Sukayu Onsen — photo: ゆ＾ω＾び · CC BY-SA 2.1 jp · Wikimedia Commons
The 3 best onsen in Aomori
If you want one onsen in Aomori, the three to look at are Sukayu, Asamushi and Komaki. Of the 53 onsen in Aomori Prefecture in our data, they are the three best known, and our travel data marks all three as reachable without a car. They are also three very different trips: a mountain inn with one huge wooden bath, a seaside town on the train line out of Aomori, and a spring a short walk from a station on the way between Hachinohe and Aomori.
Why these three, in one paragraph
We did not pick by taste. We took every onsen in our data in Aomori Prefecture, kept the ones our travel data says you can reach by train and a local bus or a short walk, and ranked them by how often each place's Wikipedia article is read, as a measure of how established a place is. As it happens, the three most-read in the whole prefecture all pass the no-car test, so the test did not change the order. The full method, with numbers, is at the end.
Aomori in numbers: a lot of hot water
Aomori is at the northern tip of Honshu, and it is hot-spring country. Of the 53 onsen in our data, 42 have a source temperature on record, and 32 of those reach 42 °C, which means the water can go into the bath without heating. Ten are listed as sulfur springs. Most of the well-known places are in two groups: the Hakkōda mountains and Lake Towada south of Aomori city, and the Tsugaru side around Hirosaki. The Shimokita peninsula in the north-east has a few more, a long way from anywhere.
The Tohoku Shinkansen ends at Shin-Aomori. From there, local JR lines and the 青い森鉄道 (Aoimori Railway) do most of the work. The Aoimori Railway is not a JR line, so check whether your rail pass covers it before you rely on it.
1. Sukayu: the thousand-person bath
Why it made it. Sukayu Onsen is the most-read onsen in Aomori, at 1,145 in our count. Our travel data puts it at about 5 hours from Tokyo, with the JR Pass covering the train to Aomori.
The place. Not a town but a single large old inn, high in the Hakkōda mountains, 22.1 km in a straight line south of Aomori Station. It is one of the snowiest inhabited places in Japan. It is known for the 千人風呂 (sennin-buro), the "thousand-person bath": one big hall built of hiba wood, with several pools. Mount Kushigamine is 5.2 km away and Matsumi Falls 11.2 km. Several small onsen are close by: Arakawa 0.5 km, Jōgakura 1.2 km and Yachi 6.6 km.
The water. Our records list five water types: chloride, sulfate, iron, acidic and sulfur. We have no temperature or pH on record for it. Keep the water away from your eyes, and rinse with plain water afterwards if your skin feels tight.
Getting there. A JR bus from Aomori Station toward Lake Towada. Our sources give 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes depending on the bus, and other listings say a little over an hour, so look at the current timetable. In winter the mountain road can be restricted after heavy snow.
Good for: the classic Aomori bath, deep snow, a night in the mountains. Watch out for: the big bath is mixed. Several listings mention a women-only hour in the morning and a separate small bath for men and women; check the current hours with the inn. If mixed bathing is new to you, read mixed bathing in Japan first.
2. Asamushi: the easy one, by the sea
Why it made it. Asamushi Onsen is a close second at 1,092. It is the closest of the three to Aomori city, 12.6 km in a straight line, and the easiest to fit into a trip.
The place. A real onsen town, with 10 inns on our record, on the shore of Mutsu Bay east of Aomori. About 166,000 people a year come to bathe, in our records. The Munakata Shikō Memorial Museum of Art is 11.5 km away, back in the city.
The water. Recorded at 63 °C and listed as chloride and sulfate: slightly salty, clear water that keeps you warm for a long time after the bath. It comes out of the ground hotter than any bath you will sit in, so it is cooled, not heated.
Getting there. The Aoimori Railway to 浅虫温泉 (Asamushi-Onsen Station), about 20 minutes from Aomori, then a walk of 5 to 15 minutes depending on the inn. Our travel data puts it at about 4 hours from Tokyo, and marks the line as not JR.
Good for: arriving late, a first onsen, one night before or after Aomori city. Watch out for: it is a resort town on a main road, not an old lane of wooden inns.
3. Komaki: the alkaline spring by Misawa Station
Why it made it. Komaki Onsen is third at 705, well clear of the next place, Owani, at 601.
The place. On the Pacific side, in Misawa, between Hachinohe and Aomori. It is not an old town street: today it is mostly one large resort hotel in wide grounds, with a separate older bathhouse that takes day visitors. If you want an onsen night with a lot laid on, this is the one of the three that does that.
The water. Recorded at 43.4 °C and pH 9.1, and listed as a simple spring. Simple means low in minerals; at that pH it is strongly alkaline, so it feels smooth on the skin. Bath floors get slippery.
Getting there. The Aoimori Railway to 三沢 (Misawa Station), then a short walk; listings give 5 or 10 minutes. Our travel data puts it at about 4 hours from Tokyo, and marks the line as not JR.
Good for: an easy stop on the way north from Hachinohe, alkaline water, a resort stay. Watch out for: it is one big complex, so there is no onsen town to walk round.
Which of the three?
- Only one night, and you are in Aomori city: Asamushi, 20 minutes away.
- The famous bath and the snow: Sukayu. Plan around the bus, and arrive before dark in winter.
- Coming up the Shinkansen from Tokyo: Komaki is on the line between Hachinohe and Aomori.
- Two in one trip: Asamushi and Sukayu are both reached from Aomori Station, one by train and one by bus.
The places that only just missed
Owani (601) would have been fourth. It is a short walk from 大鰐温泉 (Ōwani-Onsen Station) on the JR Ōu Line, so the JR Pass covers it, recorded at 60 °C, chloride and sulfate. Hirosaki Castle is 13.4 km away, which makes it the one to pick if you are staying in Hirosaki.
Furofushi (黄金崎不老不死温泉, 331) is a single inn on the Sea of Japan coast whose open-air bath sits on the rocks above the waves. Recorded at 49 °C, pH 6.2 to 6.7, chloride and iron. It is about 15 minutes on foot from Henashi Station on the JR Gonō Line, a slow and scenic line with few trains, so it is a long day from Aomori.
Osorezan (306) is a temple on a volcanic lake in the Shimokita peninsula, with small bath huts in the precinct, recorded at 70 to 90 °C and pH 1.89 to 2.71. It is about 40 minutes by local bus from Shimokita Station and is open only part of the year. Our guide to Tohoku has more on it, and on Shimofuro (281) at the tip of the peninsula.
How we picked these three
- Starting pool: all 53 onsen in our data in Aomori Prefecture, out of 1,538 in Japan.
- No car needed: we kept the places our travel data marks as reached by train and a local bus or a short walk. Ten Aomori places appear on our onsen without a car list: Asamushi, Sukayu, Komaki, Owani, Osorezan, Furofushi, Shimofuro, Tsuta, Yachi and Dake.
- Known: we ranked them by how often each place's Wikipedia article is read. Sukayu 1,145, Asamushi 1,092, Komaki 705, then Owani 601, Furofushi 331 and Osorezan 306. The top three in the whole prefecture all passed the no-car test.
- Not used: views, inn quality, price, tattoo policy, food or private baths. We have no data that ranks those fairly, so we did not pretend to.
- About the water: 42 of the 53 have a temperature on record and 32 reach 42 °C. Asamushi (63 °C) and Komaki (43.4 °C) are among them; Sukayu has no temperature on record. The water did not decide the ranking.
- Distances are in a straight line from Aomori Station; travel times are rough estimates from our data and listings, not a timetable. Check the current route before you go.
For every onsen you can reach by public transport, see onsen you can reach without a car and onsen on the JR Pass. For the rest of the region, see onsen in Tohoku, Nyūtō and Ginzan. Other prefecture picks: Gunma, Chiba, Nara and Okayama. Going in winter? See onsen by season. New to this? Start with how an onsen stay actually works and onsen etiquette. Tattooed? Read going to an onsen with tattoos before you book.