I Looked Into Bukou Campground

This blog goes through campgrounds, day-use hot springs, and inns one by one, and this time too I've been continuing my research mainly on places I can reach without a car.

What caught my eye this time was "Bukou Campground." I'd seen it listed as a tent-only campground, but I learned that you could apparently use the adjacent day-use hot spring at a discount, so as an indoor type, I got curious about the bathing situation and decided to look into it.

What Kind of Place Is Bukou Campground?

This campground is located in Yokoze Town, Chichibu District, Saitama Prefecture, apparently on the same grounds as Bukou Onsen, just behind it. There seem to be two types of sites to choose from: a "forest site" surrounded by trees with plenty of shade, and an open "riverside site" along the Yokoze River with a view of Mount Bukou. Both apparently allow car access, and it seems pets can stay with you too.

Lodging options are limited to car camping or solo camping where you bring your own tent and tarp — I didn't see any building-type facilities like cabins or bungalows. Pricing for car camping is apparently 5,500 yen per night (covering one car, one tent, one tarp, up to 4 people; 4,400 yen without a car), while solo camping runs from 2,200 yen on foot to 3,300 yen by car, with an extra 1,000 yen per additional person. Check-in is at 11:00 and check-out is at 10:00 the next day, and it looks like the site is open year-round in principle, though it may close temporarily depending on weather.

Reservations seem to be handled by going from the official site to an external booking site (Nap).

Komorin

It looks like a lot of the sites allow car access, and even though I actually have a driver's license, I don't drive, so I found myself feeling a little envious of that while looking into it.

Facilities That Seem to Cover Bathing Even With Tent-Only Stays

• Rental items: it looks like you can rent what you need on-site, such as tables for 2,000 yen/night, folding chairs, mattresses, and blankets each for 300 yen/night, and griddles for 700 yen/night
• Hot spring access: apparently campers can use the adjacent Bukou Onsen at a discounted rate, so it seems like even with a tent-only stay, you could cover bathing and meals through this hot spring facility
• Rain response: since there's no building-type lodging, I couldn't find any mention of indoor space to take shelter in during rain or bad weather based on the information available
• Detailed on-site facilities: I couldn't confirm details about things like restrooms, cooking areas, or showers on the site, as the official campground page didn't seem to mention them

As an indoor type, the hurdle of tent camping itself still remains for me, but being able to properly warm up at the hot spring looked like a reassuring point. That said, since there doesn't seem to be indoor shelter space for rainy weather, it might be safer to plan around the forecast.

Rakuten Mobile Signal Conditions

When I checked this location using the official "My Area Connectivity Simulation" tool, no result was displayed — instead I got a message saying something like "temporary maintenance is currently in progress." It seems this kind of message can appear when address data for a location hasn't been prepared yet, so in this case, I ended up unable to confirm the signal conditions.

To put it plainly without exaggerating, this is an "unknown" status — neither good nor bad can be determined. Since this is a mountain-area campground, actual signal conditions could vary quite a bit depending on the exact spot.

Komorin

Since I use Rakuten Mobile myself, not getting a result was honestly a bit concerning to me. In cases like this, I try not to force my way through the research and instead just write honestly that I couldn't confirm it.

Wrapping Up

To sum things up, what stood out to me about Bukou Campground was that even though it's a tent-only campground, you can use the adjacent Bukou Onsen at a discounted rate. With two types of sites — forest and riverside — plus car access and pets allowed, it seems like camping here could work for a wide range of styles. On the other hand, there's not much information about indoor shelter space for rain or the finer details of on-site facilities, so it might be reassuring to confirm these by phone or another method beforehand.

As for Rakuten Mobile signal conditions, no result came back, so I wasn't able to confirm anything definitive. If this matters to you, you can check using the official Rakuten Mobile tool, so it's probably worth taking a look before you head out.

This article includes a referral link for Rakuten Mobile's employee referral campaign. For details, please see our Disclaimer & Advertising Notice.

Related Links

• Official Site