Kanto · Kusatsu, Gunma

♨ Kusatsu Onsen (Yubatake)

Watch the steaming Yubatake 'hot water field' in the town square.

Top 3 Famous

Quick facts

Location: Kusatsu, Gunma (Kanto region)
Water type: Acidic spring
Tattoos: Check ahead with each bath
Directions: Open in Google Maps

About Kusatsu Onsen (Yubatake)

One of Japan's 'three famous springs', with the biggest natural flow of hot-spring water in the country. The water is strongly acidic sulphur water (around pH 2), so keep soaks short and rinse off afterwards if your skin is sensitive. It's lovely year-round, and the snowy baths in winter are a highlight. Take a train to Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi Station, then the JR bus (about 25 minutes) to the bus terminal in the middle of town.

The water

An acidic sulphur spring, with aluminium sulphate and chloride. It's very acidic (about pH 2.1), with a strong sulphur smell, and Japan's largest natural flow of hot-spring water. It's traditionally prized as strongly 'medicinal' water, but it can sting sensitive skin.

History

Legends credit Prince Yamato Takeru or the Nara-era priest Gyoki with finding the springs. Minamoto no Yoritomo, the first Kamakura shogun, is said to have bathed here in 1193, and the Shirahata-no-yu bath is named after his clan's white flag. In 1878 the German doctor Erwin Bälz praised Kusatsu and told the world about its unusual acidic water.

Getting there

From: Tokyo (Ueno)
Route: JR Limited Express Kusatsu-Shima to Naganohara-Kusatsuguchi, then JR bus
Time: about 25 min by bus; under 3 hours from Ueno
JR Pass: Covered, including the JR bus to Kusatsu.
Other passes: JR Tokyo Wide Pass covers the train but not the bus.

Check current timetables and fares before you travel.

Famous for (meibutsu)

Onsen manju (food): steamed bean-paste buns sold all along the Yubatake
Yu-no-hana (craft): bath 'flowers', mineral deposits harvested from the Yubatake

Plan your trip: tours & day trips near Kusatsu

Find Kusatsu tours on GetYourGuide

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