For thousands of years bathing in hot springs has been a major part of Japanese culture and is to this day as well. There are over 20,000 natural hot springs located in Japan and majority of them can be enjoyed by a comforting bath. The reason for why Japan has so many hot springs is because of volcanoes. 75% of the Japanese geographic landscape is covered by mountains, and many of these mountains has been formed by volcanoes. When rain and snow sink into the earth, the heat of the magma close to these volcanic mountains will increase the temperature of the underground water which will make the water rise to the surface, thus creating volcanic hot springs. Furthermore, hot springs in Japan are not only enjoyed by people, but also by animals. In Nagano prefecture of Japan, there is a famous mountain filled with natural hot springs. This mountain is inhabited by Japanese Macaques, also known as Snow Monkeys. Throughout the year these monkeys use these hot springs to either bathe in or to just enjoy themselves. In fact, many hot springs in Japan are named after animals as folk tales suggest that animals such as monkeys, deer, and cranes had first found those hot springs.
When coming to Japan, it is very important to learn the customs of how to behave when wanting to bathe in hot springs. Manners and etiquette are very important in Japanese culture, so please respect the rules. It is important to remember that hot springs are not swimming pools. Swimming pools are for swimming, playing around, being loud, and wearing a swimsuit. For hot springs in Japan, it is the complete opposite! The purpose of hot springs in Japan are meant for relaxation. In addition, go naked! There is no need to be shy if you wish to enter a hot spring in Japan. Japanese are very respectful and will not mind you being naked, as they will be naked as well in the hot spring. Also, rest assured that most hot springs have separate areas for men and women. One thing to note though regarding appearance is that Japanese do not like tattoos. This is because tattoos are affiliated with the Japanese Mafia (Yakuza). Luckily, there is an increasing number of hot springs that are becoming more tattoo-friendly, but if you have a tattoo it does not hurt to ask if you are allowed to enter or not. If you prefer, some facilities have smaller private hot spring rooms that you can rent solely for you and your family and friends.
This is a picture taken from Tanayu onsen located in Oita prefecture, Beppu city. This hot spring is on top of a mountain where people can enjoy their bath outside while overlooking the panoramic view of Beppu city.
If you do wish to come to Japan and experience hot springs yourself, you should definitely visit Beppu city located in the Southern Island of Kyushu. Beppu, with Japan’s number one gush volume and number of spring sources, is one of the most famous hot spring cities located in Japan. It is quite normal for Japanese to refer to Beppu as “onsen no machi”, meaning “the city of hot springs”. It has eight different hot spring areas you can visit and stay at. In addition, Beppu has a famous tourist attraction called “jigoku onsen” meaning “hell hot springs”. It is a famous attraction that has hot springs reaching up to 100 degrees Celsius (212 degrees Fahrenheit). So please remember that the hell hot springs are not for bathing. After enjoying the hot springs in Beppu you are then welcomed to try cuisine from almost any part of the world. Ranging from Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Sri Lankan, Nepali, Indonesian to many more. Beppu is recognized as an international city because the biggest international university in Japan, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University is actually located in Beppu. Therefore, if you ever plan to visit, live or even interested to study in Japan. Beppu is a very nice city, filled with rich Japanese culture such as hot springs and filled with international cultures as well.
This is a photo taken of one of the hot springs of the “hell hot springs” attractions in Beppu city. The water is so hot that it is glowing red and strong smoke is rising from the surface of the water.
In addition, a fun fact about Beppu hot springs is that you can become a hot spring master. Beppu city created this program because they wished to increase hot spring popularity including a fun goal for visitors to try and accomplish. In order to become a hot spring master in Beppu, you have to travel across all of the eight hot spring areas in Beppu and surrounding cities and bathe in all 88 hot springs (out of over 120 participating hot spring facilities) and collect their stamps in a special booklet called Spaport! Of course, you need time to fulfill this challenge, but there is no need to worry. There is no set time limit to this challenge, so you can complete the challenge no matter how long you wish to take. Many people take years to complete the 88 springs. In addition, just trying the challenge alone will give you an enjoyable reason to travel throughout Beppu city and you are most likely destined to learn more about Japanese culture, and other cultures as well as you can find all sorts of nationalities scattered around Beppu. Let us know if you wish to visit Beppu one day and we can give you useful travel tips for when you come to Beppu or just Japan in general!
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University staff winning the special towel stating they have become “hot spring masters”
The black towel is for the hot spring masters who have mastered the 88 springs, and the purple one is for the eternal hot spring masters who have completed 11 rounds of 88 springs.
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