Photo: Quercus acuta · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Hakone Onsen

Kanagawa · 塔ノ沢温泉

Hakone Onsen is a hot spring town in Kanagawa, Japan. Officially the water is classed as simple spring, chloride spring, bicarbonate spring, sulfate spring and sulfur spring.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 1 h

From Kyoto / Osakaabout 2½ h

JR PassNot a JR line

Train to Hakone-Yumoto Station

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

Simple springChloride springBicarbonate springSulfate springSulfur spring

The water here

Simple spring 単純温泉

Mild and low in dissolved minerals. Usually clear and gentle on the skin, which is why these baths are often recommended for first-timers.

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.

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.

Rooms with an open-air bath — Hakone Town Inns with a private bath — Hakone Town