Hot spring
Hot springs
These natural blessings pour forth in a variety of locations around the town. The oldest hot springs are more than 1,000 years old. You can warm your body by soaking in a hot spring, soothing away your aches and pains and giving your skin a beautiful glow.
Footbaths
If you come across one of these, take off your shoes and pop your feet in for a soak. Footbaths are said to be good for promoting health and relieving tiredness, and are great for warming up your body in the cold season.
Hot spring manju
These sweets are similar to pound cakes and are said to have been cooked using the steam from the hot springs in the old days. The center of these bite-size cakes is filled with sweet bean jam. These really are first-class hot spring manju.
Yukata
A yukata is an informal cotton kimono worn by the Japanese after a bath. In hot spring towns, it is very fashionable to enjoy a stroll in geta (wooden sandals) after soaking in the bath, and the yukata can be said to be the basic casual wear of visiting travelers. Why not try this?
Geta
This type of footwear has two small wooden boards fitted to the base of a larger wooden board. The center of the geta strap is threaded at the spot between the big toe and second toe, and the sandals make a clattering sound as you walk in them. The Japanese people love the charm of geta.
Geisha
These women clad beautifully in kimono are colorful and hospitable professional entertainers who appear at evening banquets. They put on a magnificent display of dancing and singing, and participate in festivals and other events.