Fukatanikyo Onsen: Day-Use Hot Spring Baths & Prices

Set in a mountain gorge along the upper reaches of the Usa River in Nishiki, Iwakuni City, this hot spring is cherished as the "Village of Clear Streams," embraced by pure mountain waters. Its water is renowned for one of the highest radon contents in Japan; the clear, slightly silky bath blends smoothly with the skin, drawing many visitors even from the Hiroshima area.

Highlights

From the riverside cottages and baths, you can take in the gorge scenery through every season. The waters are said to warm the body deeply and keep you from chilling afterward, and are praised for leaving the skin smooth. A restaurant, shop, and free rest room within the facility make it easy to relax even on a day trip.

Seasonal Enjoyment

Cherry blossoms in spring, fireflies in early summer, river play in summer, gorge foliage in autumn, and snowscapes in winter offer the rich nature of this clear-stream village year round. The pure flow of the Usa River soothes the heart in any season.

Access and Basic Information

About 20 minutes by car from the Muikaichi IC on the Chugoku Expressway, or about 60 minutes from the Iwakuni IC on the Sanyo Expressway. Given the deep-mountain setting, visiting by car is recommended. It is located in Usago, Nishiki, Iwakuni City.

A Word of Advice

Staying in a cottage, a quiet night spent listening to the murmur of the stream becomes an especially fine memory.

Practical Travel Notes

• Water quality: A radioactive (radon) spring. It is said to have one of the highest radon contents in Japan and is known as a clear, slightly silky beautifying bath.
• Day-use bathing: Day trips are available. The facility has a restaurant (lunch only), a shop, and a free rest room. Hours, fees, and closing days may change, so it is best to confirm with the facility in advance.
• Location: 1075 Usago, Nishiki, Iwakuni City.
• Access: About 20 minutes by car from the Muikaichi IC on the Chugoku Expressway, or about 60 minutes from the Iwakuni IC on the Sanyo Expressway. Public transport is limited in this mountain area, so a car is convenient.
• Parking: Available.

Practical Information for Your Visit

• Spring quality: Radon-bearing sodium chloride and bicarbonate cold mineral spring. pH 7.15, radon 278 x 10 to the minus 10th power curies per kilogram, slightly cloudy white in appearance with a faint smell of hydrogen sulfide
• Benefits: Gout, arteriosclerosis, chronic cholecystitis, gallstones, cuts, burns, chronic skin conditions, weak constitution in children, chronic women's ailments and more
• How the water is used: As the source is a cold mineral spring at 20.5 degrees, it is heated before use. The bath water in the bathhouse is 39 to 43.5 degrees
• Day-trip bathing hours: 11:00 to 18:00 (last admission 17:00)
• Closed: Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Take particular note if you are planning to visit in the first half of the week
• Bathing fee: 800 yen for adults (junior high school students and older), 400 yen for elementary school students, 200 yen for young children. The bathing tax is included in the adult fee
• Free rest room: Available for relaxing after your bath. A kotatsu is set up in winter, but eating and drinking inside the room is not allowed
• Massage chairs: Available for 100 yen per 10 minutes
• Japanese-style banquet room (private hire): From 3,300 yen for groups of 10 or more, reservation required. Karaoke (DAM) is also provided
• Restaurant: Open at lunchtime only. If you go just for an evening bath, you will not be able to eat there
• Shop: There is one inside the building
• Rental bicycles: 11 bicycles in total, 5 ordinary mountain bikes and 6 with electric assist. For 90 minutes, 1,000 yen for an ordinary bike and 1,500 yen for an electric-assist bike (a 500 yen discount on electric bikes for overnight guests)
• Accommodation: 10 cottages (log houses) along the Fukatani River. Three of them allow pets
• Parking: Available. An EV charger is also installed
• Access: About 20 minutes by car from the Muikaichi Interchange on the Chugoku Expressway, about 60 minutes from the Iwakuni Interchange on the Sanyo Expressway, and about 20 minutes from the Rakan Kogen Auto Campground. As this is a mountain area with little public transport, coming by car is the realistic option
• Winter road conditions: This is one of the areas in Yamaguchi Prefecture that gets snow, and the facility itself lists snowy scenery among its winter attractions. If you are driving here in winter, be prepared with winter tires
• Time needed: About 1 to 2 hours for a bath and a rest. If you also want to stroll along the river or go cycling, allow half a day to be comfortable
• Address: 1075 Usago, Nishiki-cho, Iwakuni City, Yamaguchi Prefecture (tel. 0827-74-5100)

Information Sources

The opening hours, closing days, bathing fees, the formal name of the spring quality, pH, radon content, appearance, benefits, source and bath water temperatures, the free rest room and massage chairs, the price of the Japanese-style banquet room, the number and price of rental bicycles, and the wildlife of the Fukatani River are based on the hot spring page and the top page of the official website of Fukatanikyo Onsen Seiryu no Sato. The address and access by car, the number of cottages and the number that allow pets are also from the facility guide on the same website. The location in the upper reaches of the Usa River and the presence of parking and an EV charger were taken from the facility information on the tourism website of the Tourism Promotion Division of Iwakuni City. Opening hours, prices and closing days are subject to change, so please check the official information before you set out.