大田原温泉 太陽の湯

Well maintained onsen in Otawara town. Went for a quick bath and it was very good. There are two onsens outside, and three inside (one is cold water). They have sauna as well. The spring water quality is really good. The property may be bit old (lockers were bit old may be), but otherwise they have maintained it well. Clean as such. There is a locker outside for your footwear as well (make sure you have 100 Yen coin for that - you get it back when you take out your footwear later). No coin is needed for lockers inside where you keep your clothes and valuable. Weekday prices were 700 JPY for adult on holiday so a bit on the pricier side may be. But worth it. Someone has posted full price details already (here on google maps only) in case you want to know - just go back a few comments. There were many people when we went. They also have food options and rest area. Free parking. Definitely recommend.

We arrived before noon on a Sunday, and the parking lot was empty. It was a ticket vending machine system. There was no shower area like the ones you often see near the entrance, so we had to shower over ourselves! The sauna was long and narrow, with two levels, and the inside was clean. There was a TV, but it felt too close if you were right in front of it, and the sound was quiet if you were far away. The open-air bath was nice, with chairs and a roof over the area where you could lie down, but there was only one bucket outside, which was a bit inconvenient. The meal menu was limited to light meals from 1:15 PM, so I thought it might be a little early. There was a good variety of baths, which was nice.

A lovely onsen for the traveling folk looking to rest for the night, or just to soak their bones. Otawara is a moderate sized onsen that offers the usual baths, plus the ability to rent a bath. The restaurant offers common onsen foods. As is my usual, I had お新香and冷奴.Great pickles and creamy soft tofu. I would love to come back here. Very inviting and friendly.

There are two saunas in the women's bath, and the salt sauna is low temperature, but if you place salt on your body and start to sweat, rub it on your body and wait, you will sweat nicely and your skin will become very smooth. There are also plenty of washing areas, so you don't have to worry even if it's crowded.

Temperature checks are still being conducted. The hot spring itself is of good quality and leaves your skin feeling smooth. Meals are available. Private baths are available. There is a bus stop nearby. There is also a bedrock bath, but its design is innovative.