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Old onsen in Hakone An onsen (温泉; often indicated on signs and maps by 湯 or ゆ, for hot water) is a Japanese hot spring. The onsen is basically a Japanese public bath ( sento) with natural hot spring water, and its history and etiquette are very related to the sento. The onsen plays an important role in Japanese culture, providing (socially) institutionalised relief from the pressures of the contemporary Japanese twelve-hour work ethic and a chance for Japanese to break down the hierarchal nature of society through the mutual nakedness of skinship.

Ideally, they should be outdoors, use naturally hot water directly extracted from a natural volcanic spring, and they are often embellished with (or, in the cheaper varieties, replaced by) a wide variety of extravagant spa bath s, artificial waterfalls and saunas. The essential difference between an onsen and a sento (communal bath house) is that the water in an onsen must be volcanic spring in origin, even if reheated, whereas a sento may use ordinary heated water. Onsen water is often thought to have healing powers according to its mineral properties and onsens often have several different baths, each augmented by the addition of different minerals or the composition of the tub.

A key feature of the onsen is that as well as mere bathing facilities, there should be accommodation, extravagant cooking and all manner of relaxing pastimes - massages, aromatherapy, relaxation rooms and comfortable surrounds. Essentially, the onsen should be the diametric opposite of everything in normal, hectic day-to-day Japanese life.

1 Incomplete list of onsen

• Sounkyo , Hokkaido
• Onneyu , Hokkaido
• Jozankei , Hokkaido
• Noboribetsu, Hokkaido
• Toya , Hokkaido
• Futamata , Hokkaido
• Yunokawa, Hokkaido
• Asamushi , Aomori
• Geto , Iwate
• Hanamaki, Iwate
• Naruko, Miyagi
• Zao, Yamagata
• Akayu , Yamagata
• Senami , Niigata
• Yuzawa, Niigata
• Shiobara , Tochigi
• Kinugawa , Tochigi
• Shima, Gunma
• Sawatari, Gunma
• KusatsuKusatsu (; -shi) is a city located in Shiga, Japan. As of 2003, the city has an estimated population of 117,381 and the density of 2,434. 28 persons per km². The total area is 48. The city was founded on October 15, 1954. External links in Japanese., Gunma
• Ikaho , Gunma
• AkagiTwo ships of the Japanese Navy have been named Akagi . The name Akagi means "Red Castle" which refers to a volcano in the Kanto area. The first Akagi was a gunboat of the Sino-Japanese War. The second Akagi was an aircraft carrier during World War II., Gunma
• Tsurumaki , Kanagawa
• Hakone, Kanagawa
• IzuIzu may refer to. The Izu Peninsula, located near Tokyo, Japan Izu Province, a part of modern-day Shizuoka prefecture Izu is a vessel of the Japanese Coast Guard, the Maritime Safety Agency., Shizuoka
• AtamiAtami (; -shi) is a city located in Shizuoka, Japan. The name literally means "hot ocean", a reference to the town's famous onsen hot springs. Atami has been a resort since the 8th century, and is now part of Hakone-Izu National Park. As of 2003, the city, Shizuoka
• Sumatakyo , Shizuoka
• Shimobe , Yamanashi
• Kakeyu , Nagano
• SuwaSuwa (; -shi) is a city located in Nagano, Japan. As of 2003, the city has an estimated population of 53,600 and the density of 491. 47 persons per km². The total area is 109. The city was founded on August 10, 1941. Every seven years (in the year of the, Nagano
• Gero , Gifu
• Unazuki , Toyama
• Wakura , Ishikawa
• TakarazukaTakarazuka (; -shi) is a city located in Hyogo, Japan. As of 2003, the city has an estimated population of 218,213 and the density of 2,143. 55 persons per km². The total area is 101. The city was founded on April 1, 1954. This city is the home of the pop, Hyogo
• Arima, Hyogo
• Shirahama, Wakayama
• Miasa , Tottori
• Dogo, Ehime
• Beppu, Oita
• Ibusuki, Kagoshima