
Itinerary
Read it in the order we travelled.





Arima Kaido Onsen Suzuran no Yu
Hyogo
The cold plunge bath flows with Miyamizu, one of Japan's Top 100 Famous Waters
JAPAN'S FINEST ONSEN & SAUNA
The Finest Onsen & Sauna in Japan
57 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.

Aug 29–31, 2025 / 2 nights, 3 days
Hyogo Prefecture and Osaka Prefecture are home to many of Japan's most celebrated sauna and hot spring facilities. My personal wish list of places to visit already has more than 50 entries. On this trip, I visited five of them: Saffy Spa Maiko, Arima Onsen Taiko no Yu, New Japan Umeda, Kobe Sauna & Spa, and Arimakaidou Onsen Suzuran no Yu. What kind of sauna experiences awaited at each of these destinations?
Every stop on this itinerary was visited in person by the Editor-in-Chief.
Read it in the order we travelled.





Hyogo
The cold plunge bath flows with Miyamizu, one of Japan's Top 100 Famous Waters