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Hokkein Onsen

Oita · 法華院温泉

Hokkein Onsen is a hot spring town in Oita, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 43.2°C, hot. It measures pH 6.9 — close to neutral. Officially the water is classed as sulfate spring and sulfur spring. 1 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Fukuokaabout 3 h

CarLast stretch on foot

JR PassCovers the train

1. Train to Bungo-Nakamura Station (JR)
2. Local bus, about 50 min, then on foot along a mountain trail

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

The water here

Sulfate spring 硫酸塩泉

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

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.

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.

Hot spring towns nearby

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

43.2°C

pH

6.9 (close to neutral)

Inns

1

Address in Japanese

大分県竹田市久住町

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Read more

Japanese Wikipedia