OnsenQuest

Prefectures / Nara

Kamiyu Onsen Kawara-no-yu

上湯温泉 川原の湯 · Kamiyu Onsen

Policy not published (day visit)

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

They have not said

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.

ViewWaterComfortSettingAccess

Verified by the editor

View4.5
Water4.5
Comfort2
Setting5
Access1
×Somewhere to sit — Bathe and leave
×Anything else nearby — Nothing else around

A stone tub on the riverbed itself, 500 yen, no showers and nothing else - the cheapest way into the best water in Totsukawa. The Kamiyu source is a sulphur-bearing sodium bicarbonate spring at 85C, and the village's pledge means it reaches the tub undiluted. It closes on Thursdays and whenever the weather turns, and there is no public transport at all.

Every onsen on this site is scored against the same written rubric, and every score has been reviewed by the editor. The ones marked Visited were also bathed in personally.

The baths

Open-air bath

An open-air bath built on the stones of the Kamiyu riverbank, with separate men's and women's tubs. The men's tub sits directly in front of the water. There are no showers - the only showers in Kamiyu are inside Shinyuso's indoor baths, which day visitors may not use.

Open to day visitors

Practical details

Day visits
Yes — you can bathe without staying overnight.
9:00-17:00, closed Thursdays and in bad weather.
Day visit price
¥500
Adults 500 yen, children 300 yen. Cash. Guests staying at the neighbouring inn Shinyuso use it free.
Staying overnight
No
Getting there
About 5 km up the Kamiyu river west of Totsukawa Onsen, roughly 15 minutes by car from the Totsukawa Onsen bus centre along prefectural road 735 off Route 168. There is no bus, so this one effectively needs a car or a taxi. Enquiries go to a mobile number, not to Shinyuso, which asks not to be contacted about it.
Official website
totsukawa.info/joho/totsukawa_onsen_gou/3kamiyu_onsen.html

Visit the official website ↗

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.

Where to stay in Kamiyu OnsenBooking.com ↗Day-pass tickets and coupons for NaraAsoview (Japanese-language site) ↗

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.

What we have not confirmed

We would rather show a gap than guess.