Yumoto Onsen Hakone Tenzan

Yumoto Onsen Hakone Tenzan is a popular public bath complex in the Yumoto area of Hakone Town, Kanagawa Prefecture, the most accessible gateway to the Hakone hot spring resort district that is Japan's most visited thermal destination, drawing over 20 million visitors annually to the volcanic landscape surrounding the Hakone caldera where views of Mount Fuji reflected in Lake Ashi, the Hakone Open Air Museum, the Owakudani volcanic steam vents, and the historic Tokaido highway culture combine with abundant sulfate thermal springs to create the most comprehensive and internationally famous onsen resort experience in the Japanese archipelago. The Yumoto area, where the hot spring tradition dates back to the Nara period and the Hakone Checkpoint museum preserves the memory of the great Tokaido road barrier that controlled passage between Edo and the western provinces for 250 years, represents the historical and geographical heart of the Hakone onsen complex where several distinct spring systems of different mineral compositions converge in a compact resort valley. The sulfate-rich thermal waters of Hakone Tenzan's outdoor and indoor bath facilities are particularly prized for their whitish, milky appearance and smooth skin-nurturing quality, offering one of the most satisfying and quintessentially Japanese large-scale public thermal bathing experiences in the country with Mount Fuji visible on clear days from the outdoor pools.