Okuhida Onsen Valley

Okuhida Onsen Valley is a cluster of five distinct hot spring villages — Hirayu, Fukuji, Tochio, Shinhotaka, and Kama — deep in the mountains of Gifu Prefecture's Hida region at the eastern gateway to the Northern Japan Alps, offering one of Japan's most authentic and scenically magnificent mountain onsen experiences. The calcium-rich spring waters emerging from deep volcanic intrusions in the ancient Hida granite massif fill the rotenburo (outdoor rock pools) of numerous small family-run ryokan inns that characterise Okuhida's intimate and unhurried bathing culture. The Okuhida valley's position at the foot of the Yari-Hotaka massif — Japan's 'Alps', reaching 3,190 metres — provides direct access to some of Japan's most challenging and rewarding mountain hiking and rock climbing in summer, while the valley is buried in deep snow during winter. The proximity to Takayama's celebrated historic merchant town, the Shirakawa-go UNESCO World Heritage thatched farmhouse villages, and the Kamikochi alpine valley makes Okuhida Onsen Valley the ideal hot spring base for exploring one of Japan's most beautiful and culturally rich mountain regions.