Nagashima Onsen: Day-Use Hot Spring Baths & Prices (Mie)

This is a hot spring that wells up in the Nagashima district of Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture, on the lowland where the three Kiso rivers pour into Ise Bay. It sits at the core of Nagashima Resort, where an amusement park, an outlet mall and a flower theme park are gathered together, and the day-use hot spring "Yuami no Shima" boasts one of the largest scales in Japan, with 17 open-air and indoor baths across the men's and women's sides. Being able to head straight for the baths after a full day of play is what makes this hot spring so useful.

From the "Thousand-Person Bath" to Yuami no Shima

Hot water sprang up in this area in August 1963 (Showa 38). The following November 1964, "Grand Spa Nagashima Onsen" began operating, and the leisure center known as the "Sennin-buro" (Thousand-Person Bath) was long a local favorite. That facility closed in November 2000 (Heisei 12), and "Yuami no Shima" was built as a new facility to answer the demands of the times. The ground-breaking ceremony was held in January 2002, construction was completed in July, and it opened on August 1. The investment came to about 8 billion yen, and the construction was carried out by Takenaka Corporation.

The total area is about 33,000 square meters, of which the great open-air bath in nature covers about 17,160 square meters — roughly 1.2 times the field area of Nagoya Dome. The plants set in the garden are not nursery-grown stock but trees that actually grew in the mountains. The rocks were brought in and arranged from places such as the mountains of Kiso in Gifu Prefecture, the ravines of Owase in Mie Prefecture and the mountain streams of Totsukawa in Nara Prefecture, totaling 13,000 tons in weight.

Baths Modeled on Two Gorges

There are two bathhouses. The men's side is "Kurobe Kyokoku no Yu," inspired by the Kurobe Gorge in Toyama Prefecture, with eight kinds of baths, and the women's side is "Oirase Keiryu no Yu," inspired by the Oirase Stream in Aomori Prefecture, with nine kinds. Within the garden, about 390 meters of mountain stream have been recreated, with a swift current of 80 tons per minute. The layout is such that you walk between the bathhouses in a yukata.

As for the use of the water, "Takitsubo no Yu" in Oirase Keiryu no Yu and "Oiwa no Yu" in Kurobe Kyokoku no Yu are officially stated to be 100% source free-flowing. Alongside these, baths of differing character line up, including the silk bath "Kinu no Yu," a high-concentration carbonated spring, a cascade bath and a foot bath with a view of the waterfall.

Highlights

The amusement park beside the spring boasts many attractions, from scream-inducing rides to gentle ones for children. In the sprawling flower park, seasonal blooms spread in waves, and from autumn into winter one of Japan's largest illumination displays lights up the grounds. Shopping at the outlet mall adds to the fun, letting you build a whole day around the baths.

Enjoying the Seasons

From spring into summer, colorful flowers fill the park, with early-summer hydrangeas and summer flower fields well worth seeing. Autumn turns the surrounding greenery, and in winter a warm soak after viewing the lights is a special treat. The relaxed open-air baths soothe a body chilled from outdoor play.

Access and Basic Information

From the Nagoya area, direct buses make access convenient, and the Wangan-Nagashima interchange is close by. By rail, take a bus from Kuwana Station. The day-use bath, Yuami no Shima, is a large facility with a wide array of open-air and indoor baths across the men's and women's sides, and its water is an alkaline simple spring. It is easy to drop in as part of a leisure outing.

Practical Travel Notes

Day-use bathing at Yuami no Shima is priced separately for adults and children, and there are combination tickets that add stone-sauna use as well as discounted evening rates. Fees and hours can shift with the season, so checking the latest details on the official site is reassuring. Within the same resort, the hot spring at the Nabana no Sato flower park draws on a sodium-bicarbonate water from deep underground and is a separate facility, so if you enjoy both, confirm each one's hours. During the illumination season the crowds gather from evening onward, so shifting your bath to another time lets you relax. Park buses and shuttles are handy for moving around the large grounds.

A Quick Tip

The illumination season and long holidays bring crowds, so plan your bath with time to spare. You will walk the large grounds a good deal, so comfortable shoes are recommended.

Practical Information

• Spring quality: Alkaline simple hot spring (mild, hypotonic, high-temperature spring), pH 8.5. Colorless, clear, tasteless and odorless, and regarded as a "water of beautiful skin" that removes dead skin
• Source temperature and volume: The spring temperature is about 60 degrees Celsius, and the volume is about 10,000 tons per day
• Benefits: Chronic rheumatoid arthritis, fibrositis, recovery from fatigue, nerve pain, muscle pain, joint pain, frozen shoulder, motor paralysis, joint stiffness, bruises, sprains, hemorrhoids, chronic digestive illness, sensitivity to cold, health promotion, stress relief and more
• Use of the water: "Takitsubo no Yu" and "Oiwa no Yu" are 100% source free-flowing
• Hours: The facility is open from 9:30 to 23:00. Bathing begins at 10:00, and reception is until 22:00 (this varies by day, so please confirm)
• Admission (regular hours, from opening to 14:59): Adults 2,500 yen, elementary school students 1,500 yen, young children (age 2 and over) 800 yen. A stone-sauna set ticket is 2,700 yen for adults and 2,200 yen for elementary school students
• Admission (3 p.m. discount, 15:00 to 18:59): Adults 1,900 yen, elementary school students 1,200 yen, young children 700 yen. The 7 p.m. discount (from 19:00) is 1,400 yen for adults, 900 yen for elementary school students and 500 yen for young children. Time-discount tickets are sold only at the on-site counter
• Additional use on the way home from the amusement park: If you have been playing at Nagashima Spa Land or the pools, you can enter for 1,000 yen for adults, 600 yen for elementary school students and 400 yen for young children. This is handled on site only
• Stone sauna: 800 yen (elementary school students also 800 yen, and must be accompanied by a guardian). Children below elementary school age may not use it. A stone-sauna robe and one stone-sauna mat are included
• Re-entry: Not permitted. Once you leave you cannot re-enter, so plan on spending the day inside the facility
• Towels and yukata: Face towels and bath towels are available for loan. Yukata are free until 15:00 and 300 yen from 15:00. Short socks are sold for 100 yen
• Private baths (family baths): Two rooms, "Ikoi no Yu" and "Nagomi no Yu." 3,000 yen for 45 minutes (per room, no extensions, admission fee separate), for groups of 3 to 6 people; groups of 2 or fewer may not use them. They can be used with infants and small children. Telephone reservations are taken from the first day of the previous month at the 3rd-floor front desk (0594-45-1111), and same-day applications on site are also possible. They are suspended from mid to late January and mid to late June
• Barrier-free bath: The two rooms above are barrier-free, and use by people with physical disabilities and their companions is free of charge (admission fee separate). The changing room has a bench at a height that makes transferring from a wheelchair easy, and the bath continues directly outdoors so it is easy to move out to the open-air section
• Tattoos: People with tattoos (including stickers and painted designs) may not enter. Pets are also not permitted
• Payment methods: From April 8, 2024, credit cards, QR-code payments and electronic money can be used at the gate, the front desk and the shops. Use of the various facilities inside the building is settled all at once at the front desk
• In-house facilities: A relaxation room with 145 beds, an after-bath tea house with 80 seats, the noodle restaurant "Bashoan" with 120 seats, the Chinese restaurant "Tosen" with 96 seats, a Japanese-style café with 88 seats, body care and esthetics, shops and a game corner. Bringing in food and drink is not permitted
• Parking: The Nagashima Resort main parking lot is 1,000 yen for ordinary passenger cars, 2,000 yen for large vehicles and 200 yen for motorcycles. The parking lot in front of the Yuami no Shima entrance (about 100 spaces, paid) is available from 15:00 to 23:00 and cannot be used on fireworks days and similar occasions
• Free shuttle bus: Runs as needed from the main parking lot (the north entrance of Jazz Dream Nagashima, in front of the Seven-Eleven) to Yuami no Shima
• Access (by bus): A direct bus from platform 22 on the 4th floor of the Meitetsu Bus Center in Nagoya takes about 50 minutes at the fastest; get off at the terminus "Nagashima Onsen." It is jointly operated by Meitetsu Bus and Mie Kotsu, requires no reservation, and accepts transit IC cards. Passengers are advised not to get off at the earlier "Nagashima Kaigan" stop, as it makes for a roundabout route. There are also buses bound for Nagashima Onsen from the bus stop in front of Kintetsu and JR Kuwana Station (east exit)
• Access (by car): From the Wangan-Nagashima interchange on the Ise-wan Gan Expressway. About 30 minutes from Nagoya, about 80 minutes from the Kyoto-Higashi interchange, about 110 minutes from the Suita interchange in Osaka, and about 210 minutes from the Tokyo interchange
• Time needed: Two to three hours for bathing alone. If you add the stone sauna and a meal, allow half a day to a full day
• To avoid crowds: On fireworks days and during consecutive holidays, people concentrate from evening onward. The 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. discounts let you in more cheaply but are correspondingly crowded, so if you want a quiet visit, from morning to early afternoon is the time to aim for
• Nabana no Sato "Sato no Yu": A separate facility within the same resort. Its source is named the Nagashima Onsen No. R-20 spring, a sodium bicarbonate spring (sodium bicarbonate hot spring, hypotonic, weakly alkaline, high-temperature spring) rising at 61.0 degrees from 1,582 meters underground, pH 8.17. It opens from 11:00. The bathing fee is 1,300 yen for elementary school students and above and 500 yen for young children (age 3 and over), and the admission fee for Nabana no Sato is required separately. Towel sets are lent free of charge. The telephone number is 0594-41-0787
• Address: 333 Urayasu, Nagashima-cho, Kuwana City, Mie 511-1192; telephone 0594-45-1111

Sources of Information

The spring quality, pH, source temperature, volume and benefits, the composition of the bathhouses and the 100% source free-flowing baths, the history of the facility (the spring's emergence in 1963, the start of operations in 1964, the closing of the Thousand-Person Bath in 2000 and the opening of Yuami no Shima in 2002), the areas and the quantities of trees and rocks used, and the seating capacities of the in-house facilities were confirmed on the hot spring guide page of the official website of Nagashima Onsen Yuami no Shima. The business hours, admission fees, time discounts, additional-use fee from the amusement park, stone-sauna fees, handling of yukata and short socks, the rules on tattoos and the acceptance of cashless payment are from the same site's hours and fees page; the capacity, fees, reservation method and suspension periods of the family baths and barrier-free baths are from the family bath guide page; and the parking fees, shuttle bus, direct bus from the Meitetsu Bus Center and driving times are from the access and parking page. The source name, spring quality, drilling depth and bathing fee for "Sato no Yu" at Nabana no Sato were confirmed on the official Nabana no Sato Sato no Yu page. As business hours and fees may change, please check official information before setting out.

Practical Information for Your Visit

• Spring quality: Alkaline simple hot spring (mild hypotonic high-temperature spring), pH 8.5. Colorless, clear, tasteless and odorless, it is regarded as a "beauty bath" that removes dead skin
• Source temperature and volume: The spring temperature is about 60 degrees Celsius, with a volume of about 10,000 tons per day
• Benefits: Chronic rheumatoid arthritis, fibrositis, recovery from fatigue, neuralgia, muscle pain, joint pain, frozen shoulder, motor paralysis, joint stiffness, bruises, sprains, hemorrhoids, chronic digestive complaints, sensitivity to cold, general health promotion, stress relief and more
• How the water is used: The Takitsubo-no-Yu and Oiwa-no-Yu baths are 100 percent free-flowing spring water
• Opening hours: The facility is open from 9:30 to 23:00. Bathing starts at 10:00 and reception closes at 22:00 (this varies by day, so please check)
• Admission (regular hours, from opening until 14:59): 2,500 yen for adults, 1,500 yen for elementary school students, 800 yen for young children (aged 2 and over). A set ticket including the stone sauna costs 2,700 yen for adults and 2,200 yen for elementary school students
• Admission (3 p.m. discount, from 15:00 to 18:59): 1,900 yen for adults, 1,200 yen for elementary school students, 700 yen for young children. The 7 p.m. discount (from 19:00) is 1,400 yen for adults, 900 yen for elementary school students and 500 yen for young children. Time-discount tickets are sold only at the on-site counter
• Adding it on after the amusement park: If you have been playing at Nagashima Spa Land or the pools, you can enter for 1,000 yen for adults, 600 yen for elementary school students and 400 yen for young children. Handled on site only
• Stone sauna: 800 yen (also 800 yen for elementary school students, who must be accompanied by a guardian). Children below elementary school age may not use it. A stone sauna robe and one stone sauna mat are included
• Re-entry: Not permitted. Once you leave you cannot come back in, so plan on spending the whole day inside
• Towels and yukata: Face towels and bath towels are available for loan. Yukata are free of charge until 15:00 and 300 yen from 15:00. Short socks are sold for 100 yen
• Private baths (family baths): Two rooms, Ikoi-no-Yu and Nagomi-no-Yu. 3,000 yen for 45 minutes (per room, no extension; admission charged separately), with a capacity of 3 to 6 people; groups of 2 or fewer cannot use them. They can be used by those with infants and small children. Telephone reservations can be made from the 1st of the previous month at the 3rd-floor front desk (0594-45-1111), and same-day applications on site are also possible. They are closed from mid to late January and mid to late June
• Barrier-free bath: The two rooms above are barrier-free, and use by people with disabilities and their companions is free of charge (admission charged separately). The changing room has a bench at a height that makes it easy to transfer from a wheelchair, and the bathtub continues straight outdoors so it is easy to get out to the open-air bath
• Tattoos: People with tattoos (including stickers and paint) may not enter. Pets are also not allowed
• Payment methods: Since April 8, 2024, credit cards, QR code payments and electronic money can be used at the gate, front desk and shops. Use of the facilities inside is settled all at once at the front desk
• Facilities inside: A relaxation room with 145 beds, an 80-seat post-bath teahouse, the noodle restaurant Bashoan with 120 seats, the Chinese restaurant Tosen with 96 seats, an 88-seat Japanese-style cafe, body care and beauty treatments, shops and a game corner. Bringing in your own food and drink is not allowed
• Parking: The Nagashima Resort main parking lot costs 1,000 yen for ordinary passenger cars, 2,000 yen for large vehicles and 200 yen for motorcycles. The parking lot in front of the Yuami no Shima entrance (about 100 spaces, paid) is available from 15:00 to 23:00 and cannot be used on days with fireworks and the like
• Free shuttle bus: Runs as needed from the main parking lot (the north entrance of Jazz Dream Nagashima, in front of the 7-Eleven) to Yuami no Shima
• Access (by bus): A direct bus from stop 22 on the 4th floor of the Meitetsu Bus Center in Nagoya takes about 50 minutes at the fastest; get off at the terminus, Nagashima Onsen. It is jointly operated by Meitetsu Bus and Mie Kotsu, no reservation is needed, and transport IC cards can be used. Passengers are advised not to get off at the earlier Nagashima Kaigan stop, as it is a roundabout route. There are also buses to Nagashima Onsen from the bus stop in front of Kuwana Station (east exit) on the Kintetsu and JR lines
• Access (by car): From the Wangan-Nagashima Interchange on the Ise-wangan Expressway. About 30 minutes from Nagoya, about 80 minutes from the Kyoto-higashi Interchange, about 110 minutes from the Suita Interchange in Osaka, and about 210 minutes from the Tokyo Interchange
• How long to allow: 2 to 3 hours for bathing alone. If you add the stone sauna and a meal, allow half a day to a full day
• Avoiding the crowds: On fireworks days and during consecutive holidays, people gather from the evening onwards. The 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. discounts are cheaper but for that reason busier, so if you want a quiet visit, aim for the morning through the early afternoon
• Sato no Yu at Nabana no Sato: A separate facility within the same resort. Its source is called the Nagashima Onsen R-20 spring: a sodium bicarbonate spring (sodium-hydrogen carbonate spring, hypotonic mildly alkaline high-temperature spring) welling up at 61.0 degrees from 1,582 meters underground, pH 8.17. It opens from 11:00. Bathing costs 1,300 yen for elementary school students and above and 500 yen for young children (aged 3 and over), on top of which the separate Nabana no Sato entrance fee is required. Towel sets are lent free of charge. Tel. 0594-41-0787
• Location: 333 Urayasu, Nagashima-cho, Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture 511-1192, tel. 0594-45-1111

Information Sources

The spring quality, pH, source temperature, water volume and benefits, the make-up of the baths and which tubs are 100 percent free-flowing spring water, the history of the facility (the spring gushing forth in 1963, opening for business in 1964, the closure of the Sennin-buro in 2000 and the opening of Yuami no Shima in 2002), the area and the quantities of timber and rock used, and the seat counts of the facilities inside were confirmed on the hot spring information page of the official Nagashima Onsen Yuami no Shima website. The opening hours, admission, time discounts, add-on rates from the amusement park, stone sauna fees, handling of yukata and short socks, the rules on tattoos and the acceptance of cashless payment come from the opening hours and fees page of the same site; the capacity, fees, reservation method and closed periods of the family baths and barrier-free baths come from the family bath information page; and the parking fees, shuttle bus, direct bus from the Meitetsu Bus Center and driving times come from the access and parking page. The source name, spring quality, depth and bathing fee of Sato no Yu at Nabana no Sato were confirmed on the official Nabana no Sato Sato no Yu page. Opening hours and fees are subject to change, so please check official information before you set out.