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Photo: 掬茶 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Tazawako-Kōgen Onsenkyō

Akita · 田沢湖高原温泉郷

Tazawako-Kōgen Onsenkyō is a hot spring town in Akita, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 71°C, hot. Officially the water is classed as bicarbonate spring, sulfate spring and sulfur spring. Its sources put out around 575 litres a minute. 6 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 4 h
CarNot needed
JR PassCovers the train
  1. Train to Tazawako Station (JR)
  2. Local bus, about 30 min

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

Bicarbonate springSulfate springSulfur spring

The water here

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.

Things to see nearby

Akita-KomagatakeMountain · 4.3 km
Tazawako Ski AreaSki area · 2.2 km
Gozanoishi ShrineShrine · 9.9 km
Shizukuishi Ski ResortSki area · 12.7 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.

Inns with a private bath — Akita

More on tattoos and onsen

Where to stay

Onsen inns — Semboku 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

Mizusawa OnsenkyōAkita · 水沢温泉郷2.4 km south
Sulfur spring
Nyuto Spa ResortAkita · 乳頭温泉郷2.8 km northeast
Chloride spring+4
Tsurunoyu OnsenAkita · 鶴の湯温泉3.3 km northeast
Chloride spring+2
Taenoyu OnsenAkita · 妙乃湯温泉4.1 km northeast
Sulfate spring
Ōbuka OnsenAkita · 大釜温泉4.2 km northeast
Acidic spring
Magoroku OnsenAkita · 孫六温泉4.4 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.

Kumanoyu OnsenNagano · 熊の湯温泉Also sulfur and sulfate
Bicarbonate spring+2
Namegawa OnsenYamagata · 滑川温泉Also sulfur and sulfate
Bicarbonate spring+2
Kawayu Onsen (Hokkaido)Hokkaido · 川湯温泉Also sulfur and sulfate
Bicarbonate spring+3
Kujūkōgen OnsenOita · 久住高原温泉Also sulfur and sulfate
Bicarbonate spring+2
Kōtoku OnsenTochigi · 光徳温泉Also sulfur and sulfate
Chloride spring+3
Akakura OnsenNiigata · 赤倉温泉Also sulfate and bicarbonate
Bicarbonate springSulfate spring

The numbers

Water temperature
71°C
Discharge
575 litres a minute
Inns
6
Address in Japanese
秋田県仙北市

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Where it is

39.7800, 140.7600 — 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.