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Kowakubi Onsen

Akita · 強首温泉郷

Kowakubi Onsen is a hot spring town in Akita, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 49.8°C, hot. It measures pH 6.9 — close to neutral. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring and iodine spring. Its sources put out around 200 litres a minute. 1 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 4 h

JR PassCovers the train

1. Train to Mineyoshikawa Station (JR)

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

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.

Iodine spring 含よう素泉

Contains iodine and often turns yellowish over time. Uncommon.

Things to see nearby

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

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

49.8°C

pH

6.9 (close to neutral)

Discharge

200 litres a minute

Inns

1

Address in Japanese

秋田県大仙市強首

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Where it is

39.5585, 140.2831 — open the map

Read more

Japanese Wikipedia