Yamagata Tsuruoka City
A serene bath experience with two spring sources and an open-air sauna
"Oku-Yunohama Onsen Tatsu no Yu" is a quiet ryokan nestled in a valley a little way from Yunohama Onsen in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture. Its greatest appeal is the luxury of enjoying two different spring sources, both 100% free-flowing. You can fully savor a chloride spring that warms the body to the core and the ryokan's own alkaline simple spring that leaves the skin feeling smooth, all in a variety of baths. In the open-air area, there is an authentic Finnish-style sauna, where you can spend blissful totonou time in an open space surrounded by lush greenery, together with a cold plunge bath made luxuriously with water from the two spring sources.
A sodium-calcium chloride spring using the shared source of Yunohama Onsen. It is highly effective at retaining heat and warming the body from within, making it less likely for you to feel chilled after bathing. The 100% free-flowing fresh spring water fills the indoor and open-air baths, as well as the many different tubs. While enjoying the rich minerals of the spring with your whole body, you can slowly soothe away the fatigue of everyday life.
An alkaline simple spring from the ryokan's own source, gushing from within the grounds. It has a gentle, smooth texture on the skin and is known as a beautifying bath that may help leave your skin looking radiant. With a calm bathing feel different from a chloride spring, alternating between the two offers even deeper relaxation. In the quiet, nature-filled surroundings, you can fully enjoy the blessings of this pure spring water.
An authentic Finnish-style sauna installed in the open-air area. The wood-toned interior is filled with powerful heat, yet you can look out at the greenery through the windows and enjoy a sauna bath with a sense of openness. In this quiet setting, it is a luxurious space where you can slowly work up a sweat and feel a sense of unity with nature.
An exceptionally gentle cold plunge bath on the skin, using two spring sources in luxury. After the sauna, the warm body is softly wrapped in mellow water containing hot spring minerals. With just the right coolness, you can soak slowly and enjoy a deep refreshing feeling that seems to seep all the way to the core of your body. It is a luxurious cooling-down experience unique to an onsen ryokan.
Irregular Holidays
Yamagata
A hotel floating above the rice fields, featuring a natural hot spring fed directly from the source and designer saunas
Yamagata
A rustic open-air bath where you can feel Zao's strongest acidic milky-white hot spring and the mountain breeze
Yamagata
Supreme 100% free-flowing cloudy hot spring with the mountain ranges of Zao and the scent of sulfur
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.
