Surrendering to a hot-spring package tour in snowy Yunishigawa
Winter is a fine time to visit Yunishigawa. The months from December to the first week of March sees the enchanting Kamakura Festival, when hundreds of kamakura (snow huts) are constructed along the Yunishigawa river, in forest recesses and in the precincts of temples ...
130 rescued after heavy rain leaves them stranded at Hokkaido hot spring
Some 130 people who had been stranded at a hot spring resort in Hokkaido were rescued Wednesday after torrential rains triggered landslides in the area the previous day. The people who were staying at Tenninkyo hot spring in the town of Higashikawa walked across what ...
Dipping into Hakone's more unusual hot spas
"I love red wine, it's my favorite thing!" These are perhaps not the words that a mother particularly likes to hear from her young daughter — especially when she is only 4 years old. But this was precisely what my daughter told me when we ...
Plans for Kyushu 'spamusement park' progress after campaign raises necessary funds
A city in Kyushu that hosts one of the world's largest hot-spring resorts has said it will open an amusement park this summer with a hot-tub merry-go-round and other bathing-themed rides following the success of a promotional video launched in November. Beppu Mayor Yasuhiro Nagano ...
'Spamusement' park in Beppu could become a reality thanks to viral video
Roller coasters, cable cars and Ferris wheels are typical rides at amusement parks, but the city of Beppu, Oita Prefecture, is mixing the excitement with a natural attraction — its famous hot springs. In a now-viral promotional video uploaded Monday on YouTube, performers ride a ...
Tochigi mixed-bath hot-spring is forced to close after group sex rumors
Complaints about brazen sexual acts at a quaint little onsen north of Tokyo have forced the open-air, mixed-bathing facility to indefinitely suspend operations, highlighting a new risk to a declining tradition.
Pregnant women no longer warned to avoid onsen
For the first time in 32 years, pregnant women can bathe in an onsen this summer without worrying about harming themselves or their unborn baby, according to a new government guideline. Under the new guideline adopted in July, the Environment Ministry removed pregnant women from ...
Make a splash on a family outing
Spring has arrived, and with it a taste of the sunny, sweltering climate to come. Longer days and warmer rays make my kids thirst for a swimming pool. However, Japan's outdoor swimming season doesn't officially begin for months, and indoor locations such as Tokyo ...
Residents of the Gunma Prefecture town of Naganohara on Monday gathered to participate in an annual hot-spring water splashing festival at Kawara-yu Onsen. Monday's festival was the last to be held here because the resort has to prepare to move out before it is submerged ...
