Looking for a hot soak during the winter months while in Japan? The country’s onsen (hot springs) are an excellent way to relax and restore your health by heating yourself down to your bones. However, with over 3,000 onsen towns and 27,000 hot springs, it can be tough to determine the best place to go.
We’ve provided recommendations before on some of the nation’s best onsen, as well as some hidden gems around Japan. Now, the folks at JR Pass have used their own ranking system to come up with the best onsen to visit during the cold months.
JR Pass took 50 of the top-ranking onsen from Japan Guide and distilled them down further, using four criteria:
- Average admission price for onsen in the area
- The number of bath houses available
- The overall review score from Japan Guide
- Accessibility – a combination of public transport availability, transport times, and transport cost to rank the onsen you can most easily reach without private transportation
The company found the following onsen came out on top:
Hakone Hot Springs
Score: 9.7
With over 60 available public baths (sento; 銭湯) and ryokan (most open to the public) and its proximity to Tokyo, Hakone is the natural first-place winner. It has three times the locations of the next biggest onsen town. Some places charge a mere 500 yen (USD $3.24) to enter, making Hakone a screaming deal.
The area includes several beautiful onsen, such as Tenzan, which hosts a number of outdoor hot spring pools. There’s also Hakone Yuryo, which has gender-segregated general baths and private baths for families and couples.
Hakone is a mere two hours away from Tokyo. The most comfortable and scenic way to get there is via the Odakyu Romancecar. While there, be sure to enjoy Hakone’s other attractions, such as the Hakone Ropeway and a boat cruise on Lake Ashikono.
Nozawa Onsen Hot Springs
Score: 8.39
Located at the base of the Nozawa Ski Resort in popular ski destination Nagano Prefecture, Nozawa Onsen Hot Springs stands out mostly because access to its 13 public bath houses is free. (They request a donation if you can swing it.) Baths are open to the public from 5am to 11pm daily.
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If you’re skilling in Nozawa, obviously this is a no-brainer. Skiiers and other travelers can access the area through a combination of the Hokuriku Shinkansen and the Nozawa Onsen Liner bus. The trip from Tokyo takes around 3.25 hours.
Gero Onsen
Score: 8.37
As home to one of Japan’s traditional gasshou-zukuri villages made famous by Shirakawa-Go, Gero is both a great tourist attraction and a wonderful hot springs spot. The village has 10 thermal baths, as well as a number of foot baths located around town. Admission hovers around an affordable 700 yen ($4.53).
Travelers originating from Tokyo can get to Gero in around four hours using the Tokaido Shinkansen and the HR Hida line.
JRPass’s top ten onsen for the winter
Rounding out the top ten in JRPass’ ranking are:
Be sure to check an onsen’s rules on tattoos before going in. Also, be prepared to encounter waits in more popular destinations. Destinations like Ginzan Onsen (number 16 in JR Pass’s survey) are seeing massive crowds.
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