Kinosaki Sotoyu Meguri

城崎温泉 外湯めぐり is the signature ritual of Kinosaki Onsen, a small town on the northern coast of Hyōgo where the streets are lined with willows, the canal is crossed by humpbacked stone bridges, and visitors stroll between bathhouses in yukata and geta clogs. There are seven public bathhouses (sotoyu) — each with its own legend, architecture, and "lucky for" theme. The classic experience is to bathe at all seven over the course of a stay.

The seven sotoyu

• さとの湯 (Sato-no-Yu) — "Bath of joy", by the train station; the largest of the seven, with rotating themed baths and a panoramic rotenburo
• 地蔵湯 (Jizō-Yu) — Family safety; child-friendly and approachable, watched over by a Jizō statue once unearthed from the spring
• 柳湯 (Yanagi-Yu) — Smooth childbirth; a small wooden bathhouse beside a willow tree on the canal
• 一の湯 (Ichi-no-Yu) — Opening good fortune; an Edo-era cave bath cut into the rock, named the "first" by the physician Kakuju Kō
• 御所の湯 (Gosho-no-Yu) — Beauty and fire prevention; palace-style with the largest open-air bath in town, against a rocky waterfall
• まんだら湯 (Mandara-Yu) — Business prosperity; said to be the original Kinosaki bath, opened by the priest Dōchi Shōnin in the 8th century
• 鴻の湯 (Kō-no-Yu) — Marriage and wound-healing; Kinosaki's oldest spring, where a wounded stork (kō) is said to have healed itself

How it works

1. Stay at a Kinosaki ryokan and you'll get a 湯めぐりパス (yumeguri-pass) — a wooden rectangular pass that opens all seven sotoyu free of charge during your stay
2. Day-trippers can buy a 1-day外湯パス (1-day external-bath pass, ¥1,500 adults / ¥750 children) at any sotoyu — also good at all seven
3. Walk between baths in yukata and geta — the entire town is the inn
4. Each sotoyu has its own opening hours and weekly closing day; check the schedule before setting out
5. There's no required order, no expiration on the multi-bath culture itself — the meguri is its own reward

Earning the Onsen Oni badge

The Kinosaki Sotoyu Meguri badge is awarded by Onsen Oni moderators to users who have visited all seven sotoyu — the photo of your stamped pass or a series of seven check-in photos sent through the feedback channel is enough. There's no time limit; the seven baths can be collected across multiple trips.

Sources

• 城崎温泉観光協会 (Kinosaki Onsen Tourist Association)
• Visit Kinosaki — Things to do