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Yamanobe Onsen

Yamagata · 山辺温泉

Yamanobe Onsen is a hot spring town in Yamagata, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 41–45°C, hot. It measures pH 7–8.2 — close to neutral. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring. Its sources put out around 60 litres a minute.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 3 h
CarNot needed
JR PassCovers the train
  1. Train to Uzen-Yamabe Station (JR)
  2. A short walk

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

Chloride 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.

Things to see nearby

Yamagata CastleCastle · 5.4 km
Yamagata Museum of ArtArt museum · 5.7 km
Chōkai Gassan Ryōsho-guShrine · 5.5 km
Yamagata Zao Onsen Ski ResortSki area · 16.2 km
Yamagata Gokoku ShrineShrine · 6.6 km
Senshō-ji TempleTemple · 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.

Rooms with an open-air bath — Yamagata

More on tattoos and onsen

Where to stay

Onsen inns — Yamagata

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

Kurosawa OnsenYamagata · 黒沢温泉10.1 km south
Sulfate spring
Ringo OnsenYamagata · りんご温泉10.3 km west
Chloride spring
Kaminoyama OnsenYamagata · 上山温泉12.5 km south
Chloride springSulfate spring
Tendō OnsenYamagata · 天童温泉12.9 km northeast
Sulfate spring
Zaō OnsenYamagata · 蔵王温泉16.4 km southeast
Chloride spring+4
Yanagawa OnsenYamagata · 柳川温泉21.3 km northwest
Chloride spring+2

Similar water elsewhere

Towns further away with the same kind of water — useful if this one is hard to reach or fully booked.

Lake Toya Hot SpringHokkaido · 洞爺湖温泉Also chloride, similar pH
Chloride spring
Akayu OnsenNiigata · 赤湯温泉Also chloride, similar pH
Chloride spring
Uttō OnsenAkita · 打当温泉Also chloride, similar pH
Chloride spring
KaizuonsensorafunenoyuGifu · 海津温泉Also chloride, similar pH
Chloride spring
Ryūkyū OnsenOkinawa · 琉球温泉Also chloride, similar pH
Chloride spring
Sakurano OnsenHokkaido · 桜野温泉Also chloride, similar pH
Chloride spring

The numbers

Water temperature
41–45°C
pH
7–8.2 (close to neutral)
Discharge
60 litres a minute
Address in Japanese
山形県東村山郡山辺町大塚近江801番地

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Where it is

38.2794, 140.2748 — 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.