Akanko Onsen

Akanko Onsen rises on the shores of Lake Akan (Akan-ko) in Hokkaido's Kushiro district—one of Japan's most extraordinary volcanic lake landscapes, where the caldera of the Akan volcanic system has created a complex of lakes including the biodiverse Akan-ko, famous for the marimo (spherical green algae balls) that form naturally in its waters and have been designated a National Special Natural Monument of Japan. The lake shore setting between the two active volcanoes of Meakan-dake and Oakan-dake places this simple alkaline spring within an extraordinary volcanic landscape that also serves as one of Japan's most significant centers of Ainu indigenous culture, where the Ainu communities of the Akan area have maintained their language, crafts, and ceremonial traditions with particular vitality. Bathing at Akanko Onsen within sight of active volcanoes and the marimo-bearing lake creates a thermal experience embedded in one of Hokkaido's most exceptional concentrations of natural and cultural heritage.