Free bathing 24 hours per day! |
Number of baths | |||
♂ | ♀ | ♂♀ | |
inside | - | - | - |
outside | - | 1 | 1 |
Spring information | |||
Water type : chloride salts | |||
Onsen in Hokkaido |
Ashi yu (Kawayu Onsen)Hotel New yu no kaku (Kawayu Onsen)Onneto yu no taki (Onneto)Tennen yukoro onsen (Niseko Hirafu)Yamada onsen hotel (Niseko Hirafu)Daiichi (Yoroshi Onsen)Karamatsu no yu (Yoroshi Onsen)Kotan (Lake Kussharo)Sunayu (Lake Kussharo)Wakoto Onsen (Lake Kussharo)Sandan no yu - Takimi no yu (Iwaobetsu Onsen)Kuma no yu (Rausu) |
Other links |
www2.gol.com/users/jolsen/onse... |
) The small bath and the adjacent river |
(explanation on symbols) |
Global rating :  | |
| Kuma no yu - Bear hot spring - is located in Shiretoko peninsula, one of the only place where bear can be seen in Japan. One the road linking the west and the east coasts, this onsen is often visited by people going from Utoro to Rausu, in an area considered as the paradise for hikers. The facility itself is quite old, and it is expected to be rebuild in the future. Two old-looking wooden rooms serves as changing rooms; one segregated bath is reserved for women, while the larger one is mixed and displays a nice view on the surroundings. | |
| Size : | |
| The size of this round outside bath is small, and since this onsen its quite famous, it can be filled up pretty quickly. However, due to the high temperature, people usually just stay in the bath for a couple of minutes. | |
| View : | |
| The bath is surrounded by the river on one side and trees on the other one. The view is pretty nice, as the river come in full view while soaking in the onsen. | |
| Modesty : | |
| Women have their own private bath, which is surrounded by wooden walls and therefore has not a very nice view. The men's bath is in fact a mixed one. From time to time, women use a small backdoor to exit their sheltered place and come to soak in the larger bath; to do that, they however have to walk in front of the men's changing place. Furthermore, the bath can be seen from the road - although from a certain distance - making the whole experience potentially embarrassing... | |
| Area : | |
| Close to Rausu on the road leading to the east coast, the area is very attractive for hikers and all people enjoying wild nature. | |
| When we visited this onsen in May, during golden Week, we were surprised by the huge amount of snow still preset on the road between Utoro and Rausu, where the onsen is located. Indeed, in some place, more than 3 meters of snow where still present! The onsen was already occupied by 5-6 persons - making it looking quite small, indeed. After a quick washing, during which I noticed that people on the parking on the opposite shore had a direct view on the bath, I tried to enter the water. Which was extremely hot... A little later, Seiko came to join me in the bath; no women was there at that time, but people who were used to the place told me it was quite frequent, and that this bath was a konyoku. Interestingly, while the men's bath has a clear appearance, the women's one is milky. I don't know the reason of this difference. sanji |
) A Japanese trying to enter quickly in this bath surrounded by snow, even in May | ) View from the parking lot | |
) And the road reaching Kuma no yu... even in early May, there is still around 3 meters of snow! | ||