Hoheikyo Onsen
豊平峡温泉 · Jozankei Onsen
Can you bathe here with a tattoo?
This is the question we built the site around, so we answer it per situation.
Visiting for the day
The tattoo policy is not stated publicly. Please contact the facility.
How it scores
Every onsen on this site is scored on the same five things.
The baths
Indoor bath
Separate indoor baths for men and women, with body soap and rinse-in shampoo provided. Not mixed bathing.
Open-air bath
Three named open-air baths (Muine-no-Yu, Fukuro-no-Yu, Yuyu-no-Yu) that swap between men and women on odd and even days. The operator calls this one of Japan's largest open-air baths, taking up to 200 bathers at once, entirely open to the forest with nothing screening the view, and lit up at night. Water is 100% source water - no dilution, no reheating, no recirculation and no chlorine, piped straight from the ground with no storage tank; water wheels in both open-air baths cool the water instead of adding cold water.
Practical details
- Day visits
- Yes — you can bathe without staying overnight.10:00-22:30 (last entry 21:45), open every day of the year
- Day visit price
- ¥1,300Adults (junior high school age and over) 1,300 yen, children 3 to elementary 600 yen, 0-2 free. Tax included and no weekday/weekend split. Towels are extra: logo towel 220 yen, bath towel 500 yen. Cash, credit cards and QR payments accepted.
- Staying overnight
- No
- Getting there
- Reachable without a car. A free shuttle runs once a day from beside Makomanai subway station (Namboku line): pick-up at Makomanai Junior High at 10:00, arriving 10:40, returning at 15:00 - first-come, no reservations, one bus only. Jotetsu bus route 12H from the Makomanai station bus terminal takes about 70 minutes to the Hoheikyo Onsen terminus, and the Kappa Liner / Kaisoku 7 buses run direct from Sapporo Station platform 12 (840 yen one way, roughly 70-85 minutes, last return 19:54). By car it is about 35 km from central Sapporo on Route 230 past Jozankei, turning left at the Hoheikyo Dam entrance junction.
- Official website
- hoheikyo.co.jp
Staying nearby
The links below are affiliate links — we may earn a commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we list or how we score it.
About the day-pass link: Asoview is the main place day-use onsen in Japan sell entry tickets and discount coupons in advance. It is a Japanese-only site, so use your browser’s translation — you show the ticket on your phone at the door.
Getting in from the airport
The links below are affiliate links — we may earn a commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we list or how we score it.
Why not the train: the last leg to an onsen is usually a local bus with nowhere to put a suitcase. A fixed-price car is booked in English and quoted before you travel, tolls and fuel included.
What we have not confirmed
We would rather show a gap than guess.
- The tattoo policy for day visits is not stated on the official website.
More onsen in and around Jozankei
Checked the same way: tattoo policy, private baths and day visits.