I Looked Into Yuasobidokoro Hakone no Yu

This blog has been on a bit of a streak of checking out not just campsites but day-use hot spring facilities too, and this time I reached for something a little different in flavor.

What got me curious was seeing information about an outdoor bath meant specifically for guests with their dogs. I'm an indoor type who doesn't currently have a dog, but I was simply curious about how a facility like that would work, so I decided to look into Yuasobidokoro Hakone no Yu in Hakone.

What kind of hot spring is Yuasobidokoro Hakone no Yu?

It's apparently a day-use hot spring facility located in the Yumoto-chaya area of Hakone Town, Ashigarashimo District, Kanagawa Prefecture. There's no overnight lodging—it's day-use only—with business hours from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM (last entry at 9:00 PM). Regular holidays are irregular, and the official site mentions something like "closed roughly one day every three months." If you want to know for sure whether it's open on a given day, it seems you're supposed to call and check.

The facility's biggest selling point, according to what I found, is that it owns two dedicated hot spring wells and uses 100% source-fed water on a non-circulating basis. It's apparently a natural hot spring drawing from 1,000 meters underground. While the water is mainly used on a flow-through basis, a sterilization and filtration system is also used in part, and they reportedly clean the baths and change the water every morning along with conducting Legionella hygiene testing. I couldn't confirm detailed figures like the specific type of hot spring, the flow volume, or the source temperature in the official site's main text, so I'll leave those out of this article.

There appear to be five types of baths: a vibra bath, a waterfall bath, a jet bath, a reclining bath, and an indoor bath (wooden construction), with everything except the indoor bath positioned as an outdoor bath. That said, I didn't get a clear sense from the official site of whether each bath has a roof or whether they're usable in rainy weather.

• Admission fee: 1,250 yen for adults, 600 yen for children (ages 4 through elementary school) (tax and bathing tax included)
• Time limit: None in particular. There doesn't seem to be any difference in pricing by time of day either
• Discount ticket book: 11,500 yen for a book of 11 tickets (sold at the front desk)
• Amenities: Shampoo, conditioner, body soap, and hair dryers are provided free of charge
• Payment method: Apparently cards aren't accepted, cash only
• Parking: 60 spaces total across the first and second lots, free of charge. It seems mid-size buses can be accommodated too

As for towel set and yukata rental fees, different pages on the official site listed different amounts—350 yen each on one, 300 yen each on another—and I couldn't tell which was the more current figure. The massage pricing had a similar issue, with one page saying "30 minutes from 3,500 yen" and another saying "20 minutes from 2,000 yen," so the official site doesn't seem entirely consistent there either. If you're planning to visit, it might be a good idea to double-check at the front desk on the day, just in case.

Komorin

Just having two dedicated hot spring wells already gives off a pretty serious vibe for a facility. The inconsistent pricing info is a little concerning, but it's the kind of thing you can just settle with a phone call before heading out.

Checking out the "Hyotan Buro" bath you can enjoy with your dog

This is the part I was most curious about this time. There's a facility called the "Hyotan Buro," a source-fed, non-circulating outdoor bath exclusively for small dogs, available only between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM, and apparently closed on rainy days. The fee is 2,000 yen for 2 hours plus 500 yen per dog, with extensions costing 1,000 yen per hour (it seems there's no extra charge for the dog during extensions), and two bath towels are included.

Advance phone reservations are required to use it, and apparently reservations are accepted even on weekends and holidays. There's also a note that if you use the dog-friendly rest room in the annex building (which has a restroom and microwave inside), you can use the Hyotan Buro for free, which gave me the impression that everything is set up to let you and your dog spend a relaxed full day together. The official site didn't specify any restrictions on dog breed or weight, so if that's something you're concerned about, it seems worth asking when you call to make a reservation.

Rest rooms, a light meal corner, and other ways to spend a relaxing "hokance"-style day

The main building apparently has a free tatami-floored rest room where you can bring in your own food and drinks freely, with no time limit. In addition, there are paid private rest rooms (eight 6-tatami-mat rooms and one 12-tatami-mat room), which come with a free DVD player and DVD rental. The pricing wasn't listed directly in the official site's main text, but checking the pricing page, it comes to 2,000 yen per 2 hours for the 6-mat rooms and 3,000 yen per 2 hours for the 12-mat room (extensions are 1,000 yen and 1,500 yen per hour respectively). Reservations for weekdays can apparently be made by phone, while weekends and holidays seem to be accepted only at check-in on the day.

At the light meal corner called "Dai no Chaya," the menu apparently includes items like tanuki soba or udon for 700 yen, zaru soba or udon for 700 yen, and curry soba or udon for 780 yen (the lineup seems to change seasonally). It operates in two shifts, from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM to 6:30 PM, and they also offer snacks like beer and edamame, plus drinks from vending machines. Massages can apparently also be booked at the front desk, though as mentioned earlier, the pricing information seems inconsistent there as well.

Nearby, there seem to be classic sightseeing spots like the Hakone-Yumoto hot spring town, Hakone Kowakien Yunessun, the Hakone Open-Air Museum, Owakudani, and Lake Ashi with Hakone Shrine, but I couldn't find a page on the official site covering nearby sightseeing, so I wasn't able to confirm specific distances or travel times from the facility. If you're planning to combine a visit with sightseeing, it might be safer to look those details up separately beforehand.

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 "C."

The official site's FAQ page also has a general note saying that signal quality can be poor due to the mountainous location, which struck me as lining up with what I found. Given that this is tucked into the mountains of Hakone, it seems like a good idea to check the connectivity situation ahead of time.

Komorin

Honestly, a C rating is a bit of a tough result. It might actually be perfect for a day when you want to soak in the hot spring and disconnect from everything, but if you're the type who needs to keep an eye on work messages, it's probably worth checking ahead of time.

Wrapping Up

Pulling it all together, Yuasobidokoro Hakone no Yu struck me as a rare type of day-use hot spring facility that combines a source-fed, non-circulating bath from two dedicated hot spring wells with a "Hyotan Buro" bath exclusively for guests with dogs. With rest rooms and a light meal corner also available, it seems designed to let you relax comfortably whether you're bringing a dog along or not.

That said, I did notice some inconsistencies in the official site's pricing info for towels, yukata, and massages, and the C rating for Rakuten Mobile signal is something worth keeping in mind before you go. If signal strength matters to you, it might be reassuring to check your destination's rating using the official tool beforehand.

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