Ibaraki

Ibaraki has 39 onsen areas and 157 springs (Ministry of the Environment, FY2024), with about 810,000 overnight stays a year. As the statistics show, 83 of its 157 springs come out of the ground below 25 °C, so cool springs are a feature here. The main bathing spots are Fukuroda on the Kuji River in the north, Izura and Hirakatako on the Pacific coast of Kitaibaraki, and Tsukubasan on the slopes of Mt Tsukuba.

Main onsen areas

Most onsen areas are in the north and along the coast. In Daigo, the Okukuji area, Fukuroda and Tsukiori pair naturally with a visit to Fukuroda Falls. The Kitaibaraki shoreline holds Izura, Hirakatako and Isohara. In the centre of the prefecture there are Tsukubasan and Itakomizuhara, and Oarai has springs by the sea.

Characteristic spring types

Chloride springs are the most common in our records, followed by bicarbonate and simple springs. The coastal springs at Izura and Hirakatako are chloride water, Tsukubasan is an alkaline simple spring, and Isohara in Kitaibaraki is a cool sulfur spring of the hydrogen-sulfide type.

Reachable by public transport

Fukuroda is served by Fukuroda Station on the JR Suigun Line, about 10 minutes by bus from the falls stop (Takimoto), though buses are infrequent. Izura and Hirakatako are 5–10 minutes by taxi from Otsuko Station on the JR Joban Line, and some inns offer pick-ups on request. For Tsukubasan, take the Tsukuba Express to Tsukuba Station and the Mt Tsukuba shuttle bus, about 40 minutes, to the shrine area.

For solo travellers

Fukuroda is reachable by train and makes an easy day of waterfall viewing and a bath.

Food & culture

Hirakata in Kitaibaraki is known for winter anglerfish dishes and Okukuji for its shamo chicken, raised for more than 100 days. Izura is the coast where Okakura Tenshin built the Rokkakudo pavilion around 1905, later moving the Japan Art Institute here. Mt Tsukuba itself is the sacred body of Tsukubasan Shrine, an ancient shrine said to have some 3,000 years of history, and a visit pairs well with a soak.