Ishikawa Nanao City
A hot spring inn where you can enjoy large baths overlooking Nanao Bay and guest room open-air baths
"Shirasagi no Yu Noto Kaishu" is a hot spring inn in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture. Drawing on four source springs from Wakura Onsen, which has been open for 1,200 years, the inn itself faces Nanao Bay like a vessel traveling across the sea. Its two large bath areas, each with a different atmosphere, alternate for men and women, and when you sink into the open-air bath, the surface of the water and the sea stretch out as one continuous expanse. It is equipped with a dry sauna, a steam sauna, and a cold plunge bath, allowing you to soothe your heat while feeling the sea breeze. The three private open-air baths, each with a different setting in hinoki cypress, rock, and ceramic, are available on a first-come, first-served basis without reservation, and the terraces of the guest rooms except for the Japanese-style double rooms feature natural hot spring open-air baths made of hinoki cypress. The hotel also states that, as it is still in the process of recovering from the Noto Peninsula earthquake, it may not be able to provide the same services as before the disaster, and that the photos shown were taken before the earthquake.

A large public bath filled with sodium-calcium chloride spring water drawn from the Wakura Onsen source. The salt-containing water wraps your skin in a thin film of warmth, and even after you get out, the heat lingers deep in your body. Step out from the indoor bath into the open air, and Nanao Bay stretches out before you, with the surface of the water and the sea melting together as one. The two bathing areas, each with a different atmosphere, alternate for men and women, allowing you to enjoy both during your stay. The pure Japanese-style bath area also has a foot bath where you can sit and warm yourself between soaks.

Three private open-air baths, each made with a different material: hinoki cypress, rock, and ceramic. No reservation is required, so if one is available, you can enjoy the water without worrying about anyone else. One is wrapped in the scent of wood, one is surrounded by rugged natural rock, and one gleams beautifully with a lacquer-like vermilion finish. Even though they all use Wakura water, the touch against your skin feels different in each one. It is a quiet time to be shared only with the people who matter most.

A natural hot spring open-air bath made of hinoki cypress, set on the terrace of guest rooms except for the Japanese-style double rooms. When you sink into the bath, the water’s surface seems to merge seamlessly with Nanao Bay, creating a view that feels like you are on a boat rowing out across the sea. The luxury of this room is that you can step into the bath whenever you like, as often as you like, without worrying about being seen. With only the signs of the waves for company, you can immerse yourself completely in a private bathing experience.

A dry-heat sauna located only in the New Japanese-style Bath, one of the two large bath areas. The dry heat presses against your skin with a steadily intense warmth, and even sitting quietly, sweat begins to rise from your back. In the stripped-down interior, only your own breathing and heartbeat stand out, and your awareness slowly sinks inward. The sense of release the moment you push open the door after storing heat deep into your core makes the bathing experience at this inn even more profound.

A steam sauna filled with white mist. Rising vapor softens the view, gathers into tiny droplets on your skin, and gently moistens even your throat and nose. Its mild warmth is easy to surrender to even if you do not like dry heat, and the tension seems to melt away as your shoulders relax. Sit down, close your eyes, and let the time pass in that humid stillness.

A cold plunge bath set in the large public bath. When you slowly immerse your body after holding in the heat, the surface of your skin tightens, and the heat drains away like receding waves. After a quiet moment in which only the sound of rippling water lingers in your ears, you can walk straight out to the open-air area, where the sea breeze rising from Nanao Bay brushes your damp skin. Cooling down while facing the sea leaves a lingering afterglow that can only be experienced here.

A bedrock bath chair installed in the New Japanese-style Bath, one of the large bath areas. Once you sit down, warmth from the heated stone gradually spreads through you, easing stiffness in your back and lower back from within. Rather than working up a heavy sweat, it is suited to quietly warming the body all the way to the core. Moving back and forth between it and the bathtubs overlooking Nanao Bay, you can alternate between warming up and cooling off however you like.
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Regardless of size, guests with tattoos, body art, or tattooing are not permitted to use the large public baths. Please use the bath in your room or a private bath instead.
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