Japanese Day Trip Onsens

Many often assume that you need to fork out thousands of dollars for ryokan reservations to enjoy hot springs in Japan, but the culture of Japanese day trip onsens (known locally as higaeri onsen) proves otherwise.

Daily life in Japan can be stressful and expensive – and higaeri onsens are the locals’ way of fighting back.

Day trip onsens can be found in luxury ryokans at popular locations, as well as in historical public bathhouses. They are accessible for a fraction of the price of staying at a Ryokan (which I do highly recommend) and rarely require a reservation.

I often recommend this style of bathing for those on a tight budget or schedule – allowing you to sample the waters of legendary onsens such as Hakone or Arima without having to stay an entire night there.

The biggest bottleneck to finding a good day trip onsen is that many ryokans or bathhouses display day trip information only in Japanese.
That’s where The Onsen Expert comes in – In the articles below, I digest and deliver information about the best day trip onsens across Japan!