Yufuin Sanso Murata Ryokan

Yufuin Onsen is a celebrated thermal spring village in the Yufu River valley of Oita Prefecture in northern Kyushu, presided over by the twin peaks of Mount Yufu (1,584 m), renowned throughout Japan as a refined and artistic alternative to more commercial hot spring destinations — a reputation earned through deliberate cultivation of craft galleries, local cuisine restaurants, and traditional ryokan inns in preference to large resort hotels. The naturally warm bicarbonate spring waters emerge in exceptional volume — Yufuin ranks among Japan's top two onsen towns by spring volume — flowing through the village's mossy stone drainage channels and filling the baths of more than 300 ryokan inns and public bathhouses in a community where the onsen is truly embedded in daily life. Yufuin's morning market (Yunotsubo Kaido artisan street), the lakeside Kinrinko (Golden Scale Lake), and the distinctive small-town character created by deliberate local planning decisions to prioritise quality over scale have made it one of Japan's most loved onsen destination experiences. The combination of exceptional spring volume, artistic community character, beautiful Mount Yufu backdrop, and traditional ryokan culture makes Yufuin one of the most complete and authentically Japanese hot spring town experiences.