Yurakutei - Big Cave Bath
大洞窟の宿 湯楽亭だいどうくつのやど ゆらくてい
Day Use
YesThe evening day-use slot can be limited depending on how many guests are staying that night, so it helps to call ahead. The Wednesday closure can also shift around public holidays and long holiday weekends, and the bath sometimes closes without notice for pipe maintenance or cleaning.
Adults (incl. junior high): 1,000 yen; Children (age 3 to elementary school): 500 yen
Bathing & Water
Uses natural hot spring water
Open-air outdoor bath
Enclosed indoor bathing area
Dry heat sauna room
Capabilities
Private bath available for day-use visitors or hotel guests to reserve
Shared bathing area for all genders
Policies & Services
Allows entry with visible tattoos
Welcomes children and families
Restaurant or dining open to visitors (not just hotel meal plans)
Dining primarily for overnight guests (1-night 2-meal plan). Large hall also available for banquets.
Shower, wash stations, soap and shampoo provided
Towels available to rent or borrow
Relaxation space for after bathing
On-site or nearby parking available
Highlights
Cave Bath
Drinking Spring
Lukewarm BathPrograms
About
The defining feature here is the dai-dokutsu-buro (大洞窟風呂), a 33-meter cave hand-dug by the owners and split down the middle for men and women. It flows with the akagyu (赤湯), a brownish carbonated spring that warms deeply and leaves skin noticeably smooth. The ryokan also has the shirogyu (白湯), a cooler, mildly alkaline spring with a silky feel that the inn calls its beauty water. Both run kakenagashi (掛け流し, source-flow unchlorinated and unrecirculated), and the whole bath lineup, indoor and outdoor, rotates daily between the two sides so overnight guests can try each spring. The akagyu stopped flowing after the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake and was brought back in 2018. The inn is a member of Nihon Hitoyu wo Mamoru Kai (日本秘湯を守る会), the association of remote and traditional hot-spring inns. Day use is available in two time slots.
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Last updated July 22, 2026