Shiga

Shiga has 27 onsen areas and 86 springs (Ministry of the Environment, FY2024), with more than 1.18 million overnight stays a year. Most of its springs are cool: only two reach 42°C, while 40 are below 25°C. The best known is Ogoto, a few stops from Kyoto Station on the Kosei Line, and in the north around Nagahama the baths are tied to the stories of the warring-states era.

Main onsen areas

On the west shore of Lake Biwa, Ogoto in Otsu sits at the eastern foot of Mt Hiei looking out over the lake. In the north, Nagahama has Nagahama Taiko near the station and Sugatani in the hills, and Takashima has Makino Shirotani.

Characteristic spring types

Simple springs are the most common in our records, followed by iron and bicarbonate springs. Ogoto is an alkaline simple spring at pH 9.0. Nagahama Taiko is an iron spring and Sugatani an iron-bearing bicarbonate spring, while Makino Shirotani is a weakly radioactive cold mineral spring.

Reachable by public transport

For Ogoto, take the JR Kosei Line (not the Biwako Line) about five stops from Kyoto to Ogoto-onsen Station; the Agaryanse day spa runs a free shuttle and the inns offer pick-ups. Nagahama Taiko is about 10 minutes' walk from JR Nagahama Station, and Sugatani about 8 minutes by car from Kawake Station on the JR Hokuriku Line.

For solo travellers

Ogoto is within day-trip range of Kyoto and has a foot bath, a large day spa and inns that take day bathers, so it is easy to visit on your own.

Food & culture

Ogoto lies at the eastern foot of Mt Hiei and its World Heritage temple Enryaku-ji, and the tourism association suggests pairing the two. Every inn is a certified Omi-beef restaurant. Nagahama Taiko rises from the site of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's castle, and Sugatani is said to be where the warlord Azai Nagamasa and his wife Oichi came to bathe.