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Iya Onsen

Tokushima · 祖谷温泉

Iya Onsen is a hot spring town in Tokushima, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 38°C, comfortably warm. It measures pH 9.1 — strongly alkaline. Officially the water is classed as sulfur spring. 1 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Kyoto / Osakaabout 4 h
CarNot needed
JR PassCovers the train
  1. Train to Awa-Ikeda Station (JR)
  2. Local bus, about 50 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.

Sulfur spring

The water here

Sulfur spring 硫黄泉

The classic rotten-egg smell and milky white water. It can tarnish silver jewellery, so take it off.

More photographs

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

Things to see nearby

Mount Kunimi (Tokushima)Mountain · 3.4 km
Biwa FallsWaterfall · 5.4 km
Hakuchi CastleCastle · 11 km
Chōfuku-ji TempleTemple · 11 km
Awa-Ikeda Udatsu House and Tabacco MuseumMuseum · 12 km

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.

More on tattoos and onsen

Where to stay

Onsen inns — Miyoshi City

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.

Hot spring towns nearby

Shin'iya OnsenTokushima · 新祖谷温泉4.7 km south
Sulfur spring
Ōboke OnsenTokushima · 大歩危温泉6.8 km southwest
Simple spring
Momiji OnsenTokushima · 紅葉温泉21.8 km northeast
Bicarbonate spring
Mikado OnsenKagawa · 美霞洞温泉26.1 km northeast
Sulfur spring
Konpira OnsenkyōKagawa · こんぴら温泉郷29.7 km north
Chloride spring
Shionoe OnsenKagawa · 塩江温泉36.9 km northeast
Sulfur spring

Similar water elsewhere

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

Bukō OnsenSaitama · 武甲温泉Also sulfur, similar pH
Sulfur spring
Shinobu OnsenFukushima · 信夫温泉Also sulfur, similar pH
Sulfur spring
Umegashima OnsenShizuoka · 梅ヶ島温泉Also sulfur, similar pH
Sulfur spring
Tsurugatonneru OnsenFukui · 敦賀トンネル温泉Also sulfur, similar pH
Sulfur spring
Osōshi OnsenHokkaido · オソウシ温泉Also sulfur, similar pH
Sulfur spring
Shikibidani OnsenTokushima · 四季美谷温泉Also sulfur, similar pH
Sulfur spring

The numbers

Water temperature
38°C
pH
9.1 (strongly alkaline)
Inns
1
Address in Japanese
徳島県三好市池田町松尾松本

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Where it is

33.9214, 133.8175 — open the map

Read more

Japanese Wikipedia

Planning a first soak? Read how an onsen stay works, and what to do if you have tattoos.