Kitsu Onsen Kitsukan

Kitsukan is a hot spring inn standing beside the waters of Kitsu Onsen in a rural setting near the Yuhigaura coast in Aminocho Kitsu, Kyotango City, Kyoto Prefecture. Kitsu Onsen is said to be the oldest hot spring in Kyoto Prefecture, discovered in the Nara period by the monk Gyoki, who is said to have found it after seeing a wounded white heron heal itself in the water; for this reason it is also known as Shirasagi (White Heron) Onsen. Legend holds that during the Tenpyo famine, Gyoki urged people to bathe in the spring and thereby quelled an epidemic. Kitsukan is a single-story inn with just four guest rooms, welcoming only four groups a day, and is known as a quiet, secluded retreat overlooking a Japanese garden.

The spring is an alkaline simple spring, emerging at a source temperature of about 41 degrees Celsius with an abundant flow of roughly 1,400 liters per minute. The colorless, transparent, and gentle water is drawn directly from the source and served free-flowing, a point of pride for the inn.

Beyond its cherished indoor bath, the small inn offers a relaxed, unhurried soak, and the entire property can even be reserved for private use. Stays center on overnight plans with two meals featuring the seafood bounty of the Tango region. Parking is free. The nearest station is Yuhigaura-Kitsuonsen Station on the Kyoto Tango Railway Miyazu-Toyooka Line, within walking distance of the inn.