S P O T ／ SPOT-324
Onto, Nagato Yumoto Onsen
長門湯本温泉 恩湯ながとゆもとおんせんおんとう
In Nagato City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, the public bath (sotoyu) at the heart of Nagato Yumoto Onsen — said to be the oldest hot spring in Yamaguchi. It originates from a "divinely bestowed hot spring" said to have been discovered in 1427 (Oei 34) by Joan Shuzen, the third abbot of the distinguished Soto Zen temple Dainei-ji, following an oracle from Sumiyoshi Daimyojin, the first shrine of Nagato Province — a venerable bath with some 600 years of history. Its defining feature is a singular sacred space in which deity and hot spring are fused: the spring source is still owned by Dainei-ji, and Sumiyoshi Daimyojin is enshrined within the bath. Completely rebuilt to an architect's design and reopened in 2020, it is known for a bath that incorporates the spring source welling from the rock face along the Otozure River, and as the symbol of the regeneration of the whole hot-spring town. Its water is a gentle simple alkaline hot spring (pH 9.62).
H I G H L I G H T S
Highlights
- 01The roughly 600-year-old "divinely bestowed hot spring" legend (discovered by the monk Joan via an oracle of Sumiyoshi Daimyojin)
- 02A syncretic Shinto-Buddhist sacred space where the temple Dainei-ji owns the source and Sumiyoshi Daimyojin is enshrined within the bath
- 03A 2020-renovated bath incorporating the spring source welling from the rock face along the Otozure River
- 04The emblematic public bath of Nagato Yumoto Onsen, said to be Yamaguchi's oldest hot spring
A C C E S S ／ M E T A
Essentials
- Location
- Yamaguchi Prefecture Nagato City
- Address
- 山口県長門市深川湯本2265
- Fee
- 大人 990円／子ども(4〜12歳) 500円／一日入浴券(大人) 1,500円／貸切入浴 30,000円
- Hours
- 10:00〜22:00（不定休。公式・SNSで要確認）
- Status
- 現存（2020年に建て替え・リニューアル開業）
- Official
- https://onto.jp/
- Nearest
- JR美祢線「長門湯本駅」
- Walk
- 12 min
- Parking
- あり（温泉街の共用駐車場を利用）
- Time
- 1〜2時間（入浴・周辺散策）