Chugoku/Shikoku · Matsuyama, Ehime

♨ Dogo Onsen Honkan

A historic wooden bathhouse in one of Japan's oldest onsen towns.

Three Ancient Springs

About Dogo Onsen Honkan

Often called Japan's oldest hot spring, Dogo was mentioned in writing as far back as the 8th century. The wooden Honkan bathhouse dates from 1894 and is said to have inspired the bathhouse in 'Spirited Away'. The water is alkaline and gentle on the skin, and has its own stone baths, plus tatami rest rooms upstairs on some admission plans. It's about a 4-minute walk from the Dogo Onsen tram stop, about 20 minutes by tram from JR Matsuyama Station.

The water

An alkaline simple spring (around pH 8.5–9). It's clear and odourless, with a smooth, gentle feel, and comes straight from the source with no reheating or added water. It's traditionally said to soften the skin.

History

Legend says an injured white heron healed its leg here, and the gods Okuninushi and Sukunahikona are said to have bathed here too. Dogo appears in the Nihon Shoki and the Man'yoshu, and Prince Shotoku is said to have visited. Natsume Soseki bathed here with the poet Masaoka Shiki in 1895 and made the bathhouse famous in his novel 'Botchan'. The 1894 building is an Important Cultural Property.

Getting there

Famous for (meibutsu)

• Botchan dango (food): three-colour dumplings named after Soseki's novel
• Ichiroku tart (food): Matsuyama sponge roll with yuzu bean paste
• Tobe-yaki (craft): white-and-indigo porcelain from nearby Tobe

See it on the onsen mapAll 50 onsenOnsen how-to

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