Shima Onsen: Day-Use Hot Spring Baths & Prices (Gunma)

Shima Onsen is a quiet mountain hot spring whose name is said to come from a legend that its waters cure forty thousand ailments. Its clear blue streams and lakes are called "Shima Blue," and their beauty draws many people. Preserving the atmosphere of old-fashioned therapeutic bathing, it is a place well suited to unwinding at a relaxed pace.

Highlights

When conditions are right, the water of the Shima River flowing through the town takes on a blue so deep it seems to draw you in, beloved as "Shima Blue." Lake Oku-Shima upstream is a representative spot, where you can enjoy the distinctive hue while strolling the surroundings. Retro-flavored buildings and public baths, including a long-established inn said to date from the Genroku era, are scattered about, and simply walking here calms the heart. Shima Onsen is also known for its history as one of the first areas in Japan designated a National Health Resort Hot Spring.

Seasonal Enjoyment

In the season of fresh greenery, the contrast of blue water and green is beautiful, and in autumn foliage colors the gorge. Shima Blue changes its expression with the season and the play of light, so it feels fresh no matter how often you visit. In winter the quiet deepens, offering the luxury of a relaxed soak amid snowy scenery.

Access and Basic Information

By car, the usual route heads from the Shibukawa-Ikaho Interchange on the Kan-etsu Expressway. By public transport, it takes about forty minutes by bus from Nakanojo Station on the JR Agatsuma Line. The water is a chloride and sulfate spring containing sodium and calcium, blessed with an abundant flow. There is nothing flashy about it, but it suits those who wish to savor hot springs and nature in quiet.

Practical Travel Notes

To see Shima Blue at its best, a sunny day when the water is clear is recommended, and going as far as Lake Oku-Shima makes the vivid blue of the surface stand out all the more. The spa town is compact enough to explore on foot, and about half a day lets you enjoy a walk while viewing public baths and retro buildings. Autumn colors are usually at their best from late October into November, when the gorge turns especially beautiful. Some inns and public baths accept day-use bathing, with prices for a soak alone generally ranging from a few hundred to just over a thousand yen.

A Word of Advice

To see Shima Blue clearly, a fine-weather daytime visit is recommended. Some stretches along the gorge are narrow, so watch your footing while strolling. Many visitors value the quiet setting, so an unhurried stay makes the visit all the more enjoyable.

Practical Information for Your Visit

• Spring quality: Sodium-calcium chloride and sulfate spring. The pH averages 7.7
• Sources: 42 sources across the hot-spring town as a whole, with a flow of about 3,500 litres per minute
• Public bathhouses (Kawara-no-Yu and Kami-no-Yu): 9:00-15:00, open every day, bathing free of charge. Towels and soap are not provided, so please bring your own. Kawara-no-Yu is at 4228-2 Shima, Nakanojo Town, and has only simple lockers
• Gomuso-no-Yu: A bathhouse in the yuya-zukuri style said to be the birthplace of Shima Onsen (4372-1 Shima, Nakanojo Town). The spot guide of the Shima Onsen Tourism Association lists it as currently closed, so check whether it is open before you go
• Town-run Shima Seiryu no Yu: Normally 10:00-20:00, but for the time being it is on shortened hours of 10:00-17:00 (reception until 16:30). Closed on the fourth Wednesday of every month. The fee for 2 hours is 600 yen for adults, 400 yen for children and 400 yen for visitors with disabilities. Beyond that, each additional hour costs 300 yen for adults and 200 yen for children, and a book of 10 tickets is 4,000 yen. There are two open-air baths and two large baths, a lounge and a riverside plaza. 3830-1 Oaza Shima, Nakanojo Town, telephone 0279-64-2610
• Drinking the water: There is a drinking-water station inside Shima Seiryu no Yu. The hot-spring town also has the Shionoyu and Yuzuriha drinking-water stations
• Footbaths: The Hinatami Yakushi footbath and the Yuzuriha no Mori footbath. The Yamaguchi Kawaoto footbath is closed
• Access (train and bus): From Nakanojo Station on the JR Agatsuma Line, take the Kan-etsu Kotsu "Nakanojo Station - Kaminomachi - Shima Onsen" line to the terminus, Shima Onsen. Payment is accepted in cash and with transport IC cards. Fares were revised on October 1, 2025
• Access (highway bus): The direct "Shima Onsen-go" from the Yaesu South Exit of Tokyo Station. The outbound service leaves Tokyo Station at 8:50 and arrives at Shima Onsen at 12:20; the return leaves Shima Onsen at 13:45 and arrives at Tokyo Station at 17:30. Reservations can only be made by telephone to the Shima Onsen Tourism Association (0279-64-2321), and there are also services from the west exit of Kawagoe Station and from Haneda Airport Garden
• Access (by car): About 40 minutes from the Shibukawa-Ikaho IC on the Kan-etsu Expressway via National Route 353
• Footing: Kawara-no-Yu is down at the level of the riverbed, and all the public bathhouses are simply built. Non-slip shoes will give you peace of mind
• Time required: Half a day for a round of the public bathhouses and a stroll through the hot-spring town. Allow a full day if you also head out to Lake Okushima
• Enquiries: Shima Onsen Tourism Association 0279-64-2321 (8:30-17:15, open every day of the year)

Information Sources

The legend that the spring was opened in the third year of Eien (989), the designation in 1954 as the first National Hot Spring Health Resort together with the two other hot-spring areas designated at the same time, the spring quality and average pH of 7.7, and the 42 sources with a flow of about 3,500 litres per minute come from the history section of the official website of the Shima Onsen Tourism Association. The opening hours of the public bathhouses, the fact that they are free, what to bring, the locations and facilities of Kawara-no-Yu, Kami-no-Yu and Gomuso-no-Yu, the closure of Gomuso-no-Yu and the closure of the Yamaguchi Kawaoto footbath were confirmed on the association's pages for each facility. The shortened hours, closing days, fees, facilities and telephone number of Shima Seiryu no Yu also come from the association's pages. The timetable and reservation method for the "Shima Onsen-go" highway bus and the time required from the Shibukawa-Ikaho IC come from the association's access guide, while the route and payment methods for the local bus and the date of the fare revision were confirmed on the official website of Kan-etsu Kotsu. As details are subject to change, please check the official information before you set out.