A white fox came there every night to heal itself: the spring and a golden Jizō appeared in the rice paddy.
The legend, about 600 years old, tells of a Buddhist priest who noticed a white fox bathing every night in the same pool of water in the middle of a rice paddy: when the locals dug at that spot, they found a hot spring together with a small golden statue of Jizō. Hence the name, ‘field of hot water’. The spring flows at 63.6 °C with a pH of 9.14, among the most alkaline in Japan.
A spa town in the heart of Yamaguchi city, with many ryokan and five free public footbaths scattered along the streets; the newest, a viewpoint called ‘the fox's footprint’, opened in 2024. On 1 June 2025 a large public hot-spring park also opened, nicknamed ‘Konkon’ after the onomatopoeic cry of the fox in the legend.
ℹ️ Streets and public footbaths always accessible and free. The individual ryokan have their own baths and hours, to be checked with each establishment. 10 minutes on foot from JR Yuda Onsen Station; Yuda Onsen Smart IC exit on the Chūgoku Expressway.
🚉 Yudaonsen · 9 min walk
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