Hoshi Onsen
法師温泉36°45′ N 138°50′ ERyokan¥1,500, about CAD 13 or USD 9.50 (October 2026 rates)
Hoshi Onsen suits bathers who want one of Japan's great old wooden bathhouses, with water rising through the gravel under the tub, and its main bath is mixed with no bathing wear allowed.
Photo veroyama from Meguro, Japan · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Know before you bathe
Hoshi-no-yu is a mixed bath with no bathing wear: the inn does not allow bathing garments or towels wrapped around the body. Between 20:00 and 22:00 it is for women only. Keep your voice low under the arched windows, and keep cameras out of the bath.
Getting there
The town bus to Hoshi Onsen runs twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon. By car it is reached from the Kan-Etsu Expressway's Tsukiyono interchange, and winter brings about a metre of snow, so fit studless tyres from December to March.
Hoshi Onsen is a single inn, Chojukan, in the mountains of western Minakami, and it has run for about 150 years. Its main bathhouse, Hoshi-no-yu, has a high wooden roof and arched Meiji-era windows in the style of the Rokumeikan, and the government listed it in 2006 as a registered tangible cultural property with the main building and the annex. The tubs sit on the riverbed itself, with wooden frames round the gravel, and the water rises through them at about 40 °C.
Hoshi-no-yu is mixed, and the inn does not allow bathing garments or wrapped towels in it. Women who would rather bathe apart have their own windows in the day: 20:00 to 22:00 in Hoshi-no-yu, and Chojunoyu, the smaller spring-fed bath, is women-only for day visitors and for overnight guests from 20:00. Tamaki-no-yu, a cypress bath with an open-air pool, opens for women 15:00–20:00 and for men from 20:00 to 7:00.
Day visitors get the baths from 11:00 to 14:00 except on Wednesdays. In winter the inn reports about a metre of snow, and from 16 to 17 December 2026 it holds a women's day for overnight guests, with every bath open to women at any hour.
Worth knowing
- Book overnight if you want Hoshi-no-yu late in the evening; day visitors leave by 14:00.
- The inn opens bookings four months ahead.
Quick answers about Hoshi Onsenよくある質問
Is Hoshi Onsen mixed bathing?
Yes. The main bath, Hoshi-no-yu, is mixed, and the inn asks bathers to go in without bathing wear or a wrapped towel. Hoshi-no-yu turns women-only from 20:00 to 22:00, and two smaller baths keep set hours for women.
Can I visit Hoshi Onsen for the day?
Yes. Day bathing runs from 11:00 to 14:00, with check-in until 13:30, and costs ¥1,500 for adults. It stops on Wednesdays for cleaning.
Does Hoshi Onsen allow tattoos?
Hoshi Onsen does not publish a tattoo rule, so call the inn on 0278-66-0005 before you visit.
How much does Hoshi Onsen cost?
Prices at Hoshi Onsen start at ¥1,500 per adult (2026), about CAD 13 or USD 9.50 (October 2026 rates).
What are the opening hours of Hoshi Onsen?
Hoshi Onsen keeps these hours: Mon 11:00–14:00; Tue 11:00–14:00; Wed closed; Thu 11:00–14:00; Fri 11:00–14:00; Sat 11:00–14:00; Sun 11:00–14:00.
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