Umegashima Onsen Yunoyado Ichikawa

Yunoyado Ichikawa is a family-run inn in Umegashima Onsen, tucked into the headwaters of the Abe River at the northernmost edge of Aoi Ward, Shizuoka City, at an elevation of roughly 900 meters. Umegashima Onsen is an ancient spring said to have been opened around 1,700 years ago in the era of Emperor Ojin, and it has long been known as a hidden bath of the warlord Takeda Shingen and a secret retreat of Tokugawa Ieyasu. The inn itself was founded in 1967 and is run largely by sisters.

The water is an alkaline simple sulfur spring with a high pH of about 9.4. Because the source temperature is a modest 40 degrees Celsius, the water is piped from a source about two kilometers upstream and only warmed to bathing temperature, then supplied as free-flowing spring water. The faint scent of sulfur and a smooth, lotion-like texture have earned it a reputation as a beauty-enhancing bath, said to help with bruises, sprains, fatigue, rheumatism and women's ailments.

The bathhouse offers separate indoor baths for men and women and, uncommon among Umegashima's inns, an open-air bath. Day-trip bathing costs 600 yen per hour and overnight stays start from 11,500 yen with two meals, featuring locally sourced mountain kaiseki cuisine that earned the inn a 2024 Jalan Award. Free parking is available for 15 cars.