Hekisuiso

Hekisuiso sits on the bank of the Agano River in Sakiha Onsen (咲花温泉), one of Niigata's small river-valley hot spring towns. The indoor bath is split into two temperature zones, one hotter, one milder. The private open-air bath (rotenburo) looks straight out over the water and is reserved by the night's plan rather than walk-in. All baths run on free-flowing spring water (kakenagashi) from the Sakiha source, a sulfur spring with a soft green tint and only a faint smell. The building is old, which shows, but guests tend to find the worn-in atmosphere part of the appeal.