Kinosaki Onsen

photo by 663highland · CC BY 2.5

photo by 663highland · CC BY 2.5

Seven baths along the canal: here, in 1913, Shiga Naoya wrote his most widely read short story.

You tour the town in yukata (the light bathing robe) and geta, the wooden clogs, strolling along the willow-lined canal between the seven external public baths (外湯, sotoyu), each with its own water, its own architecture and its own legend: Kōno-no-yu tells of a wounded stork healed by its waters, Gosho-no-yu recalls the visit of a retired emperor in 1267. The writer Shiga Naoya stayed there for three weeks in 1913, recovering from a train accident, and wrote *At Kinosaki* (城の崎にて), the story that remains his most widely read; the town now has 23 literary stone monuments.

Hot spring town on the northern coast of the prefecture, in the municipality of Toyooka; the springs have been attested for over 1,300 years, traditionally since 717.

ℹ️ Gosho-no-yu open 7:00–23:00, closed on Thursdays. Admission 800 yen adults, 400 yen children; day pass for all seven baths (‘Yumepa’) 1,500 yen adults, 750 yen children. Many ryokan include access to the external baths as part of the stay.

🚉 Kinosaki-Onsen · 18 min walk

Sources: kinosaki-spa.gr.jp · kinosaki-spa.gr.jp · tajima.or.jp

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