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Photo: Akiyoshi's Room · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Shionoha Onsen

Nara · 入之波温泉

Shionoha Onsen is a hot spring town in Nara, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 39°C, comfortably warm. It measures pH 6.6 — close to neutral. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring and bicarbonate spring. Its sources put out around 500 litres a minute. 1 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Kyoto / Osakaabout 2 h

CarTaxi from the station

JR PassNot a JR line

1. Train to Yamato-Kamiichi Station
2. Local bus, about 15 min, then a short taxi ride

Fly into Kansai (KIX) or Itami. Times are rough estimates worked out from station locations, not a timetable — check the exact route on Google Maps.

The water here

Chloride spring 塩化物泉

Salty water. The salt leaves a thin film on the skin, so you stay warm well after leaving the bath.

Bicarbonate spring 炭酸水素塩泉

Smooth, slightly slippery water. Often nicknamed bihada-no-yu, the water for beautiful skin.

More photographs

From Wikimedia Commons. Tap a photo for the photographer and licence.

With tattoos

Many public baths still turn away visible tattoos, and the rule is set by each bath, not by the town. The reliable way round it is to bathe privately: a room with its own open-air bath, or an inn with a private bath you can book for yourselves.

More on tattoos and onsen

Where to stay

Opens Rakuten Travel, which lists inns in English. Onsen Guide earns a commission if you book through these links, at no extra cost to you.

Similar water elsewhere

Towns further away with the same kind of water — useful if this one is hard to reach or fully booked.

The numbers

Water temperature

39°C

pH

6.6 (close to neutral)

Discharge

500 litres a minute

Inns

1

Address in Japanese

奈良県吉野郡川上村

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Read more

Japanese Wikipedia

Other towns in Nara