Yubara Onsen

Yubara Onsen Sunayu

A natural open-air bath on the Asahi River gravel bed right below Yubara Dam, where water bubbles up through the riverbed itself — ranked the 'western grand champion' of Japan's rotenburo. Three pools at different temperatures; mixed, free and open 24 hours. Only a simple changing hut, so women are advised to wear a bathing garment (sold and rented in town). Closed Wednesday mornings for cleaning. Photography strictly forbidden.

Maga Onsenkan (Yubara Onsen area)

The communal bath of Maga Onsen, a tiny hamlet of stone stairways on a slope above a tributary of the Asahi River in the Yubara Onsen area. Legend says a defeated warrior healed his wounds here some 700 years ago. The star is the 'Makuyu', a mixed rock bath of about 1.6 × 2 m and 1.2 m deep, so you soak standing up — often called Japan's smallest mixed bath — with lukewarm 39°C water bubbling up through cracks in the rock floor. The men's and women's baths connect to it and cost ¥250; the Makuyu is ¥400 (max 8 people, one hour) and a private bath ¥1,300 for up to three. Open 08:00–21:00 (last entry 20:10), closed Tuesdays (open on holidays). No towels allowed in the mixed bath, so be prepared. About 20 minutes by car from Chūgoku-Katsuyama Station.

Yubara Onsen Yumoto Onsenkan

A municipal day bath in the middle of the Yubara Onsen village in northern Okayama, a few minutes' walk from the famous riverside open-air 'Sunayu'. Yubara has a thousand-year history and copious water; this is its source bath, and the pH 9.3 alkaline simple spring is a slippery 'beauty water'. The three-storey building has souvenirs on the ground floor and baths on the first: for each sex an indoor bath, jacuzzi and sauna, plus a barrier-free bathroom usable by elderly and wheelchair guests, which can also be hired as a family bath (¥3,000 per hour for up to three). There is no view, but travellers value it as the place to wash and warm up properly after the mixed Sunayu. Adults ¥800, children ¥400; open 10:00–21:00 (last entry 20:30), closed Wednesdays. A tatami rest room and relaxation corner are provided. About 5 minutes by car from Yubara IC on the Yonago Expressway, or 40 minutes by bus for Hiruzen Kōgen from JR Chūgoku-Katsuyama Station to 'Sayama' then 5 minutes on foot.