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Shionosawa Onsen

Gunma · 塩ノ沢温泉

Shionosawa Onsen is a hot spring town in Gunma, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 11.6°C, cool enough that the baths here are usually reheated. It measures pH 6.2 — close to neutral. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring, bicarbonate spring and iron spring.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 2½ h

CarTaxi from the station

JR PassNot a JR line

1. Train to Shimonita Station
2. Taxi, about 40 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.

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.

Bicarbonate spring 炭酸水素塩泉

Smooth, slightly slippery water. Often nicknamed bihada-no-yu, the water for beautiful skin.

Iron spring 含鉄泉

Turns reddish brown as the iron meets air. The water is clear at the source.

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.

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

11.6°C

pH

6.2 (close to neutral)

Address in Japanese

群馬県多野郡上野村

Figures from the town's Japanese Wikipedia article.

Read more

Japanese Wikipedia

Other towns in Gunma