Photo: User:欅 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Noboribetsu Onsen

Hokkaido · 登別温泉

Noboribetsu Onsen is a hot spring town in Hokkaido, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 45–90°C, hot enough that it has to be cooled before anyone can get in. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring, bicarbonate spring, sulfate spring, iron spring, sulfur spring and radioactive spring. Its sources put out around 1 litres a minute. 14 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Sapporoabout 1½ h

JR PassCovers the train

Train to Noboribetsu Station (JR)

Fly into New Chitose. Times are rough estimates worked out from station locations, not a timetable — check the exact route on Google Maps.

Chloride springBicarbonate springSulfate springIron springSulfur springRadioactive 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.

Bicarbonate spring 炭酸水素塩泉

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

Sulfate spring 硫酸塩泉

Clear water with a faintly bitter taste. Known for holding heat.

Iron spring 含鉄泉

Turns reddish brown as the iron meets air. The water is clear at the source.

Sulfur spring 硫黄泉

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

Radioactive spring 放射能泉

Contains trace radon that leaves the water quickly. Also called radium or radon springs.

More photographs

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

Things to see nearby

Raiba-dakeMountain · 6 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.

Rooms with an open-air bath — Hokkaido Inns with a private bath — Hokkaido