In your opinion what is the best onsen and why?
Does it have a outdoor bath with views? Does it have the little fish? Are tatoos OK? Or what else seperates it from the others?
I've always been a fan of the one in Kurama. Take the hike up there, get all sweaty and gross, relax in the onsen, then take the public transit back down to Kyoto. A nice day trip.
Naruko in Miyagi is also really nice. They have a lot of little onsens, some with outdoor baths, some with private tubs, etc. Even the ryokan we stayed in had a natural hot spring in its basement. http://www.jnto.go.jp/tourism/en/16.html
if you're in hokkaido, noboribetsu onsen near sapporo is the best i've been to, hands down. there are about 7 indoor and 4 outdoor baths. the indoor vary in mineral content and temperature, and are laid out in this huge room that sort of makes you feel like roman royalty. and the outdoor baths are really picturesque, especially when the snow is falling on the pines. oh, and the shampoo/rinse/body soaps are amazing and sell on sephora.com for around $40 apiece.
in kansai, kinosaki onsen has some lovely baths and is just a nice town in general for a day trip.
i also just spent a weekend in hakone and while i didn't go to any onsen besides the one at our hotel, there are a ton of public ones as well.
Hokkaido has Noboribetsu 登別 which is a great town to visit - It has a volcano with the remains of city, numourus baths, great food and atmosphere. Highly recomended.
Another one in Hokkaido is Jozankei Onsen 定山渓温泉 - Near the cities of Sapporo and Otaru. A bit more convient than Noboribetsu.
In Kansai I enjoyed Arima Onsen 有馬温泉 Its very old and famous. Located in Hyogo. A bit hard to get to buy Hankyuu (or Keihan, I cant remember) always has packages for transportation and entry into Arima Onsen at a good rate.
In Kyushu there is Ibusuki Onsen 指宿温泉。Located by Kagoshima city the city has so much natural onsen water that the residents in the city all have special taps for pure onsen water to fill home baths. As well this onsen has Sand Baths. They burry you in sand and the steam from the underground volcano nearly cooks you alive.
And for the original posters question, I think great food, great view, and great water makes a great onsen.
The best one close by in my opinion is Sagano Onsen in Kyoto. Closer and cheaper than Kurama, the view isn't as nice (especially in the winter), but the facilities are second to none.
Unfortunately there is no English page, but here is their site.
Where is the Sagano Onsen for those like me who can't understand the Japanese? :-) Ta
Here's the link to the google map. Sagano onsen is the green building in the map. To get there you take the #5 bus down Sanjo towards Arashiyama. I forget the name of the bus stop, but it's almost near the end of the line.
http://maps.google.ca/?ie=UTF8&ll=35.01394,135.693238&spn=0.001612,0.003203&z=18
Just found out that Agarianse onesn in Ogoto near Otsu has the little Dr. Fish.
Am heading there this Sunday!
ねねの湯 in Kyoto seems pretty awesome too... haven't had time to go there yet though *shakes fists at the sky*
http://www.resort-sento.com/guide/index.html
btw the website says no tattoos
Agarianse Onsen is the best onsen I found in shiga :
http://eslwell.com/map/spa-resort-agaryanse
...but, bateser, what is the little Dr. Fish?
Supprised no one has mentioned Spa World in Osaka. If you dont mind the crowds, it is rather nice and open 24H.
http://www.spaworld.co.jp/
They're these little minnows that nibble on the dead skin on your feet. If you've ever been swimming in a creek or watering hole, I'm sure you've experienced the nips of little fish on your toes. Same concept here except you're paying for it ;)
Went to Agarianse in Otsu the other week and even though we had our tattoos covered up they asked us to leave. You couldn't even see the tattoos through the bandage?? If we left straight away we got our money back. What a bummer. They even say, temporary tattoos and stickers are a no go. They said its a nationwide rule which we pointed out to them that it is not. She got snotty so we just took the money and left. So if you have a tattoo or even a birthmark probably best not to go to that onsen which is nextdoor to one of the biggest red light districts in Japan.
We drove into Silk Road to have a look! As you do!! And took loads of pictures! When they saw 3 women in the car they laughed. We stopped and asked is this the way to the onsen? It got them laughing even more. Made up for getting thrown out of the onsen!
Am going to one in Mie with some teachers tonight and they have a farm where i think we are milking cows in the morning. Not sure if it has the Dr fish though?? Will have to make do with my pumice stone. Will let you know how we get on.
Wow, that's terrible, but good to know! I really don't get the whole tattoo thing at some of these onsen.
That is terrible.
One of my friends in Kobe also got ejected from the Onsen there for having a small tattoo. You'd think they might have overlooked it as he clearly wasn't Yakuza. But I guess they don't want to say "No Yakuza" !! Which I believe is what they actually mean? Is there any other reason?
There is a new onsen opening up 5 minutes from my school in Eigenji. Here's the website, no English though.
A little expensive at 1,300 on weekdays, 1,500 on the weekend, but it's so close, I'll probably end up making monthly visits. If they have an outdoor area it should be exceptionally nice in the fall and winter.
Also as an aside, when I went to Sagano Onsen one of my friends had tattoos. I e-mailed them and their answer was that as long as they're covered up it's ok. But, if another customer complains to a staff member about it, then they may ask you to leave. In my friends case he had a massive tape job on his left shoulder and on both legs and while there were some stares no one said anything.
Where did you go in Mie to milk cows and go in an onsen? Really, that sounds awesome...
Sounds like Moku Moku Farm to me. I went once, almost 4 years ago. I hear they also have dancing pigs, but a group of us went at night, so none of those shenanigans were going on. It was a nice onsen, as I remember. I'd go again, if I had a car/or someone to take me :
A site in English about it : http://welcome.kankomie.or.jp/english/search/spot.php?act=dtl&id=10
and the Japanese site: http://www.moku-moku.com/
Yep, it was moku moku farm. The dancing pigs were great. THey have free run of the place so watch your bags!
They also have an EXTREMELY cheap veggie market with fresh tofu. THere are various shops with meats, fresh cakes, local pottery, etc etc. And 1 shop devoted to pigs and pig accessories. We didn't get to go to the brewery or taste the beer, but it looked good. Also, we didn't quite get up in time for the milking of the cows and we didn't get there in time for the onsen (closes at 9).
It was great fun and we had a lovely relaxing time. One thing, the rooms had a little mould but the futons were very good. All rooms have aircon and heating.
There is a gelato bar as well and i tried tomato gelato. Really bizarre taste. THey sell fresh milk and fresh milk gelato. Wow! beats kyushoku milk anyday!
Would i go again............if i was staying in Japan, yes! I would go on an empty stomach straight to the BBQ house!
The search for Dr. Fish continues!
so it says you can get to Moku Moku by bus, but you also mentioned you need to drive there. Can we get there by bus and train?
I would really like to go...
Public transportation in Mie is not exactly known for efficiency and ease of use. You can take the trains and buses, but it's kind of a pain. Plus, there's tons of neat things to see and do in Mie you can't access with public transportation. I would recommend renting a car if one of you have an international license.
at Moku Moku Farm, are there accomodations? We viewed the website but couldnt find any places to stay. Suggestions? My husband and I would love to go this weekend but want to see if we can stay overnight. Thanks!
yeah, they have these igloo shaped villas beside the farm. I think it is 6,000 per person? that includes onsen and breakfast. you can email them and check availability
Agaryanse is very good.
to have a look: http://www.agaryanse.co.jp/navi/ , click on the arrows.
Get to Yamashina, change to the Kosei line to Ogoto Onsen station. There's a free shuttle bus to/from the station, once/twice an hour, check the timetable here http://www.agaryanse.co.jp/access/ (the blue link, first column are buses to the Onsen from Ogoto, third colum are buses back to Ogoto)
when you get to the onsen, enter, take off your shoes, put them in a locker - the lockers are on the left, and men/women are in separate sections, marked with blue/pink signs. close the locker, take the key / bracelet thingy to the cashier, pay the basic entrance fee and they'll match a second locker inside the onsen to your key/bracelet - for your clothes and stuff. Everything you buy inside the onsen from now on (lunch, drinks, haircut, whatevs) is charged on that key, and you'll pay all those extras when you leave. They'll also make you choose a yukata you like, and give you 2 towels (face + bath).
Remember you're not allowed to bring food / drinks inside, and you're not allowed in if you're tattoed. that said, emma has been asked to leave, my friend went twice and no one noticed her wrist tatto. I guess it's up to you to risk it, worse case scenario = you'll be asked to leave.
The onsen has two floors:
1st: men/women onsen, restaurants, massage corner, etc
I recommend the soba shop - very good tenzaru lunch set.
2nd: relax lounges, massage chairs, library etc.
Unfortunately the relax areas fill up quickly. Try to grab a massage/lounge chair, it's very likely you'll feel like taking a nap at some point :o)
Inside the onsen: a very good variety of pools with different kinds of water at different temperatures or jacuzzi, wide washing area, 2 saunas, open air large bath and resting spaces, a drink bar, etc. Shampoo, conditioner, soap, lotions, hairdryer, brushes, etc are all provided.
Very relaxing, and it didn't feel overcrowded even if there were quite a lot of customers.
My faves: salt sauna and jacuzzi pools. In the salt sauna, you sweat your life away and exfoliate the skin with marine salt.
About the Doctor Fishes: *they* eat *you* alive, instead of the other way around as it's common here ;o) I found it only mildly interesting, but there was a queue to try them.
Nice staff, easy to get to, long opening hours (10am to 1 am). Price is 1,350円 on weekdays, 1,550on sat. /sun. You'll probably spend another 1500 yen or so for lunch and a couple of drinks.
I believe the staff doesn't speak english, and all the signs are in japanese only. Just do as the others do and you should be fine!
if you're in hokkaido, noboribetsu onsen near sapporo is the best i've been to, hands down. there are about 7 indoor and 4 outdoor baths. the indoor vary in mineral content and temperature, and are laid out in this huge room that sort of makes you feel like roman royalty. and the outdoor baths are really picturesque, especially when the snow is falling on the pines. oh, and the shampoo/rinse/body soaps are amazing and sell on sephora.com for around $40 apiece.
in kansai, kinosaki onsen has some lovely baths and is just a nice town in general for a day trip.
i also just spent a weekend in hakone and while i didn't go to any onsen besides the one at our hotel, there are a ton of public ones as well.
I've always been a fan of the one in Kurama. Take the hike up there, get all sweaty and gross, relax in the onsen, then take the public transit back down to Kyoto. A nice day trip.
Naruko in Miyagi is also really nice. They have a lot of little onsens, some with outdoor baths, some with private tubs, etc. Even the ryokan we stayed in had a natural hot spring in its basement. http://www.jnto.go.jp/tourism/en/16.html