Tsuta Onsen Ryokan

What to expect

Tsuta Onsen is a one-inn hot spring in the beech forest on the southern slopes of the Hakkoda mountains, in Towada city, Aomori Prefecture. It sits on Route 103 inside Towada-Hachimantai National Park, a short drive from the head of the Oirase Gorge. The inn says records show a hut for hot spring cures on this spot in 1147, and it markets itself as a “thousand-year-old hidden spring”. It became a ryokan in 1909, and the main wooden building dates from 1918.

What sets Tsuta apart is how the water arrives. The baths are built directly on top of the source. Hot water seeps up between the floorboards of the tubs, so it reaches you without ever being exposed to the air. The inn calls this “gensen waki-nagashi” and says it is very rare in Japan.

The baths

• Kyuan-no-yu is the old bath, rebuilt in 1990 but kept small and plain. It was once a mixed bath for inn guests and has only one bathroom, so men and women take turns: women 10:00-12:00 and 21:30 to 9:00 the next morning, men 13:00-21:00. Body soap and skin lotion are provided.
• Senkyo-no-yu has separate men’s and women’s sides and is open from 10:00 to 9:00 the next morning. Its ceiling rises 12 m (39 feet) above the water. The name comes from a phrase the novelist Inoue Yasushi wrote when he stayed, comparing the sound of the spring to wind. Shampoo, conditioner, body soap and hair dryers are provided.
• A private bath on the same spring costs ¥4,000 for 50 minutes. Book it in person at the front desk on the day; the inn does not take phone bookings for it. It is open 10:00-22:00, but day visitors can use it only until 14:00.

Only Senkyo-no-yu and the private bath have showers.

The water: the inn lists Kyuan-no-yu as a sodium-calcium sulfate, bicarbonate and chloride spring, neutral and hypotonic, at 114°F45.4°C at source. It is the inn’s own spring, flowing naturally, and is not circulated. The inn says it adds spring water from the Tsuta forest to adjust the temperature.

Prices and booking

Day bathing, from the inn’s site in October 2026:

• ¥1,000 adults, ¥500 elementary school children.
• 10:00 to 15:00, last entry 14:30. It may end early when busy, and the inn warns that filming sometimes closes the baths to day visitors.
• Hand towel ¥300, bath towel rental ¥500.
• No room to rest in for day visitors.

Because of the Kyuan-no-yu rota, women on a day visit can use both baths from 10:00 to 12:00, while men get Kyuan-no-yu only from 13:00. Senkyo-no-yu is open to both all day.

Overnight: rooms range from plain Japanese-style rooms in the main building to special rooms in the West Building and three detached suites with their own semi-open-air baths, added in 2022. The inn does not post room prices on its pages; book through its website. Check-in is 15:00, check-out 10:00, and all meals are served in the restaurant. Cards are accepted, but not debit cards. The whole building is non-smoking. Pets are not allowed.

Getting there

The inn’s address is 1 Tsutanoyu, Okuse, Towada, Aomori.

• By car: about 90 minutes from Shin-Aomori Station, over the Hakkoda mountains on Route 103. The inn suggests setting your navigation to “Tsuta Onsen” or its phone number. Free parking. The road is a mountain route with many bends; the inn advises nervous drivers to take public transport.
• By bus: the inn says the JR bus from Aomori Station takes about 2 hours 8 minutes.
• Free shuttle for guests: from Shichinohe-Towada Station (Tohoku Shinkansen), departing the south exit at 15:00 and arriving at 16:00. The return leaves the inn at 9:30 (9:00 in winter) and reaches the station at 10:30. Book at least three days before your stay and meet at the tourist information centre on the first floor of the south exit.

Winter tyres matter here. The inn asks everyone driving from October onwards to fit studless winter tyres, and says summer tyres are fine only from late May. It also lists the prefecture’s winter road closures, including Route 103 between Sukayu and Yachi (the Hakkoda-Towada Gold Line), scheduled from November 24 to April 1.

When to go

The inn closes for the winter. In 2025 it reopened on April 18 and closed after the night of November 24, having added November stays at short notice because of demand. For 2026 it opened bookings for stays from April 17 through to November.

Fresh green leaves arrive in May and June. Fireflies appear from early to late July, weather permitting. The inn says autumn colour at Tsuta-numa usually peaks around October 20, and snow starts falling in late October. In October, arrive soon after 10:00 if you are coming only to bathe.

Onsen etiquette

• Wash before you get in. Kyuan-no-yu has no showers, so rinse with water from the tub.
• Bathe naked in the gender-split baths. Towels stay out of the water.
• Kyuan-no-yu switches between men and women, so check the time before you walk in.
• Tattoos: the inn publishes no policy. Call 0176-74-2311 to ask.
• The inn advises pregnant women to take care on the slippery floor and not to bathe in early or late pregnancy.

Nearby stops worth adding

• Tsuta no Nana Numa, the seven ponds around the inn, linked by a gentle, well-made trail that children can walk. About 5 minutes by car.
• Oirase Gorge, about 15 to 20 minutes by car. The inn does not run a shuttle there; use the route bus.
• The Omachi Keigetsu museum in the inn, free, 7:00-21:00 (day bathers only during bathing hours). Keigetsu first stayed in 1908, moved his family register here, died here on June 10, 1925, and is buried here.
• Lake Towada about 45 minutes and the Hakkoda Ropeway about 35 to 40 minutes by car.

Where to stay nearby

Staying at the inn is the point for most people. Elsewhere in the Hakkoda area, Sukayu Onsen is the big wooden bathhouse on Route 103 to the north. To the west, Lamp no Yado Aoni Onsen is another old Aomori mountain inn. There are also hotels along the Oirase Gorge and at Lake Towada.

Safety notes

• Slippery floors: the old bathrooms have wet wooden floors and steps. The building dates from 1918 and is not barrier-free; the inn has one wheelchair to lend if you ask ahead.
• Mountain roads: snow and ice are possible from October. Drive in daylight with winter tyres.
• Heat: soak in short spells, drink water, and do not bathe after drinking alcohol.
• Wildlife: this is national park forest. Stay on the marked paths around the ponds.