Iizaka Onsen

Revitalize Yourself with Hot Spring Water and Fruit

 
Iizaka Onsen is located in Fukushima City, an inland area of Fukushima Prefecture. Recognized as one of the three best hot springs in Oshu (the Tohoku area’s old name) and described in “Oku no Hosomichi” (The Narrow Road to the Deep North) by the Japanese poet Matsuo Basho, who visited this hot spring in 1689, Iizaka Onsen has a long and significant history.

The temperature of the water is above 40 degrees Celsius, which warms up your body very well so you won’t feel cold after taking a bath. It is a mild, clear and colorless alkaline simple hot spring, which is said to be effective for recovering from exhaustion and promotion of health. There are various types of accommodation facilities, from small-scale inns to large-scale Japanese-style ryokan and hotels. In addition, there are many bath facilities for drop-in visitors. There are also nine public bath facilities in the town, which you can enjoy for only 200 to 300 yen.

Sabako-yu is the oldest public bath facility in Iizaka Onsen, which is said to be where Matsuo Basho enjoyed the hot spring. As the water is relatively hot, many people have to shout out “hot!” upon touching the water, which often serves as a conversation starter between locals and visitors. You may be able to have a nice conversation with local people in a unique way in a communal bathhouse.

As it is a historic onsen town, the area has many historic buildings as well as shrines and temples. This area also has many fruit farms growing various kinds of fruit, especially summer to autumn, including peaches, sand pears, and grapes, which are available at many farms for self-picking. Let’s visit Iizaka Onsen to let your body benefit from onsen and fresh fruit!

Sabako-yu has been refurbished to the current structure in 1993, which has a remnant of the flavor of Japan’s oldest wooden bathhouse.

Surrounded by wilderness of the mountains and the Surikami River, the area also has various types of cycling courses starting from Iizaka Onsen.

A limited-time farm cafe “Farm Cafe, Mori no Garden” offers these signature parfaits using a whole peach!

From early April to early May, about 300 hana-momo (hana peach trees) are blooming gorgeously to create a beautiful landscape.

From the editor:
The new specialty of Iizaka Onsen is “Ms. Mahiro Iizaka” from Onsen Musume that girl’s mascot characters in the motif of and represent each onsen in Japan (for regional vitalization). Mahiro is an energetic girl in the motif of Iizaka Onsen. There are various kinds of Mahiro goods only available at hotels and souvenir shops in Iizaka Onsen!

※ The information herein is as of April 2020