Sukayu Onsen, nestled in the Hakkoda Mountains near Aomori City, is one of Japan’s most renowned hot springs. Despite its location in a region known for heavy snowfall, it continues to attract devoted hot spring enthusiasts year-round. The strongly acidic sulfur waters are said to help ease ailments such as rheumatism, neuralgia, and digestive issues.

Its highlight is the vast mixed-bathing “Hiba Sennin Bath,” a pillarless hall the size of 160 tatami mats, entirely lined with aromatic Hiba wood from Aomori Prefecture, creating a striking and atmospheric setting. In winter, visitors from around the world come to pair the area’s famous skiing with a rejuvenating soak. For women who prefer privacy, the facility also offers women-only bathing times as well as bath-wear rentals.

Onsen Properties
・Features: A hot spring inn in the mountains of Hakkoda, famous for its large mixed bathing “Hiba Sennin Bath.”
・Spring quality: Acidic sulfur spring (gypsum-containing, acidic hydrogen sulfide spring, tension hypotonic hot spring)
・Other Information: Bathers with tattoos can get free tattoo-covering stickers at the front desk

Recommended Hotels Nearby

Minamida Onsen Hotel Apple Land, located in Hirakawa City at the southern edge of the Tsugaru Plain, is an apple-themed hot spring inn true to its name. Its signature “apple bath,” filled with whole floating apples, releases a gentle fragrance that calms the mind.

The apples are believed to moisturize the skin and improve circulation, earning the spring a reputation as one of Tohoku’s best for enhancing beauty. In addition to the apple bath, the hotel offers a variety of other indoor and open-air baths for guests to enjoy.

Minamida Onsen Hotel Apple Land Information
・Features: A hot spring inn where you can enjoy unique springs like the “Apple Bath”
・Spring quality: Weakly alkaline beauty spring

Recommended Hotels Nearby

Asamushi Onsen, located on the Natsudomari Peninsula just outside Aomori City, is often called “Tohoku’s Atami” for its ocean-view inns and hotels reminiscent of the famous resort in Shizuoka Prefecture.

The clear, gentle waters are known for their smooth texture and are said to help ease neuralgia, rheumatism, and gynecological ailments. Visitors can enjoy the baths on a day trip or as overnight guests, with the “Yu-sa Asamushi” roadside station offering an observation bath that overlooks the sea.

After a soothing soak, a walk along Sunset Beach Asamushi to watch the evening sky is a perfect way to round out the experience at this scenic coastal hot spring.

Asamushi Onsen Information
・Features: A moving hot spring town along the coast, with seasonal scenery
・Scale of hot spring area: There are about 9 large hotels and inns
・Spring quality: Sodium, calcium-sulfate, chloride spring
・Main Hotels: Nambuya Kaisenkaku, Asamushi Sakura Kanko Hotel, Tsubakikan

Dake Onsen, in the Iwaki district of Hirosaki City, traces its origins back some 350 years, when legend says a wounded fox healed its injuries by bathing in the springs.

The milky waters, rich with the distinct scent of sulfur, have long been cherished for their therapeutic properties. They are believed to help with conditions such as athlete’s foot, chronic skin infections, and eczema. Set at the foot of Mt. Iwaki, the onsen offers a tranquil setting ideal for rest and renewal.

Dake Onsen Information
・Features: A sulfur spring at the foot of Mt. Iwaki
・Scale of hot spring area: There are about 6 hotels and inns
・Access: From JR Hirosaki Station, take the Konan Bus and get off at Dake Onsen-mae bus stop (about 40 minutes)
・Spring quality: sulfur/sulfate springs
・Main Hotels: Yamano Hotel|a, Dake Hotel, Jomonjn no Yado

Recommended Hotels Nearby

Shimofuro Onsen, in Kazamaura—the northernmost village of Honshu—has long been celebrated as “a hot spring good for every ailment.”

Its twin sources, Oyu and Shinyu, are said to be especially effective for cuts, burns, and chronic skin conditions. The milky, sulfur-scented waters have an almost addictive appeal, all while offering bathers sweeping views of the Tsugaru Strait.

Shimofuro Onsen information
・Features: A hot spring village that has been around since the Muromachi period, overlooking the Tsugaru Straits
・Scale of hot spring area: There are about 10 hotels, inns, and guest houses.
・Access: From JR Shimokita Station, take the Shimokita Kotsu Bus and get off at Shimofuro Onsen bus stop (about 70 minutes)
・Spring quality: Sulfur spring
・Main Hotels: Maruhon Ryokan, Hotel New Shimofuro, Satsukiso Inn

Kuroishi City is located in the center of Aomori Prefecture. Not only is “Lamp no Yado Aoni Onsen” located in a mountainous area with no cell phone signal, but the inn itself has no electricity. Surrounded by abundant nature and lit only by lamp lights at night, it truly has the feeling of an unexplored region.

The springs are colorless, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and have a reputation for being effective against neuralgia, muscle pain, and joint pain. There are four types of open-air and indoor baths. Why not forget about work in a signal-free environment as you soak in the hot springs?

Lamp no Yado Aoni Onsen Information
・Features: A hot spring inn lit only with lamp light where you can enjoy 4 types of bath
・Spring quality: Simple hot spring (colorless, transparent, tasteless, and odorless)

The town of Owani, often called the “Okuzashiki of Tsugaru,” is surrounded by lush greenery and blessed with abundant nature. Its main source, Yu no Sato, has a history of over 800 years and flows with clear, mildly saline waters.

Gentle on the skin and easy to bathe in, the spring is said to help ease neuralgia and rheumatic ailments. Its warmth lingers long after a soak, making it especially inviting during the colder months.

Owani is dotted with hot spring facilities where visitors can enjoy the same public baths beloved by locals. A leisurely stroll through the retro-style hot spring town after bathing offers yet another way to savor its timeless atmosphere.

Owani Onsen Information
・Features: A hot spring village with a good old-fashioned atmosphere, and an 800-year history
・Scale of hot spring area: There are about 8 hotels and inns
・Access: Get off at JR Owanionsen Station
・Spring quality: Chloride-sulfate spring
・Main Hotels: Fujiya Hotel, Hoshino Resorts Kai Tsugaru, Yamani Senyukan

Recommended Hotels Nearby

In Fukaura, southwestern Aomori, the inn Furofushi Onsen offers natural hot springs flowing straight from the source. Its name carries the promise that “bathing here will keep you from growing old or weak.”

The reddish-brown waters are renowned for their excellent heat retention, moisturizing and soothing qualities, and skin-nourishing minerals. The highlight is the Seaside Open-air Bath, set just a meter from the Sea of Japan, where visitors from across the country come to experience the remarkable sense of merging with the sea.

Day-trippers can also enjoy any of the inn’s three springs: the indoor Kogane no Yu, the open-air Furofushi no Yu, and the famed Seaside Open-air Bath. No matter which you choose, soaking with the Sea of Japan stretching before you is an unforgettable experience.

Koganezaki Furofushi Onsen Information
・Features: A hot spring that flows directly from its source in front of the Sea of Japan
・Spring quality: Iron-containing-sodium-chloride strong salt spring (hypertonic neutral high hot spring)
・Other Information: Japanese, English, Chinese information available (including pictograms), tattoos prohibited

Gonohe Makiba Onsen, tucked away in the southern Aomori town of Gonohe, is a secluded hot spring inn named after a spring discovered on a farm. Its clear, silky waters are prized for their ability to warm the body deeply, making them popular for relieving poor circulation, rheumatism, neuropathy, and fatigue.

The inn features a spacious communal bath, an inviting open-air bath, a far-infrared sauna, and even private in-room baths for guests to enjoy at their leisure.

Gonohe Makiba Onsen Information
・Features: A hot spring inn that is popular for its smooth, soft water
・Spring quality: Sodium chloride spring

Recommended Hotels Nearby

The Aomori style of hot spring bathing is to enjoy not only the source and efficacy of a spring, but also the location itself. The natural beauty of each season changes the scenery around open-air baths, so be sure to take a hot spring tour in different seasons!

Text by: Tsubasa Shimoda