The best onsen
Lost in the mountains Suimeikann Karukaya Sanso hotel has a beautiful outdoor hot springs open for non-guests for a reasonable fee. The onsen has several large pools offering different water temperatures and overlooking beautiful mountains. We were the only europeans there. A benevolent Japanese holiday maker started a conversation with us in good English, which is rare. He said that he has tried many onsens in the area and this one is by far the best.
The water was blissfully hot and soft, peacefully steaming with a very light smell of sulfur. When I first immersed in it, I felt like all the worries of the day have melted away. In this world of complete relaxation and tranquility, contemplating the sunlit autumn slopes, only one thought hanged in my head “Japanese really have got it”.
In the context of our journey
Japan gave me a lot of “WOOOOW, i never seen this before” moments, and open air onsen was definitely one of them.
We were constantly cutting corners and trying to do everything in the cheapest possible way (not easy). So our journey to Japanese Alps was by bus from Matsumoto to Takayama (full itinerary here) with a stop half way in the heart of the mountains for some cable-car sight seeing and onsen.
Pursuing perfection
On arrival we learned that cable car was WAAAAAAY out of our budget, so it meant onsen only for us. Seb started googling which onsen we should go for as there are plenty in this area. I was upset about the cable-car situation and i was getting impatient and grumpy with Seb who was taking ages to find the best place. “why are you spending so much time researching, let’s just go to the closest one” … Thankfully Seb is a perfectionist. He found THE onsen that was a 20 min bus journey away, and it was such a great find. I felt embarrassed for my grumpiness earlier (well done Seb).
