public bath that is entirely open-air, on the Hida River. No indoor pool — six outdoor tubs including a waterfall shower, box steam and pot baths. Gero's silky pH 8.9 water with a river breeze.
A bathhouse-style onsen behind Gero Station with seven baths — waterfall, open-air, jets, sauna — for less than half a ryokan's day-use fee. Bring soap or buy it from the vending machine.
A wooden pass good for three baths at participating ryokan, sold with a towel and pouch for ¥2,500 and valid for six months. Day-use hours differ by inn, so check the timetable when you buy.
A huge boulder-lined mixed open-air bath on the Gamata riverbed, looking up at the Northern Alps and a suspension bridge. Open only late April to the end of October; swimwear or bathing gowns allowed. Pay a cleaning donation of about ¥300.
A rustic day-onsen near the Shinhotaka trailhead with a canteen where model trains run past your table. The open-air bath faces Mt. Shakujō and Mt. Kasa, and fills with hikers fresh off the mountain. Closes in winter depending on snow.
Takayama's largest day-use onsen, ten minutes by car from the old town, using free-flowing mildly alkaline water from 1,000 m underground. A 'hot-spring health land' with ten kinds of baths — indoor, open-air, walking bath, electric bath — plus sauna, a cheap restaurant with a hundred Japanese, Western and Chinese dishes, basic lodging from ¥2,500 a night, karaoke and Korean-style body care. Open 7:30–23:00 (last entry 22:30; open-air bath 15:30–22:00), every day; ¥1,150, or ¥750 for the night bath after 21:00. About 10 minutes by car from Takayama Station, with local buses too. Handy for guesthouse stayers with tiny bathrooms, or on the way back from Shirakawa-gō and Okuhida drives.
An open-air-only public bath on the gravel banks of the Gamata River at Tochio Onsen in the Okuhida valley. The rock-ringed men's and women's pools have no screen on the river side, so the rushing Gamata and the Northern Alps fill the view — starry skies at night, snow scenes in winter, wild Okuhida all year. Free-flowing simple spring water; there are changing huts but no reception — drop a donation (about ¥300) in the wooden box at the entrance. Open 8:00–22:00 (from 12:00 Mon, Wed and Fri for cleaning); no closing days, but suspended when the river is high. Bring a towel. An easy stop between the Shinhotaka Ropeway and Hirayu, or a night soak for anyone staying in Tochio's inns.
A day-use bathhouse right beside the Shinhotaka Ropeway base at the trailhead into the Northern Alps. Descended from a mountain hut, it is unusual in having two different springs — a simple spring and a bicarbonate spring — each served free-flowing. The open-air bath, with the murmur of the Gamata River and the rock peaks of Kasa-ga-take and Shakujō-dake in view, fills with hikers coming off the mountain and sightseers back from the ropeway. Adults ¥1,000, children ¥500; open 09:00–18:00 (last entry one hour before closing), irregular closing days. There is a rest room and a restaurant serving Okuhida fare such as Hida beef and soba. About 90 minutes by bus from Takayama Nōhi Bus Center to 'Shinhotaka Onsen', then 2 minutes on foot; parking for 11 cars (pay car parks nearby).