Sōzukyō Onsen
Sōzukyō Onsen is a hot spring town in Yamaguchi, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 21°C, cool enough that the baths here are usually reheated. It measures pH 7.7 — mildly alkaline, the slippery kind. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring, bicarbonate spring and radioactive spring. Its sources put out around 125 litres a minute.
Getting there
- Train to Nishikichō Station
- A short walk
The water here
Chloride spring
Salty water. The salt leaves a thin film on the skin, so you stay warm well after leaving the bath.
Bicarbonate spring
Smooth, slightly slippery water. Often nicknamed bihada-no-yu, the water for beautiful skin.
Radioactive spring
Contains trace radon that leaves the water quickly. Also called radium or radon springs.
Things to see nearby
Places from Wikidata, photographs from Wikimedia Commons. Distances are in a straight line from the town.
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.
Where to stay
Hot spring towns nearby
Similar water elsewhere
The numbers
- Water temperature
- 21°C
- pH
- 7.7 (mildly alkaline)
- Discharge
- 125 litres a minute
- Address in Japanese
- 山口県岩国市錦町深川3132 {{Location map many | Japan Yamaguchi Prefecture | relief = 1 | c
Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.
Where it is
34.3137, 131.9896 — open the map
Read more
Planning a first soak? Read how an onsen stay works, and what to do if you have tattoos.