Hakone Onsen

Hakone Onsen is the collective name for the hot spring resorts of Hakone, a mountain town in Kanagawa Prefecture southwest of Tokyo. The Hakone Tourist Association counts 17 official hot springs, from Hakone-Yumoto at the foot of the mountains to Ashinoyu in the uplands. Ryokan, hotels and day-use bathhouses across Hakone draw on them.

People have bathed in Hakone's hot springs since at least the eighth century. A guide published in 1811 described seven onsen, among them Yumoto, Miyanoshita and Ashinoyu. New wells in the Meiji era added Gora, Kowakudani and others. Today the 17 springs are grouped by place rather than by water type.

Hakone hot spring areas and water types

The volcano under Hakone heats water that passes through different rock on its way up, so the water changes with altitude.

• Hakone-Yumoto: the gateway town at the station, with 74 spring sources. The water is mostly clear and alkaline, and the town has many day-use baths.

• Miyanoshita and its neighbors: Tonosawa, Dogashima and Sokokura are among the original seven spa villages in the valley above Hakone-Yumoto.

• Kowakudani and Gora: mid-mountain areas added in the Meiji era. Gora has 30 sources with a wide range of water types.

• Ashinoyu and other upland springs: sulfur springs, including milky white water.

If this is your first time, stay in Hakone-Yumoto for easy access from Tokyo. Choose an upland area for milky sulfur water and a quieter mountain setting. Our post on Hakone's best hot spring baths compares specific ryokan and bathhouses.

Day-use onsen in Hakone

You do not need to stay overnight to bathe. Many hotels and bathhouses sell day-use entry, and some rent private baths by the hour. Day-use options listed by the Hakone Tourist Association include:

• Tenzan: a traditional day-use bathhouse near Hakone-Yumoto

• Hakone Yuryo: a day-use hot spring resort a short ride from Hakone-Yumoto

• Hakone Kowakien Yunessun: a hot spring theme park in Kowakudani

• Ryuguden: a bath at a historic inn, a registered cultural property, looking over Lake Ashi to Mount Fuji

Traditional baths do not allow swimsuits. Tattoo policies vary. Some baths in Hakone accept tattoos and many do not, so check with each one. A private bath (kashikiri) avoids the issue.

Onsen etiquette

• Leave your clothes in the changing room basket or locker. Bathing is nude in most baths, and men and women bathe separately.

• Wash and rinse your whole body at the shower stools before you get in.

• Keep your small towel, your hair and any soap out of the bath water.

• Enter slowly and get used to the heat. Get out if you feel dizzy.

• Dry off with your small towel before going back into the changing room.

• Drink water afterward.

How to get to Hakone Onsen

The Odakyu Romancecar runs direct from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto town, the main gateway to the hot springs. From there the Hakone Tozan Railway climbs to Miyanoshita and Gora. Hakone Tozan Buses go to Sengokuhara and Lake Ashi. The Hakone Free Pass covers the railway and the buses as well as the cable car, ropeway and lake cruise.

A night in an onsen ryokan is the usual way to fit Hakone into a longer Japan trip. This ten-day Golden Route itinerary includes a Hakone ryokan stay between Tokyo and Kyoto.

For a day trip with a bath, the Fuji and Hakone onsen day tour runs from Tokyo.

The history of each spring is covered in the story of Hakone's 17 springs from the Hakone Tourist Association.