Hitoyoshi Ryokan

人吉旅館ひとよしりょかん

Lodging
Kyushu & Okinawa·Kumamoto

Day Use

Yes
08:00–19:00

Day-use bathing can be turned away during the listed hours if the ryokan is busy with overnight guests, or during cleaning.

¥1,000

Adult 1000 yen, child 500 yen. Towel rental is not included. Towels are sold for 200 yen at the front desk. Day-use visitors can only use the two indoor baths, uchiburo (内風呂). The outdoor bath, rotenburo (露天風呂), is reserved for overnight guests.

Bathing & Water

Natural onsen water

Uses natural hot spring water

Outdoor BathYes

Open-air outdoor bath

Outdoor bath is for overnight guests only; day-use visitors cannot use it.

Indoor BathYes

Enclosed indoor bathing area

Capabilities

Private BathYes

Private bath available for day-use visitors or hotel guests to reserve

Room OnsenNo

Private onsen bath in guest rooms, for overnight guests only

Guest rooms have no bath or shower listed among in-room equipment; the QA page also lists only a washlet toilet, not a bath.

Mixed BathingNo

Shared bathing area for all genders

Policies & Services

KidsYes

Welcomes children and families

WashingYes

Shower, wash stations, soap and shampoo provided

TowelsNo

Towels available to rent or borrow

Rest AreaYes

Relaxation space for after bathing

ParkingYes

On-site or nearby parking available

Water treatment

Pure source water· 源泉かけ流し (gensen kakenagashi)
from Article 18 disclosure
  • Added water
    No
  • Reheated
    No
  • Recirculated
    No
  • Disinfected
    No
  • Bath additives
    No

人吉旅館 源泉

Hitoyoshi Ryokan Spring

Operated by · 人吉旅館

Drinkable
Bicarbonate
+ Chloride
Hot source · 55°C
Known good for
  • Smooth skindry, rough skin
  • Aches & jointsstiff shoulders
  • Warmingcold sensitivity

A sodium-led bicarbonate-chloride spring — the classic jūsō-sen style, with a salty edge layered in. Weakly alkaline and soft on the skin, it sits in the Japanese beauty-water family. The hot source (54.6 °C) is served as untreated free-flow: no dilution, heating, recirculation, or disinfection.

Sampled at wellhead·熊本県人吉保健所長

Explore the water

Views

River

Highlights

Drinking Spring
Foot Bath

Programs

About

Hitoyoshi Ryokan is a wooden inn on the Kuma River, built in 1934 and now a nationally registered tangible cultural property. There are two indoor baths, uchiburo (内風呂): one has an 80cm-deep tub with a wooden bench to sit on, the other a wider room lined with rock, and the men's and women's sides swap through the day. An outdoor bath, rotenburo (露天風呂), and two private family baths, kazokuburo (家族風呂), are kept for overnight guests only. The spring runs straight from the source rather than being recirculated, and the water has a soft, faintly slippery feel that locals call a "beauty-skin" spring; it's mild enough to drink too, said to be easy on the stomach. Day-use bathing is limited to the two indoor baths, and there's a free foot bath at the entrance. The building keeps its prewar character: original woodwork, retro fittings, a small courtyard garden with a shrine to the spring tucked in one corner, and a quiet lounge next to the baths done up in 1930s style. The Kuma River flooded and badly damaged the ryokan in 2020, but it was restored and reopened, still run as the same family inn built around the same spring.

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SM
Sergey M
1 year ago

367. Hitoyoshi Ryokan, Kumamoto Visited for higaeri for 1000 yen. Higaeri listed as 08:00 to 20:00. They stamp the 88 Onsen of Kyushu book. They issue Toreco cards for this onsen. The outdoor and indoor onsen areas are separate. There's a display about the anime Natsume's Book of Friends, and apparently some episode is connected to either this town or this ryokan. Outdoor shallow stone bath with clear water. Temperature around 40-41. Indoor zone. Breathing is fine. Two baths with clear water, both with wooden benches. One bath at temperature around 40-41, the second at 43. Photo of the bath from the internet matches. Pleasant place. Especially for fans of the related anime.

Onsen Oni

Last updated July 14, 2026