Loading…
Back to blog
JapanHokkaidoOnsenFamily TravelActivities
Our First Ever Onsen in Japan, And Why We Drove Into the Mountains for It
Jax Family Travels·August 1, 2026· 5 min read
Before we came to Japan, we'd accepted that visiting an onsen probably wasn't going to happen.
An onsen is a natural hot spring bath, heated by volcanic activity underground. Bathing in them is a huge part of Japanese culture, and one of those experiences people always talk about when they visit.
The problem for us was tattoos.
Many onsens still don't allow guests with visible tattoos, so we'd assumed we'd have to skip it. We completely understand why the rules exist, but it was still a bit disappointing as we'd heard so much about them.
Then, after a fair bit of searching, we came across Fukiage Open-Air Onsen.
It was in the middle of the mountains, welcomed tattooed visitors and looked completely different from the indoor spa-style onsens we'd imagined.
We added it to our route through Hokkaido without really knowing what to expect.
You definitely need your own transport
One thing worth knowing before you set off is that this isn't somewhere you'll accidentally stumble across.
It's tucked away in the mountains near Daisetsuzan National Park and, as far as we could tell, there's no realistic public transport option that gets you anywhere close. If you're travelling around Hokkaido by campervan or hire car it's an easy detour. Without one, it would be pretty difficult.
The drive there was part of the experience. Long stretches of forest, hardly any traffic and the sort of roads where you wonder if your sat nav has completely lost the plot.
Eventually you arrive at a small parking area.
From there, it's only a few minutes on foot.
You walk down a gravel path, cross a wooden bridge with a river rushing underneath and then head down a set of steps.
That's when you first see the baths.
They're completely open to the surrounding forest, with steam drifting through the trees.
It didn't feel like a tourist attraction.
It just felt... peaceful.
We immediately discovered there isn't just one temperature
When we arrived there were only four other people.
Two were locals.
Two were Western travellers.
We'll let you guess which two people were happily wandering around completely naked.
Fukiage Open-Air Onsen is a mixed bathing onsen, although most people choose to wear a towel or swimwear if they're more comfortable. We'd probably built it up in our heads beforehand, but once we were there everyone was just quietly enjoying the hot spring. Nobody seemed remotely interested in what anyone else was doing.
Be the first to like this
No comments yet