I Looked Into Roadside Station Ryokami Onsen Yakushi-no-yu

I've looked into several day-use hot spring facilities attached to roadside stations before. Since I don't drive, whether a place is attached to a roadside station is also something I care about, as it helps me check whether I can get there by bus or shuttle service.

This time, I looked into Roadside Station Ryokami Onsen Yakushi-no-yu, located in the Chichibu area of Saitama Prefecture. It's an alkaline simple thermal spring with a pH of 9.2, so I figured the water might have that smooth, silky feel — and decided to organize what I found.

What Is Roadside Station Ryokami Onsen Yakushi-no-yu Like?

Apparently this is a day-use hot spring facility attached to a roadside station in Ogano, Chichibu District, Saitama Prefecture. It seems to be closed on Tuesdays (or the following day if Tuesday is a holiday) and during the New Year holidays, with opening hours from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM (last entry at 7:30 PM). Admission appears to be 700 yen for adults, 300 yen for elementary school students and under, and free for children under one year old, with a discount system apparently available for town residents.

The water source is named Ryokami Onsen Susukino-yu, and it's apparently a pH 9.2 alkaline simple thermal spring. There's no outdoor bath or sauna — it seems to be indoor bathing only — but it's described as a "spacious, panoramic bath," which gives the impression of a facility built around soaking leisurely in a large indoor bath.

You Can Also Enjoy Things Only a Roadside Station Offers

After bathing, there's apparently a soba restaurant where you can get handmade soba and udon made with local flour, as well as the Chichibu specialty waraji katsudon (a large breaded pork cutlet rice bowl), using a ticket-based self-service system. The attached farm and forest products direct-sales shop apparently carries local vegetables, fruit, and processed goods too, making this the kind of place where you can enjoy shopping alongside bathing, just as you'd expect from a roadside station.

For resting, there appear to be free tatami-floored large and medium common rooms, as well as four private rooms — each a 10-tatami-mat Japanese-style room — available for rent (1,000 yen per hour, admission fee not included). Since you can apparently eat meals in the private rooms too, this seems convenient for families or groups who want to relax at their own pace. There's also a facility where you can try making soba noodles, though this seems to require advance reservation.

Komorin

Since there's no outdoor bath, it seems like this place is going all in on the scale of the indoor bath instead. Being able to relax in a private room while eating soba also scores extra points for someone like me who prefers staying indoors.

Rakuten Mobile Signal Conditions

When I checked this facility's location using the official "My Area Coverage Simulation" tool, the overall rating came back as a "C."

Since the result came back as a C rating, it might be worth checking in advance depending on how you plan to use your phone there. A hot spring facility is basically a place to relax without worrying about signal, but if you're planning to use your smartphone while visiting the roadside station or for communication in the surrounding area, it might be reassuring to keep this result in mind beforehand.

Komorin

A C rating is a fairly honest number, to be fair. Maybe it's worth just accepting that this is a good time to put the smartphone down while soaking in the bath.

Wrapping Up

To sum it all up, Roadside Station Ryokami Onsen Yakushi-no-yu left me with the impression of a facility where you can relax and enjoy a pH 9.2 alkaline simple thermal spring in a spacious indoor bath. I also found it appealing that you can enjoy things unique to a roadside station, like the soba restaurant, the direct-sales shop, and the private rooms.

Rakuten Mobile signal conditions came back as a C rating, so if you're considering visiting and are concerned about signal, I think it would be reassuring to check with the official tool based on your own device and situation.

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Related Links

• Official Site