Marugame Pokapoka Onsen

Poka Poka Onsen is a so-called public bath-style hot spring. As soon as you enter, there is a ticket machine, and behind it are the common space and dining area. There is a counter in the common space where you hand over your ticket and enter the separate baths for men and women. The seats in the washing area are artificial marble benches that connect to the person next to you. The types of baths available are hot water, electric baths, massage baths, two types of saunas (dry and salt), and an open-air bath, all in a compact space. Be aware that there are many stairs inside the baths. Each Poka Poka Onsen chain has a slightly different lineup of restaurants, but they are all of decent quality and are a welcome facility for travelers. There is a smoking area in a small room inside the room.

There's a large, free parking lot. I bought a 700 yen ticket from the ticket machine and went to the reception desk... There were a variety of baths, including indoor and outdoor baths and saunas. There were so many, it was hard to keep track (lol). There were a lot of older regulars, and they were having fun. Conditioner-in-shampoo and body soap were provided, and hair dryers were 20 yen for 3 minutes. The baths are chlorinated and circulated through a filtration system. It seems to be a mildly hypotonic alkaline cold mineral spring. Despite being an alkaline spring, my skin felt a bit rough.

♨ I stopped in hoping to warm up, but honestly it was lukewarm 😢 My impressions after using it twice: The bathtub was not designed to allow me to relax and submerge up to my shoulders 🥲... but the jets 💨 were 👍️ Lockers in the changing room were 100 yen coin return type Hair dryers were not Nanocare (50 yen) but even the regular models were charged (20 yen) 🛀 The bathing fee will increase by 20 yen from January 1, 2026! It's a shame 😖

The rude attitude of the short-haired female staff member left a very bad impression. When I rented a towel, they just handed me the towel without any explanation of how to return it. When I asked, they said there was a blue basket inside... I work in customer service, so I don't have any complaints about the hardware, but I think the software needs improvement...I don't want to come back.

A good range of pools inside, and two outside pools. Two sauna rooms. However, the layout can be difficult for older people because of different levels and slippery floor. Also the shower and cleaning area is an awkward design. Limited food available. Massage is also available - this used to be expensive but I think the price has dropped now. The facility is perfectly OK but not special.