Is Yugawara Onsen Worth It? Japanese Visitors Pick the Town Between Hakone and Atami Precisely Because Nothing Happens There
湯河原温泉は行く価値があるか？ 日本人の本音は「何も無いから選ばれている」
By Rakutaro · Tokyo, Japan
Yugawara is one stop before Atami on the same line, and in a 176-comment thread under a walk through its shuttered inns, the arithmetic Japanese visitors keep doing is a comparison, not a lament. The most-liked answer (109 likes) comes from someone who lives in Atami and sends you further up the valley, to Oku-Yugawara. Below it, the pattern people describe again and again is to spend the day in Atami or Hakone and come back to Yugawara to sleep, because the crowds and the prices are next door and the water is here. One commenter went looking for a room over a long weekend and found the whole town sold out. A man who has lived there since birth is blunter about what is missing.
“About thirty years ago Atami was the ruins and Yugawara was the lively one, but lately it's the reverse, isn't it (^_^;)”
30年前くらいは熱海が廃墟で湯河原がにぎわっていたんだけど、昨今は逆転現象か(^_^;)
Where Japanese visitors go instead
I'm from Atami. What I'd recommend in Yugawara is the strip of hot spring inns up the mountain that people call Oku-Yugawara. The atmosphere is pretty good, though it's lined with expensive inns and the main crowd may well be older people whose whole trip is staying inside the inn.
地元が熱海の者です。 湯河原でお勧めなのが、奥湯河原と云われる 山のほうにある温泉宿街です。 雰囲気は結構良いですが、高額な宿が立ち並びやはり 宿内から出ない巣ごもり旅行を目的とした高齢者層がメインかもしれません。
— @rynsaxophonebros8837Most liked109 likesMy favorite pattern is playing in Atami during the day, then coming back to Yugawara in the evening to stay the night.
日中は熱海で遊んで夕方湯河原に戻ってお泊まり、が好きなパターン。
— @yunii382261 likesThirty or forty years ago, whenever work wore me out, I'd drive down from Tokyo on my own for a day trip to Kogome no Yu in Yugawara. I'd soak in water surrounded by greenery, sit there vacantly, eat simmered fish like kinmedai and go home. Sometimes Yutoro Sagasawa no Yu instead. When I took the children it was places like Hakone Kowakien or a seaside onsen in Izu. The appeal of Yugawara was that it hadn't been turned into a tourist attraction. Back then I wanted to shut myself away in Yugawara on my own for a week 😅
今から30〜40年ほど前には仕事で疲れると東京からひとり、車で湯河原のこごめの湯に日帰りで行っていました。緑豊かなお湯に浸かってボケーとし、キンメなどの煮魚食べて帰ってました。たまにゆとろ嵯峨沢。 子ども連れて行く時は箱根小涌園とか伊豆の海辺の温泉でしたけれど。 湯河原は観光地化していないのが魅力でしたね。その頃はひとりで1週間くらい湯河原に籠りたかったです😅
— @grandma-mama11 likes
Places named in this article
Some links on this page are affiliate links — if you book through one, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Which places appear here is decided by the source comments only.
- Oku-YugawaraYugawara, Kanagawa
The strip of hot spring inns further up the mountain, and the single most-liked recommendation in the thread (109 likes), from a commenter who lives in Atami. Expensive inns, and a crowd that mostly stays inside them.
- Tsubaki (Kaiseki-ro Tsubaki)Miyakami, Yugawara
The inn commenters name when they describe Oku-Yugawara's high end: one calls it the representative of the wealthy-guest ryokan Yugawara was originally built around (2 likes), another simply remembers staying there.
4.48★ from 336 guest reviews on Rakuten Travel (as of Sep 2026)
8.4/10 from 96 international guests on Agoda · Check rates and availability on Agoda
- Kogome no YuMiyakami, Yugawara
The town's day-use bath, and where one commenter used to drive down alone from Tokyo when work wore him out. 1,100 yen for adults from 9:00 to 19:00, 600 yen after that, closed Mondays.
Sources: yugawara.or.jp — checked 2026-09-11
- Yugawara Soyu Books and Retreat (Manyo Park)Miyakami, Yugawara
The retreat a resident calls the good place at the end of the video, built on the site of the old Doppo no Yu foot baths. Closed since 14 October 2025 and reopening 18 September 2026; the entrance terrace with its cafe, coworking space and foot bath is free, the bathing terrace is 3,500 yen for three hours without a meal and needs a reservation.
Sources: yugawara.or.jp — checked 2026-09-11
- Iida ShotenToi, Yugawara
The ramen shop commenters say is now the most famous name in town. Reservation only: 11:00 to 15:00, closed Sunday to Tuesday, bookings open each Sunday at 16:00 for the following Wednesday to Saturday.
Sources: yugawara.or.jp — checked 2026-09-11
- Yutoro Sagasawa no YuYoshihama, Yugawara
The other day bath in the thread, on a rise away from the onsen quarter. One commenter used to alternate it with Kogome no Yu; another stops there for the sashimi set on the way home.
- Chibori Sweets Factory YugawaraToi, Yugawara, three minutes on foot from the station
A 17-like recommendation: a cookie buffet with a drink, quoted at 880 yen as of the comments. The maker's own shop runs it as a 60-minute all-you-can-eat with one drink, 10:00 to 17:00, and there is parking.
Sources: yugawara.or.jp — checked 2026-09-11
Named in the source comments. Where a note gives a price, opening status or rule, we checked it against the linked source on the date shown — everything else is what the comments said. All of it can change; check the map listing before you go.
FAQ
- Is Yugawara Onsen worth visiting?
- For the water and for doing nothing, yes. For a town to walk around, no. Repeat visitors describe the same trade: Atami is expensive and packed and Hakone's buses are hard work, while Yugawara stays calm (49 likes). The counter comes from a man who has lived there since birth, who says there is nothing for young people and nowhere to walk around and see (35 likes).
- How do you get to Yugawara from Tokyo?
- On one train. Yugawara is on the JR Tokaido Line, about 1 hour 45 minutes from Tokyo Station with no change, and the ordinary fare is 1,790 yen. The onsen quarter is not at the station: it runs up the valley, and buses go from the station. Commenters warn that the whole area is on a slope, so check which stop you want before you get on.
Sources: ekitan.com — checked 2026-09-11
- Can you bathe in Yugawara without staying the night?
- Yes. Kogome no Yu, the town's day-use bath, is 1,100 yen for adults from 9:00 to 19:00 and 600 yen from 19:00 to 21:00, closed Mondays. The bigger facility in Manyo Park, Yugawara Soyu Books and Retreat, has been shut since 14 October 2025 and reopens on 18 September 2026; a three-hour bathing slot without a meal is 3,500 yen and has to be reserved.
Sources: yugawara.or.jp · yugawara.or.jp — checked 2026-09-11
- What is the best-known thing in Yugawara now?
- Ramen, according to the thread: one commenter says the biggest name in Yugawara today may be Iida Shoten (21 likes). It is reservation-only, serves 11:00 to 15:00 and closes Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, taking bookings each Sunday at 16:00 for the following Wednesday to Saturday. A resident adds that customers do come in from other prefectures for it, and that it stops there (4 likes).
Sources: yugawara.or.jp — checked 2026-09-11
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What Japanese visitors said — picked from the top 156 of 176 comments
If anything, because it isn't on the level of Hakone or Atami it stays calm, a bit of a hidden spot, and I like the place.
むしろ箱根熱海ほどではないではないから落ち着いててやや穴場ですきな場所
My image of Yugawara is high-end ryokan. Old establishments where the great novelists used to stay, that sort of thing.
湯河原は高級旅館というイメージだな。かつて文豪が泊まった老舗旅館とか
For the last few years I've been coming over from the far end of the Boso Peninsula where I live, to Kanagawa and Shizuoka, soaking at Hakone, Atami, Ito and Yugawara. Atami is a tourist town where everything is expensive and it's packed and tiring, and at Hakone the inbound crowds make even getting on a bus hard work, whereas my impression of Yugawara is that it's calm and you can take your time with the bath. It is, though, a slightly awkward distance from the station.
ここ数年、自宅のある房総半島の端っこから神奈川県や静岡県を訪れ箱根、熱海、伊東、湯河原で温泉を楽しんでいます。熱海は何でもお高い観光地で人が一杯で疲れる、箱根はインバウンドでバスに乗るのも大変なのに対し湯河原は落ち着いていてゆっくりと温泉を楽しめるという印象ですがやはり駅からは微妙に遠いですね。
When I think about a hot spring close to home over a long weekend and look Yugawara up on Rakuten Travel or Yahoo Travel, everywhere is full and I can't get a booking. So I'd assumed Yugawara was as popular as Atami. Even when something is left there's no cheap hotel like the ones in Atami, so it drops off my list anyway.
連休に近場で温泉でもと思って、楽天トラベルやYahooトラベルで湯河原温泉を調べると、どこも満室で予約が取れないです。なので湯河原も熱海同様人気があるものだと思っていました。残っていても、熱海のような安いホテルがなく結局、選択肢から外れるんですが。
Come on, that opening shot, what day and what time did you film that. Even on an ordinary weekday there are more tourists than that, and shops you've filmed with the shutters down do open. The people who live there are going to be angry about this. You've made it look far more negative than it is.
いやいや、冒頭のシーン、何曜日の何時に撮影してんだよ 普通に平日でももっと観光客いるしシャッター閉まってるお店も営業してるよ これは地元の人怒るよ めっちゃネガティブなイメージにしてる
I've lived in Yugawara since I was born, and everything this video sums up is right, all I could do was nod 😅 Even those of us who live here think there's nothing for young people to enjoy and nowhere to walk around and see.
生まれてからずっと湯河原に住んでいますがこの動画でまとめてもらっている通りで頷くしかありませんでした😅 若い人が楽しめる施設や観光して回れる所がないよなと地元民ですら思います…
The water at Yugawara is good and I used to go fairly often, but the poor flow of the place, exactly as you point out, put me off. The best-known thing in Yugawara now might be Iida Shoten. Personally I can't bring myself to pay that much for a bowl of ramen, but a scheme where staying at an inn got you a discount on the ramen would be interesting.
湯河原は泉質も良く、私も過去にはちょくちょく通っていたのですが、ご指摘の通りの動線の悪さに足が遠のいてしまいました。今、湯河原でいちばん知名度があるのは飯田商店かもしれませんね。個人的にはあの価格のラーメンを食べる気にはならないのですが、「宿に宿泊したらラーメン割引」みたいな企画をやったら面白そうです。
Yugawara Onsen is away from the station, you see. It's a resort from the era when a hot spring ryokan was the main thing you booked. For what it's worth, the part of Yugawara town that's actually thriving commercially is the side to the left of the station. The seaward side is mostly flat, so there's a lot of housing and a shopping street over there. And because the roads through the onsen quarter were narrow, the road coming down from Hakone being turned into a bypass cut visitor numbers too, didn't it. Well, if you're driving yourself and you don't plan to stay, you skip the Yugawara onsen quarter. There was a time when plenty of guests walked around the onsen quarter. It started around the bubble years, I think, when ryokan meals got lavish and guests stopped going out into the town.
湯河原温泉は駅から離れているからね。温泉旅館が宿泊先のメインだった時代の観光地ですよ。 ちなみに、湯河原町の商業エリアとして栄えているのは駅から左に行った方。海に面した側は平地が多いので多くの住宅地と商店街があります。 それと温泉街の道が狭かったので、箱根から降りてくる道がバイパスになったのも訪れる人を減らしたね？まあ、自分で運転するなら泊まる気がないなら湯河原の温泉街はパスするものね。 昔は多くの宿泊客が温泉街を歩いていたんですよ。バブルの頃からかな？旅館の料理が豪華になって、客が温泉街に出なくなったのは。
I worked on the land readjustment in front of the station about thirty years ago, and even then the onsen quarter was deserted and the guests were mostly elderly. It left me feeling a bit flat.
30年ほど前、駅前の区画整理に携わりましたが、その時も温泉街は閑散としていましたし、客は高齢者が多く、何だかな〰️でした。
Even a simple spring like this one contains sulfur and other components, so the pipes deteriorate quickly and replacing them costs an enormous amount. That is what pushes places to close down!
単純泉といえども、硫黄成分などを含んでいるので、配管の傷みが早く、交換工事には莫大な費用が掛かります。コレが廃業を選ぶ原因になっています！
Steep slopes, narrow roads and small parking lots make it awkward to reach by car, but in exchange there are few people about and the impression is quiet and settled. The one thing is that the price gap between the inns is severe, and there doesn't seem to be anything in the middle, the sort of place where you splash out just a little.
急こう配の坂で道幅と駐車場が狭く、自動車では行きづらいけど、その分人通りが少なく静かで落ち着いた印象があるかも ただ、宿の価格差が激しくてちょっと贅沢するくらいの宿がない気がする
You can get there on a single Tokaido Line train, and there are plenty of local buses from Yugawara Station, so the access isn't bad. It's all on a hill, so don't forget to check which bus stop you want. It's good for soaking, drinking and taking it easy.
東海道線一本でいけて、湯河原駅からの路線バスの本数も多いのでアクセスは悪くない。坂道にあるので目的地のバス停の確認は忘れずに～温泉入って酒飲んでのんびりするのには良い。
I live in Yugawara. It isn't wildly popular, but there's good hot spring water, the sea is close, climb up to Daikanzan and a beautiful Mt Fuji is right in front of you, and the atmosphere is calm. Plenty of good things. Of course it does feel run down too 😂 The Soyu Terrace shown at the end is a good place. There's free parking near it as well ♪
湯河原在住の者です すごく人気ではないけど、良い温泉、海も近い、大観山に登れば美しい富士山が目の前、しかも落ち着いた雰囲気、と良い所いっぱいです もちろん、さびれた感もあるけど😂最後に紹介された惣湯テラスは良い場所です 近くに無料駐車場もあります♪
I'm in Yugawara right now over Golden Week, and there are few people about so it's easy to be here. The more run down it is the warmer the people are, and if you can treat the getting around as part of a hike, it's the kind of place that lands.
今GWで湯河原に来ていますが、人が少なくて過ごしやすいです。寂れてる分だけ人も温かく、移動も含めてハイキング気分で楽しめる人には刺さる観光地かと
If you live in the southern part of Tokyo, somewhere like Jiyugaoka that isn't on a JR line, the direct trains to Hakone and Atami don't do much for you, so Yugawara is a genuinely handy hot spring town. The staff at the NewDays at Yugawara Station are unusually nice, the range is plenty for a resort town, and my recommendation is to buy a load of things there, get in the bath and hole up doing nothing. I'd like them to keep the marketing limited to us in south Tokyo, so the calm stays and it never goes national or global.
自由が丘など東京南部でJR沿線じゃない地域に住んでいると箱根や熱海への直通電車の有難みが薄いので湯河原は本当に手頃な温泉地です。 湯河原駅のNew Daysの店員さんは特別に感じが良く、品揃えは観光地向けに十分でここでたんまり買って温泉に浸かりだらだら巣ごもりするのがお勧め。世界的/全国区にならないよう落ち着いた環境を維持できるよう東京南部民に限定してマーケティングして欲しいところ。