Travel Podcast Extra Content: Takaragawa Onsen Japan

Published: June 22, 2015, 8:12 p.m.

This quick video was shot last year 2014 on our trip to Tokyo Japan. Michelle and I decided to check out a traditional Onsen/Ryokan in Tokyo but we stumbled on Takaragawa Onsen in the town of Minikami Town in Japan. Words cannot describe of the beauty of this Onsen, and unfortunately we only stayed there for 1 day... An onsen (温泉?) is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth. Onsen were traditionally used as public bathing places and today play a central role in directing Japanese domestic tourism. Onsen come in many types and shapes, including outdoor (露天風呂 or 野天風呂 roten-buro or noten-buro?) and indoor baths. Baths may be either public run by a municipality or private (内湯 uchiyu?) often run as part of a hotel, ryokan or bed and breakfast (民宿 minshuku?).