Kotohira Onsen Kagawa
- Location
- Kotohira, Kagawa, Shikoku, Japan
- Water type
- sodium chloride
- Temperature
- 38 °C
- pH
- 7.3
Water profile
Soothing — neither hot nor cold, perfect balance.
Loaded with major ions — the essential minerals (Ca, Mg).
Dense, salty water — you float without effort.
Kotohira Onsen is located in the town of Kotohira in Kagawa Prefecture on Shikoku island, the site of Konpira-san—formally Kotohira-gu—one of Japan's most revered Shinto shrines, famous for its 785-step stone stairway climbing to the main hall and its role as the protective deity of seafarers and travellers in the Japanese maritime tradition. The chloride-rich thermal waters of this onsen carry a sodium-mineral character associated with warmth, skin softness, and well-being in the Japanese bathing tradition, complementing a visit to one of Shikoku's most spiritually significant sites. The combination of Konpira-san's pilgrim stairway, the traditional inn town below with its kabuki theatrical performances, historical merchant district, and surrounding Sanuki udon noodle culture—for which Kagawa is nationally celebrated—makes Kotohira Onsen a destination where geothermal bathing and cultural richness are inseparably interwoven.