Tateshina Onsen: Day-Use Hot Spring Baths & Prices

In Chino City, Tateshina Onsen is a highland spa resort spread across the foothills of the Yatsugatake range and Mount Tateshina. Highland lakes such as Lake Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba dot the surroundings, and the area is popular as a summer retreat. In the clear air you can settle in for a long, relaxed soak.

Highlights

True to a highland resort, hotels, pensions, and day-use baths are scattered about, making it a handy base for walks and drives. Strolling around the lakeshore or gazing over the highland grasslands, you can enjoy nature to your hearts content. The highland scenery seen after a bath calms the mind.

Enjoying the Seasons

From spring through summer there are highland flowers and fresh greenery, in autumn the crimson leaves, and in winter skiing and snowy scenery, so the rich nature can be enjoyed through all four seasons. Known as a summer retreat, it stays cool even in midsummer.

Access and Basic Information

It is about thirty minutes by car from the Suwa interchange on the Chuo Expressway. By public transport it can be reached by bus from Chino Station on the JR Chuo Main Line, and travel toward Lake Shirakaba takes longer. Since the route climbs into the highlands, take care with road icing in winter. Day-use baths offering source-fed water are scattered nearby, and the water varies by facility, from simple springs to sodium-bearing water. Day-use admission generally ranges from a few hundred to around one thousand yen, and hours and closing days differ by facility, so check before dropping in.

Practical Travel Notes

Tateshina Onsen is a base for a highland resort, and combining a day-use bath with a lakeside stroll or a drive is recommended. It is popular in summer as a retreat from the heat, when roads and parking grow crowded, so acting early in the morning is more comfortable. The recommended seasons are summer, when highland flowers bloom, and autumn for foliage, while winter offers skiing and snowy scenery. Nearby are real spots such as Lake Tateshina, Lake Shirakaba, Mishakaike Pond, and the Tateshina highlands, all conveniently reached by car. A day-use bath costs from a few hundred to around one thousand yen, letting you enjoy nature to the full along with a highland stay.

A Quick Tip

Touring the area together with nearby Tateshina Kogen, Lake Shirakaba, and the Kita-Yatsugatake Ropeway is recommended. Highland nights grow cold, so bring an extra layer when you head out. Since day-use baths keep different hours by facility, checking in advance is reassuring.

Practical Information for Your Visit

• Spring quality (Tateshina Onsen): Chloride spring
• Indications: Cuts, poor peripheral circulation, sensitivity to cold, depressive states and dry skin, plus the general indications (chronic pain and stiffness of the muscles and joints, weakened digestive function and so on)
• Tateshina Onsen Yokujo (communal bathhouse): Open 11:00-21:00, no closing days. 600 yen for adults, 360 yen for children, free of charge for under-2s. Free-flowing water straight from the Pool-daira source, at a fairly hot 43 degrees. The Chino City tourism site gives the closing time as 20:30, so allow extra leeway if you are heading there late
• Kosai no Yu: Open 8:00-20:00, no closing days. 800 yen for adults, 400 yen for children. A free-flowing acidic spring with five open-air baths. A private open-air bath costs 800 yen for 40 minutes
• Otonashi no Yu: Open 11:00-20:00. 800 yen for adults, 450 yen for children. Free-flowing water from a source 1,000 m underground
• Shikayama no Yu (inside Tokyu Resort Town Tateshina): In the regular season 1,200 yen for adults and 750 yen for children; in peak periods 1,500 yen for adults and 950 yen for children. A simple spring (Tateshina Kogen Well No. 1) with a temperature of 34.3 degrees
• Tateshina Grand Hotel Taki no Yu: Reception 13:00-20:00. 1,540 yen for adults, 880 yen for elementary school students and 550 yen for children aged 3 to below elementary school age. A sodium bicarbonate spring with a temperature of 23.8 degrees
• Tateshina BASE: Open 11:00-16:00. 1,000 yen for adults, 500 yen for children. Free-flowing water from a source known as one of "Shingen's hidden hot springs"
• Private baths: Kosai no Yu has a private open-air bath (800 yen for 40 minutes)
• Address (Tateshina Onsen Yokujo): 4035-170 Pool-daira, Kitayama, Chino City, Nagano Prefecture
• Access (public transport): From Chino Station on the JR Chuo Main Line, take the Alpico Kotsu bus on the Kita-Yatsugatake Ropeway Line. The nearest stop for Tateshina Onsen Yokujo is Pool-daira. Along the way there are stops such as Tateshinako-mae and Taki no Yu Iriguchi, and it is about 30 minutes from Chino Station to the Lake Tateshina area
• Access (by car): About 15 km, roughly 30 minutes, from Suwa IC on the Chuo Expressway via the Venus Line
• How long to allow: About an hour if you only bathe; half a day if you also take in Lake Tateshina and Lake Shirakaba
• Avoiding the crowds: This is a popular summer retreat from the heat, and at that time of year both the roads and the car parks are busy. Setting out early in the morning is the most comfortable option
• Road conditions in winter: The roads climb up into the highlands and freeze over in winter. If you are driving, winter equipment such as studless tyres is a prerequisite
• What to wear: The elevation is high and the mornings and evenings are chilly even in summer. Bring a jacket with you
• Nearby: Lake Tateshina, Lake Shirakaba, Lake Megami, Kurumayama Kogen, Mishakaike Pond and the Kita-Yatsugatake Ropeway, among others. A car is the most convenient way to get between them all

Information Sources

The opening hours, bathing fees, closing days, spring quality, spring temperature and whether the water is free-flowing at Tateshina Onsen Yokujo, Kosai no Yu, Otonashi no Yu, Shikayama no Yu, Tateshina Grand Hotel Taki no Yu and Tateshina BASE were confirmed on the day-use hot spring pages of the official website of the Tateshina Tourism Association. The address and telephone number of Tateshina Onsen Yokujo, its water temperature of 43 degrees and the fact that its water is colourless, transparent and free-flowing come from the facility page of Chino City's tourism site "Chino Kanko Navi". The spring quality of Tateshina Onsen (a chloride spring) and its indications, the legend that it was one of Takeda Shingen's hidden hot springs, and the access details of about 15 km and about 30 minutes from Suwa IC via the Venus Line are based on the hot spring resort information published by the Japan Spa Association. The bus route from Chino Station and the Pool-daira bus stop were confirmed from the route information for the Alpico Kotsu Kita-Yatsugatake Ropeway Line. Prices, opening hours and closing days are subject to change, so please check the official information before you set out.