Photo: Komoro no kaze · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Hishino Onsen

Nagano · 菱野温泉

Hishino Onsen is a hot spring town in Nagano, Japan. Officially the water is classed as bicarbonate spring and iron spring. 2 inns take visitors here.

Getting there

From Tokyoabout 2 h

From Kyoto / Osakaabout 3 h

CarNot needed

JR PassCovers the train

Train to Komoro Station (JR)
Many inns send a car to the station — ask when you book

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 springIron 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.

Iron spring 含鉄泉

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

More photographs

From Wikimedia Commons. Tap a photo for the photographer and licence.

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 — Nagano Inns with a private bath — Nagano