Photo: photo: Qurren (talk) Taken with Canon IXY 430F (Digital IXUS 245 HS) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Nashigi Onsen

Gunma · 梨木温泉

Nashigi Onsen is a hot spring town in Gunma, Japan. The water leaves the ground at 28°C, cool enough that the baths here are usually reheated. Officially the water is classed as chloride spring, bicarbonate spring and carbon dioxide spring.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 2 h

CarTaxi from the station

JR PassNot a JR line

Train to Motojuku Station
Taxi, about 8 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.

Chloride springBicarbonate springCarbon dioxide 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.

Bicarbonate spring 炭酸水素塩泉

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

Carbon dioxide spring 二酸化炭素泉

Fine bubbles cling to your skin. Rare in Japan, and usually cooler than other springs.

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 — Gunma Inns with a private bath — Gunma