Takeo Onsen Yumotoso Toyokan

Toyokan stands on Onsen-dori, a short walk from the vermilion gate that marks the heart of Takeo Onsen in Takeo City, Saga Prefecture. It opened in 1603 as a travelers lodging called Shokokuya and later served as a waki-honjin, the secondary official inn used during the Edo-period alternate attendance processions. The swordsman Miyamoto Musashi is said to have stayed here after the Shimabara Rebellion while shaping the ideas of his Book of Five Rings, and the well he reportedly used morning and evening still remains on the grounds. In 1896, when the railway reached the town, the neighboring Hiradoya and Shokokuya were merged and renamed Toyokan.

The water comes from the inn's own source, Daidai-no-yu, which rises within the property. The name is said to come from the daidai bitter-orange tree that once grew above the spring. It emerges at 46 degrees Celsius, a colorless and transparent simple spring with a gently alkaline character and a silky feel on the skin. It is said to help with nerve pain, joint and muscle aches, frozen shoulder, stiff shoulders, lower back pain, poor circulation, fatigue and skin condition. The pH value is not publicly disclosed.

There are two bathhouses. The first-floor source bath uses the spring with no added water, no reheating, no recirculation and no disinfection, and it holds the top Pure Onsen A certification from the Pure Onsen Association. The fourth-floor baths, Musashi-no-yu for men and Otsu-no-yu for women, recirculate the water to conserve the resource. The inn has 24 rooms, with rates from 15,750 yen per person including two meals. Check-in is at 15:00 and check-out at 11:00. Day-trip bathing is not offered; the baths are for overnight guests only.