Kumo no Ue no Onsen

Kumo no Ue no Onsen is a day-use hot spring at the heart of Tarogawa Park in Yusuhara Town, Takaoka District, Kochi Prefecture, on the western flank of the Shikoku Karst plateau. Set in mountain country ringed by cedar forest and terraced rice fields, it anchors the park alongside the Kitsutsuki nature study centre and a campground. Yusuhara calls itself the town above the clouds, and the neighbouring Kumo no Ue Hotel, completed in 1994, was one of architect Kengo Kuma's earliest timber buildings. That hotel's main building has been closed since October 2021 for reconstruction, and as of August 2026 no reopening date has been announced.

The facility describes its water as a cold bicarbonate mineral spring containing metaboric acid and fluoride ions. The source emerges at 18.3 degrees Celsius with a pH of 9.1 and a reported yield of 180 litres per minute. Its smooth, alkaline touch has earned it the local name of a beauty bath, and it is credited with easing neuralgia, muscle and joint pain, poor circulation and chronic skin conditions. Because the source falls below the 25-degree threshold, the water is heated before use, although the operator describes the supply as free-flowing spring water. Drinking the water is not permitted.

Bathing facilities include an indoor bath, an open-air bath, jet baths, a jacuzzi, a cascade bath, a rotating medicinal bath, a sauna and a cold plunge. An indoor heated pool adjoins the baths and combined onsen-and-pool tickets are sold. Admission for visitors from outside the town is 700 yen for adults and 350 yen for children, while residents pay 500 and 300 yen. Hours are 11:30 to 22:00 Wednesday through Sunday and 15:00 to 22:00 on Tuesday, with last entry at 21:30 and closure on Mondays; winter hours end an hour earlier. A dining room and shop are on site, and free parking is available for about 80 cars.