Hosenji Kanko Hotel Yumotoya
宝泉寺観光ホテル 湯本屋
Does Hosenji Kanko Hotel Yumotoya allow tattoos? In a private bath
Yumotoya’s private open-air bath, Komakichi-no-yu, holds ten people, the largest in Hosenji by the hotel’s count, and comes with a reading room of shelves and old sofas at its door.
Yumotoya publishes no tattoo rule. Staying guests can hire one of two private open-air baths for 50 minutes, the large Komakichi-no-yu or a smaller one for two or three, and three special rooms have their own half-open-air bath, so a tattooed guest can avoid the large baths.
The bath
Hosenji's spring, by local legend, rose where the wandering monk Kuya struck his staff about a thousand years ago. It flows at more than 2,000 liters a minute, clear and easy on the skin, and in 2009 the spa declared every bath free-flowing. The hotel lists its simple and weakly alkaline water for neuralgia, the skin and fatigue. Two large baths swap between men and women: Kawasemi-no-yu, floored with ancient cypress and with an open-air tub in the trees, and Dan-no-yu, named for the novelist Kazuo Dan, glass-walled around a maple, with the open-air Hotaru-no-yu where fireflies show in late May and early June.
The private baths are open to staying guests only. Komakichi-no-yu is an open-air bath for up to ten, which the hotel calls the largest in the area, ¥2,000 for 50 minutes; a smaller, deeper one for two or three costs ¥1,000. Book at check-in; they run 3 to 9 p.m., last booking at 8. The photo of Komakichi-no-yu shows a wide pool of dark stone under a reed-thatched shelter, with a bamboo fence and trees.
Three special rooms have a half-open-air bath of the same free-flowing spring.
The hotel
A forty-room riverside hotel. The three special rooms pair a 10 to 14 mat Japanese room with a low-bed bedroom and the half-open-air bath. Other rooms are Japanese-modern Japanese-Western, Japanese and Western rooms of about 24 to 32 square meters, some with a kitchenette, plus older retro rooms; the modern rooms have smart TVs. Meals are served in a dining room. Wheelchairs can be borrowed. Check-in from 3 p.m. (last at 8 p.m.), curfew 11 p.m.
Good to know
- Book the private open-air bath at check-in; it runs 3 to 9 p.m.
- A reading room with sofas waits at the door of Komakichi-no-yu.
- Fireflies over the Machida river from late May into early June.
- Bring towels from your room to the baths.
Getting there
Take the JR Kyudai line to Bungo-Mori; the hotel puts Oita to Bungo-Mori at about 1 hour 10 minutes. From the station an hourly bus reaches the hotel in about 20 minutes. Highway buses from Hakata, Oita and Yufuin stop at Kusu IC, a 15-minute walk from Bungo-Mori station.
Bungo-Mori STN · JR Kyudai Main Line, then the hourly bus to Hosenji Onsen
Not walkable.
Bus about 20 minutes, hourly; highway buses stop at Kusu IC, 15 minutes on foot from the station.
Where it is
Hosenji Onsen bus stop
- Yufuin no Mori 1 hr 47 min
- Hosenji bus 20 min
- Shinkansen tickets Seats between any two stations, booked by date.
- JR Kyushu Rail Pass from ¥12,000 · 3, 5 or 7 consecutive days Worth it if Kuju is part of a longer Kyushu trip by train.
- Japan Rail Pass from ¥53,000 · 7, 14 or 21 days For a trip that takes in several regions by Shinkansen and JR lines.
What happens when you arrive
Use the bath in your room, or reserve a private bath at the front desk when you check in.
How we know
Bath layout confirmed, tattoo policy not published Checked on the official site (: the hot spring page lists the private open-air baths and their fees; the rooms page lists the rooms with a bath)
Best for: a private open-air bath big enough for ten, or a special room with its own spring tub
Private open-air baths for staying guests only: Komakichi-no-yu, the large one, ¥2,000 for 50 minutes; the small one, ¥1,000 for 50 minutes. Booked at check-in; 3 to 9 p.m., last booking 8 p.m. Three special Japanese-modern rooms (10 to 14 mats plus a bedroom) have a half-open-air bath of free-flowing spring water. Large baths 3 p.m. to midnight and 6 to 9 a.m. Bring towels from the room. Curfew 11 p.m. Cards accepted. Wheelchairs on loan.
Book your stay
- AAgodaCheck availability
- EExpediaCheck availability
- HHotels.comCheck availability
Booking through these links costs you nothing extra and earns us a small commission, which keeps this guide free and up to date for our tattoo community. Thanks for your support.