Relax and soak away the day’s skiing, hiking, or sightseeing, in glorious natural volcanic hot springs! Surrounded by mountains, Shimoina has numerous hot springs set in beautiful natural scenery, to soothe your body and delight your eyes.
Hirugami Onsenkyo (Hirugami hot springs resort town) is a famous collection of ryokan and local shops straddling the Achi river.
Some of the facilities have day tickets (“higaeri”) meaning you can use the baths without staying at the ryokan itself. These include Hirugami no Mori, Yuttarina Hirugami, Sekitaitei Ishida, and Esan.
Hirugami Onsenkyo also has a morning farmers’ market selling fresh produce direct, and other shops selling local produce, whisky, sake and beer throughout the day.
Access the website here.
Japanese and provided English machine translation; indicates which hotels will allow non-guests to use the baths.
Situated on the edge of the Tenryukyo Gorge, Goyukkuri serves as an ideal basecamp for day exploring the area. The facility comprises the hot spring itself, a break room with an observation deck, and Nonbiri Kitchen, which specializes in local soba dishes. It is next to Yottekan, an information centre about the river and gorge, which connects directly to Sorasanpo walkway, which is a pedestrian path built into the railway bridge spanning the valley. Local crafts are available for sale in the main lobby.
This is a day-visit onsen so you can buy tickets for the bath on the day.
Access the website here.
Japanese only, which can be machine translated manually in browsers which support. Has Google map for access.
Bear Village Gessen is a longer drive out into the countryside, but worth the effort.
Surrounded by mountains, overlooking fields and villages, it has stunning views all year round, including a glorious avenue of cherry blossoms, autumn leaves, and a beautiful winter view of the snow capped peaks.
The ryokan sells day tickets (“higaeri”) meaning you can use the baths without staying.
Access the website here.
Japanese only, which can be machine translated manually in browsers which support. Has Google map for access.
Cosmos no Yu in Shimojo is renowned for its views to the mountain side from the exterior bath. It is also situated behind the Shimojo Roadside Station “Soba Castle” where you can get a meal or do some food shopping after a well-deserved hot soak.
This is a day-visit onsen so you can buy tickets for the bath on the day.
Access the website here.
Japanese with English, Chinese and other machine translation options. Access map.
Himawari Onsen in Hiraya village is high up in the mountains, surrounded by nature. The outside bath has views of the open sky and the wooded mountainside, and has a covered area so you can still enjoy the spring in rain and snow. The onsen is part of the Roadside Station “Himawari,” which means sunflower. It has a direct farm sales shop and a cafe. Outside, local families will paddle in the river on hot summer days, behind which is a steep staircase to a peaceful mountain shrine.
Access the website here.
Japanese only, which can be machine translated manually in browsers which support. Has Google map for access.
