Senshunraku Onsen is a hot spring town in Yamaguchi, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 18.5°C, cool enough that the baths here are usually reheated. It measures pH 7.55 — mildly alkaline, the slippery kind. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring and sulfur spring.
Getting there
From Kyoto / Osakaabout 3½ h
CarTaxi from the station
JR PassCovers the train
Train to Higashi-Hagi Station (JR)
Taxi, about 10 min
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.
Chloride springSulfur spring
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.
Sulfur spring 硫黄泉
The classic rotten-egg smell and milky white water. It can tarnish silver jewellery, so take it off.
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.