Iya Onsen

Iya Onsen in the western Iya Valley of Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture on Shikoku Island holds the extraordinary distinction of being recognized as one of Japan's Three Great Hidden Hot Springs — Nihon Sankimisen — alongside Niseko Yakushi Onsen in Hokkaido and Yachi Onsen in Aomori, a designation awarded to springs of exceptional remoteness, rarity, and bathing experience quality that places them among the most coveted destinations for devoted onsen pilgrims. The spring flows with siliceous and simple thermal waters in one of the most dramatically inaccessible gorge landscapes in Japan, where the Iya River has carved steep-walled canyons through the folded limestone and schist of the Shikoku mountains, creating the kind of remote, enclosed valley environment that Japanese onsen culture designates as hikyoto — a truly hidden hot spring. Iya Onsen's legendary status as one of Japan's three great hidden springs, its siliceous mineral waters, and its extreme gorge setting combine to make it a destination of extraordinary rarity and bathing experience quality for those who make the demanding journey into the heart of Shikoku's most remote and scenically magnificent mountain valley.