Chubu · Gero, Gifu

♨ Gero Onsen

A riverside onsen town in Gifu with smooth, silky water.

Top 3 Famous

Quick facts

Location: Gero, Gifu (Chubu region)
Water type: Simple spring
Tattoos: Check ahead with each bath
Directions: Open in Google Maps

About Gero Onsen

Ranked with Kusatsu and Arima as one of Japan's 'three famous springs' since the Edo era. The clear alkaline water (around pH 9) leaves skin silky smooth, which earned it the name 'beauty bath'. There are public bathhouses, free foot baths by the Hida River, and ryokan baths. The JR Hida limited express from Nagoya to Gero Station takes about 1.5–2 hours, and much of town is walkable from the station.

The water

An alkaline simple spring (around pH 9.1–9.2). It's clear and slippery-smooth, and is called a 'bijin no yu' (beauty bath) because it's traditionally said to leave skin silky.

History

The spring first flowed on nearby Mt. Yugamine, but it stopped in 1265. Legend says a white heron, a form of the Buddha of healing, then led villagers to a new spring on the bank of the Hida River. In the Edo era, the scholar Hayashi Razan named Gero one of Japan's three finest springs, along with Kusatsu and Arima.

Getting there

From: Nagoya
Route: JR Limited Express Hida to Gero
Time: about 1.5–2 hours
JR Pass: Covered.

Check current timetables and fares before you travel.

Famous for (meibutsu)

Hida beef (food): Gifu's prized wagyu
Sarubobo (craft): faceless red 'baby monkey' good-luck dolls of Hida

Plan your trip: tours & day trips near Gero

Find Gero tours on GetYourGuide

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