I Looked Into Takegawara Onsen

On this blog, I've been keeping up a series where I look into and record day-trip hot springs and campsites that seem accessible even without a car, one by one, in my own way.

This time, I looked into Takegawara Onsen in Beppu City, Oita Prefecture. I'd seen the name around before, and I'd been curious about photos of the building with its striking karahafu-style gabled roof. When I found out it also has a unique bathing style called a sand bath, I felt like organizing what I knew about it for myself.

What Is Takegawara Onsen? A Landmark Karahafu Roof

Apparently, Takegawara Onsen is a public bathhouse run by Beppu City that was founded in 1879. The current building, a two-story wooden structure, was completed in 1938 and features a karahafu-style gabled roof at the front, combined with irimoya-style and yosemune-style roofing along with a mokoshi (pent roof), giving it a distinctive exterior. Even just looking at photos, it struck me as a building with quite a presence.

At the center of the first floor there's a high-ceilinged hall, with the sand bath to the west and separate baths for men and women to the east, apparently. On the second floor there's a large 90-tatami-mat hall with a coffered ceiling that was once used as a resting room for guests taking a hot spring cure, and is now apparently used as a community center. I also noticed that the bathing rooms don't have faucets for hot water — instead, you scoop water directly from the tub with a wooden bucket to wash yourself, an old-fashioned style that felt like a fitting feature for such a historic public bathhouse.

Komorin

The style of scooping hot water with a bucket instead of using a faucet really comes across as old-fashioned, even just from photos. It makes me want to try it myself.

The Famous Sand Bath Also Caught My Attention

When it comes to Takegawara Onsen, it seems the sand bath — where warmed sand is piled on your body — is famous. It has a separate fee and separate reception from the regular bath, and apparently it's open to those aged 6 and up. This unique bathing method, where you warm your body using the weight and heat of the sand, seems like it would be quite a different experience from a regular hot spring.

As for the water quality, it's said to differ between the men's bath, women's bath, and sand bath, though all are said to be chloride or bicarbonate springs, with a source temperature of around 52 to 54 degrees Celsius, drawn straight from the source without recirculation. That said, I couldn't confirm these details about water quality and temperature on the official website, so it's probably best to take this as reference information only.

Checking Hours, Prices, and Access

• Regular bath hours: 6:30 AM to 10:30 PM
• Sand bath hours: 8:00 AM to 10:30 PM (last admission at 9:30 PM, though it may close earlier depending on how crowded it gets)
• Closed days: Both the regular bath and sand bath are apparently closed on the third Wednesday of the month (or the following day if it falls on a holiday)
• Regular bath price: 300 yen for adults (junior high school age and up), 100 yen for children, and free for children under elementary school age. There also seem to be discount ticket books and resident bathing passes available.
• Sand bath price: 1,500 yen, or 13,500 yen for a 10-visit ticket book, apparently.
• No reservation is needed — it seems to operate on a same-day, walk-in basis.

As for access, it's about a 10-minute walk from JR Beppu Station along the station-front street. If you take a bus, you can get off at the stop in front of Yume Town on Nagarekawa Street from the east exit of JR Beppu Station, and it's about a 2-minute walk from there. Since it seems reachable on foot rather than needing a car, this felt like a convenient location for someone like me who doesn't own a car. The facility itself apparently doesn't have a parking lot, so if you're driving, you'd need to look for nearby parking.

Nearby there's apparently the Takegawara Koji Arcade, said to be the oldest surviving covered shopping arcade in Japan, and from what I found, it's also only about a 1-minute walk away. It sounds like it could be nice to take a stroll there along with visiting the hot spring.

Komorin

As someone who doesn't really drive, being within walking distance of the station was a really reassuring point for me. Not needing a reservation is nice too — it makes it feel easy to just drop by.

Rakuten Mobile Signal Conditions

When I checked this facility's location using the official "My Area Connectivity Simulation" tool, the overall rating came back as a "C". It seems like a good idea to check on the local connectivity situation ahead of time.

Since this facility is located in a built-up area of Beppu City, I initially assumed there wouldn't be any issues with connectivity, but when I actually checked, it came back as a C rating. You probably won't be looking at your phone much while you're actually in the bath, but when it comes to checking your route there and back or connectivity around the facility, it seems like it would be easier to plan ahead if you know this beforehand.

Komorin

Getting a C rating was a bit surprising to me too. It really drove home just how much things can vary from area to area.

If you're curious, it's probably worth checking for yourself with the official Rakuten Mobile tool before heading out.

Wrapping Up

Putting it all together again, my impression of Takegawara Onsen is that it's a public bathhouse with a long history dating back to its founding in 1879, a building with a striking karahafu-style gabled roof, and even a famous sand bath. Being within walking distance of the station is also a nice point for someone like me who doesn't own a car. As for the Rakuten Mobile signal, it came back as a C rating, so I felt it would be reassuring to check the connectivity situation ahead of time.

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Related Links

• Official Site