Public bathhouse · Open
Yakushi-yu
- Day-use bathing
- Yes
- Fee
- ¥200checked 2026-10-09
- Hours
- Unconfirmedchecked 2026-10-09
Photo information
Save to passport
Official classification
Spring type (therapeutic classes)
Official spring-type name (as recorded)Weak saline (sodium chloride) spring, close to neutral and weakly alkaline
- Source temperature
- 100°C
- pH
- Unconfirmed
- Flow rate
- Unconfirmed
- Radon
- Unconfirmed
Appearance & feel
Water colour · Feel
Clear
Colour and feel are listed only where a source states them. They vary by day and by bath.
What makes it special
Springs at 98°C rise at 26 points around town, and steam drifts up all over this gorge-side spa.
Why?
The Tsuetate Onsen Tourism Association says the springs gush out at about 98°C from 26 points in town, and that the steam that defines the townscape comes from this scalding water.[1]
Facilities in this area
Facilities come from the register (Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, official sites). Those marked "natural spring unconfirmed" are listed on the basis of their name only.
Public bathhouse · Open
Motoyu
- Day-use bathing
- Yes
- Fee
- ¥0checked 2026-10-09
- Hours
- Unconfirmedchecked 2026-10-09
Day-use bath · Open
Kannon-iwa Onsen private baths
- Day-use bathing
- Yes
- Fee
- ¥1,000checked 2026-10-09
- Hours
- 9:00–22:45 (reception)checked 2026-10-09
Day-use bath · Open
Shiraiwa Onsen private baths
- Day-use bathing
- Yes
- Fee
- ¥600checked 2026-10-09
- Hours
- 24時間checked 2026-10-09
Getting there
Reachable by public transport
From JR Hita Station on the Kyudai Line, take the Hita Bus bound for Tsuetate (about 50 min; about 2 hr 10 min from Hakata via Hita). Highway buses for Kurokawa Onsen from Fukuoka Airport and Hakata stop here (about 2 hr 30 min). From Kumamoto, change at Aso Station to a Sanko bus (about 3 hr 10 min).
- Getting there
- Hita Station · 50
- Checked
- 2026-10-09
About the water
Clear, colourless, mildly salty water that comes out at 98–100°C. The tourism association describes it as gentle on the skin and rich in metasilicic acid, often called a natural moisturiser. It is far too hot to bathe in as it comes, so the shared and private baths cool it with added water.
Indications (as posted on the analysis)
Rheumatism, skin conditions, neuralgia, muscle and joint pain, frozen shoulder, motor paralysis, joint stiffness, bruises, sprains, chronic digestive complaints, haemorrhoids, sensitivity to cold, convalescence, fatigue, general health, cuts, burns, obesity, skin beautification (as listed by the tourism association)
Indications are an official statement based on the water analysis, not a guarantee of treatment. They are kept separate from opinions.
| Source | Source temperature | pH | Radon | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tsuetate Onsen (26 sources) | 98 | Unconfirmed | Unconfirmed | no check date |
Three things not to miss
Photo information
Tsuetate Koinobori (carp streamer) Festival
Over the Tsuetate River in the middle of town Every year from late March to late April (except Golden Week) carp streamers hang from ropes strung across the river. It began, they say, by throwing a ball tied to a rope across to the other bank.
The tourism association calls Tsuetate the birthplace of the carp streamer festivals now seen all over Japan.[3]
Photo information
Steam cookers and steam baths
Around town and in many inns At the town's shared mushiba you can steam eggs, sweet potatoes and vegetables in natural spring vapour. Many inns have mushi-yu, a kind of natural steam sauna; styles vary from cave-like rooms to boxes you sit in with only your head outside.
Locals say 'catch a cold, go to the steam bath first': steam is part of everyday life here.[1][2][10]
Photo information
Sedoya alleys and the shared baths
One lane back from the riverside street Sedoya is a maze of alleys created by decades of piecemeal building during the town's Showa-era heyday. At shared baths such as Yakushi-yu and Gozen-yu you drop ¥200 in the box. Motoyu, a half-open rock bath by Momiji Bridge, is free.
Old photographs hang along the alleys, and simply wandering between baths is the pleasure.[2][4][5]
The story
A royal birth bath and a sprouting staff
According to the tourism association, Tsuetate's story goes back more than 1,800 years: Empress Jingu is said to have used water from a sacred spring up this river to bathe her newborn, the future Emperor Ojin. The name, 'standing staff', comes from a tale that Kobo Daishi visited in the early Heian period, planted his bamboo staff, and watched it sprout leaves.[2]
From toji town to Kyushu's hideaway
Guests once stayed a week or two for toji, long-stay therapeutic bathing, and in the early Showa era the town boomed as an entertainment quarter known as Kyushu's hideaway. Endless extensions from those days created the maze-like Sedoya alleys, and inns geared to long stays still remain.[2][1]
Where the private family bath began
The tourism association credits Shiraiwa Onsen as the birthplace of the kazoku-buro, the private family bath rented by the hour. Around 1996 it obtained a new kind of bathing licence, setting off the private-bath boom that spread across Kyushu.[7]
Going solo
Solo stay unconfirmedUnconfirmed
Weekend / peak restrictionsUnconfirmed
Where to eat dinnerUnconfirmed
Private bathYes
checked 2026-10-09
Through the year
Recommended months
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Months open
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
"Recommended" and "open" are recorded separately. Check the season for seasonal springs.
Mar · Apr — Koinobori Festival (late March to late April, except Golden Week)
Jan — Dondoya fire festival (14 January)
Nov · Dec · Jan · Feb — Steam plumes show best in cold weather
Food, culture & experiences
Steam cooking at the mushiba
Buy vegetables and eggs at the Hosaku Ichiba market on the highway, then steam them at a town mushiba[10]
Torin Rurido and Tsuetate Yakushi halls
Halls tied to the legend of Kobo Daishi's staff sprouting leaves; Yakushi-yu bath is beneath[3]
Matsubara Dam cruise
Early November to early May, about an hour from the pier near Tsuetate Tunnel[3]
Editors' guide
Rest your feet at the Oyu-no-eki footbath, buy eggs or vegetables and steam them at a mushiba, then thread through the Sedoya alleys to Yakushi-yu (¥200) and finish in an inn's steam bath. Come in spring for the carp streamers.
The "editors' guide" above is written by the editors from sources; it is not a visitor's opinion.
Photo gallery
Visitor reviews
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Review posting is in preparation, with visit date, facility, comments on water, scenery and access, photos, language and reporting.
Onsen areas nearby
Unconfirmed & notes
- Shared-bath hours and solo stays are unconfirmed; shared and private bath details come from the association's facility pages, which may be dated
- Travel time from Hita Station is from Wikipedia
Sources
- 杖立の温泉(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 杖立について(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 杖立のみどころ(鯉のぼり祭り・薬師堂・松原ダム)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 薬師湯(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 元湯(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 観音岩温泉家族風呂(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 白岩温泉家族風呂(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- アクセス(杖立温泉観光協会)杖立温泉観光協会 · 2026-10-09
- 杖立温泉 - WikipediaWikipedia · 2026-10-09
- 杖立温泉 旅館組合 公式サイト杖立温泉旅館組合 · 2026-10-09
Register sources
- 杖立温泉 - Wikipedia(日本語版)Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-10-09
- Wikidata Q11523574Wikidata · CC0 · 2026-10-09
Data status
Name & locationPublishedCoordinatesPublishedSpring typePublishedPhotosPublishedFacilitiesPublishedVisiting info (dated)PublishedEditorial articlePublished
Updated 2026-10-09
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