Independent onsen guide
The right onsen for your trip.
Japan's hot springs towns compared honestly: Tokyo day trips, snow country ryokan and the etiquette, tattoos and booking details that decide where you can actually soak.
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Etiquette and tattoo norms first
Begin with the water
Different towns give you a different soak.
Start with a regional hub to see what the water, the streets and the bathing options are actually like before you compare tours.
Compare before you commit
Two good options can still be the wrong order for your trip.
Use the comparisons when two towns or two bath styles look interchangeable on paper.
- Hakone or Kyoto?Fuji views and day-trip ease against temple town walks and quieter baths.
- Kyoto or Osaka?Base yourself where the bathing and the sightseeing actually overlap.
- Sento or onsen?Neighbourhood bathhouse etiquette against resort hot spring culture.
- Tattoos in the waterWhich towns and bathhouses welcome tattooed bathers, and how to plan around the rest.