Secret Japan

[Tarto]

Location : Beppu (別府)
Prefecture : Oita-ken (大分県)
Attractions : a modern, fairly unattractive city, but with amazing hells - boiling hot springs scattered in the citt

Price : entry fee for the "hells" : 400 yen per hell, or 2000 yen for the 8

Internet : Web site of the city & Web site of the tourist information office




B RED

Hell : bouzu-jigoku (bonze)


U RED

Hell : umi-jigoku (sea)


O RED

Hell : oniishibozu-jigoku (demon stones and bonze)


Y RED

Hell : yama-jigoku (mountain)


K RED

Hell : kamado-jigoku (oven)


O RED

Hell : oniyama-jigoku (demon mountain)


C RED

Hell : chinoike-jigoku (blood bond)


hotsprings

Hoyoland (onsen)


hotsprings

Nabeyama no Yu (onsen)


hotsprings

Kaihin Sunaba (sand onsen)






This vapor comes from natural hot springs, extremely common in Japan and called onsens (温泉, which literally means "hot (温) spring(泉)"). They are so common that the Japanese have taken advantage of them to build public baths, also called onsens by extension. But that will be the topic of another post.

Beppu is actually very famous for its onsens, and if the town itself is not particularly attractive, it has on the other hand plenty of high quality onsens, and a local "specialty": sightseeing onsens! Those are called jigoku-onsen (jigoku means "hell") featuring extremely hot water (180-190°F, who would want to bathe anyway?)...Here is a guided tour of the nine main hells...


坊主地獄 : bouzu-jigoku (bonze)



The name comes from the boiling mud forming bubbles that look like bonze heads:



Yes, I know it requires some imagination...


海地獄 : umi-jigoku (sea)

With its milky blue color and amazing 200m depth, it was created 1200 years ago by a volcanic eruption:



The surrounding gardens are magnificent :




鬼石坊主地獄 : oniishibozu-jigoku (demon stones and bonze)

Here are the demon stones:




山地獄 : yama-jigoku (mountain)

I don't really know where the name comes from (maybe because the source is located at the foot of a small cliff), but the heat and vapor are impressive:




かまど地獄 : kamado-jigoku (oven)

This site, which was used for cooking (!), has several small ponds, here is the one I preferred:



If you have a cold, you can inhale vapor to alleviate it:




鬼山地獄 : oniyama-jigoku (demon mountain)

These crocodiles are perfectly adapted to the peculiar climate of that onsen.

   


白池地獄 : shiraike-jigoku (white pond)

The color says it all:




血の池地獄 : chinoike-jigoku (blood pond)

Once again, the color explains the name:




竜巻地獄 : tatsumaki-jigoku (tornado)

A geyser that erupts every 25 minutes:




There's a tenth hell, but it's really too tacky...


source of this guide : http://www.tartoinjapan.com/en/blog_post-43-beppu.html



Still in Beppu, an onsen located at the Suginoi hotel, with a really appealing view:

[sanji]

Any visit to Beppu should include a trip to one - or several - onsen!

Here are three completely different onsen, all very interesting :

Hoyoland - a huge co-ed bath with an incredible amount of mud at its bottom (source on Secret Onsen)



Global rating : With a huge amount of mud on the bottom of the baths - and in suspension, this onsen is absolutely unusual. It also contains lots of metals : 195 mg of iron and 107 mg of aluminium per kg of water.

Size : There are two main outside mixed baths: the largest one... is really huge; however, the mud found on the bottom of it is not as sandy as the smaller bath, which is therefore often more crowded... There are other outside baths, too, but you probably will find them less interesting. Note the presence of a small sauna, where the presence of sulfurous vapors is surely going to limit the time you will spend inside there!

View : Although in the nature, the quality of the overall view is significantly decreased.... since the onsen is almost under the bridge of a highway! (it is a little exaggerated, the bridge is not that close of the onsen, but it is still really disturbing).

Modesty : There are separated changing rooms and segregated inside bath. Normally, you are not suppose to use a bath towel in the baths (what usually women do in konyoku). Since women can enter in the outside bath in a sheltered area, this should not be a problem: there is so much mud that a towel is really not necessary.


Nabeyama no Yu - a small bath, lost in the nature, perfect for a soak after some hiking in the surrounding mountains (source sur Secret Onsen)



Global rating : Considered as a "secret onsen", this bath is quite isolated. You will need a car to reach it - and still there is a 10-15 minutes walk from the parking lot. As many hidden rotenburo, you might enjoy a lot this onsen if you are alone, but it could be quite unpleasant if other bathers are there, too. Anyway, the view itself is worth the short trip from Beppu. And print a map with the location of the bath, it is easy to get lost (if you can find the parking lot, you will find the bath).

Size : Two very small baths, just ment to accommodate 1-2 persons each.

View : A stunning view on the surroundings: the mountain on one side, and the forest on the other... and the town of Beppu, as well as the sea, can be seen if the weather is clear.

Modesty : No changing room (obviously !), no place to hide, and not a lot of space to bath... However, chances are high that you will be alone there, so probably there is no reason to feel embarrassed.


Kaihin Sunaba - the famous "onsen" from Beppu: hot sand... (source sur Secret Onsen)



Global rating : This can't really be called an 'onsen', but since it is found in one of the most famous onsen town - and very related to it - we decided to add it here, too... Here you can take a "sand bath": the sand is heated by the underground, so you a similar sensation as in a normal onsen!

Size : The large, artificial rectangular shaped surface (20 x 6 meters) is filled with sand - and covered to protected you from sun... or rain.

View : The sand bathing area is located in front of the beach, so you have a direct view on the sea - although this is not the best seaside scenery of the area...

Modesty : No problem: clothes are used!