Tochigi Tochigi City
A natural hot spring with free-flowing source water that leaves your skin smooth, and a steam-filled sauna
"Tochigi Onsen Yuraku no Sato" is a super sento in Tochigi City, Tochigi Prefecture. Its bicarbonate spring water, bubbling up from deep underground, is known as a bath that gently softens the skin, and you can feel the difference in how your fingers glide the moment you lower yourself into it. In the outdoor area, there are free-flowing baths that pour in the source water as it is, as well as a rock-lined bath, a reclining bath overlooking the sky, and a napping bath paved with fine stones, allowing you to enjoy the water for a long time while changing your posture. In the sauna room, water is poured onto the heated stones at regular times, sending waves of steam and heat surging upward all at once. The indoor baths also include a high-concentration carbonated spring whose bubbles cling to the skin, along with four tubs with different jet strengths, so the day slips away just by moving between the hot water and the sweat.

A natural hot spring flowing into both the outdoor and indoor baths. The bicarbonate spring water rising from deep underground gently loosens the surface of the skin, and you can feel its smoothness increase as you stroke your body in the water. In one corner of the outdoor area, there is a free-flowing bath that pours in the source water just as it is, letting you relax in freshly drawn water. With a rock-lined bath, a reclining bath overlooking the sky, and a napping bath paved with fine stones, you can move through different positions and enjoy the water to your heart's content.

A high-concentration carbonated spring set in the indoor bath. As you sit quietly in the lukewarm water, tiny bubbles cling to your skin one after another, and before long your whole body takes on a faint blush. Even though the water does not feel hot, warmth rises from within, and you can feel your blood circulating all the way to your fingertips. Because it warms you without placing strain on your body, it is also a pleasant place to catch your breath between sauna sessions and baths.

At scheduled times, water is poured onto the heated sauna stones, and waves of steam and heat rise with a hiss in this löyly sauna. The air that had been dry just moments before instantly gains thickness, and the heat spreads across your skin as if crawling over it. By the time the brief burst of heat subsides, sweat is pouring from your whole body, carrying away the fatigue that had settled deep inside you. Even the wait for the next session feels pleasant.

A cold plunge bath that quietly cools the heat raised in the sauna. As you slowly lower your body, starting with your hands and feet farthest from your heart, the heat ebbs away like a receding tide, leaving only a clear, refreshing film on the surface of your skin. Once your breathing settles, stepping out into the outdoor area lets the air gently brush over your damp skin and ease the tension from your shoulders. The time spent looking up at the sky and taking a breath deepens the lingering afterglow.
Open Year-Round
Entry is strictly prohibited for anyone with tattoos, body art, or tattoo stickers.

Tochigi
A large spa with an authentic scorching-hot sauna and a natural chloride hot spring

Tochigi
Premium natural hot springs with free-flowing source water and private open-air baths in every room

Tochigi
A hot spring inn where you can unwind in superb natural spring water from a 100% privately sourced free-flowing spring and abundant nature
JAPAN'S FINEST ONSEN & SAUNA
The Finest Onsen & Sauna in Japan
61 SELECTIONS
Most of what we surveyed never even made it onto this site. This book is a further cut from what did. Our editor bathed in every onsen and sauna in it, and wrote only what they confirmed on the ground.