Kashiba City - 香芝市
Kashiba Donzurubo Onsen
Kashiba Donzurubo Onsen
Japanese Name: かしば鈍鶴峯温泉Prefecture: NaraCity: KashibaAddress: 奈良県香芝市逢坂１丁目３７４−１Closest Station: Nijo Station / 二上駅Category: Hot Spring FacilityWebpage: https://www.city.kashiba.lg.jp/shisetsu/0000003945.htmlPrice: ¥800Holiday: Thursday and some national holidaysHours: 11:00-20:00Review:It is municipal. It is run by the city. It does not have a restaurant. No bar. What it does have is a better than average spring and some well designed, if not medically designed, baths. You would never see such a public health facility like this in America. Our municipal spending on infrastructure like this is lost to our for-profit health care system. I was the youngest person there at 40 years old. This place provided a place for the many elderly during the day. A place for community. You could spend a huge sum of money sending your dad to a private retirement home with a nice bath, maybe even their own onsen. These days, in this neighborhood, how many people can actually afford that. Thank goodness the city has provided an option. Drop dad off to meet his pals hopefully and sit around for a few hours talking about the old times, reading newspapers or just lounging around. More than a few signs say: be careful about taking too long of a bath. Signs were posted all around reminding everyone of this manner or that manner. All of them are written in a different font and probably made by a different person. Some one must have taken the Microsoft Office seminar offered last year as a few of the signs even had a cute border. The design was economic. The bricks were cheap. They spend some money on aesthetics. The kakeyu basin was quite nice. Something you might see as a fountain in front of a fancy restaurant. The doors to the outdoor area were done in a Japanese style. Fake plants broke up the space and were possibly used to prevent people from unknowingly walking into the main tub. But again this is a utilitarian place. Lockers are rusted and busted. Some have been replaced and they do not match the original ones. No advertisements other than something for a weird looking pain relief chair. It looked like a scam to be honest. Only a few vending machines with juice-no beer here. Walk from Nijo station away from the mountains along the tracks then cut through some single family houses to find this Ayn Rand Fountainhead book cover looking building. At night it was a bit difficult finding the right entrance. There is only one entrance and, at night, there is almost no signage. This place is not made for bringing in customers like me. Find the small escalator to the right after you enter the building. I walked right by it the first time. Take that up to the 2nd floor then continue straight. The entrance to the baths are on the right. Go here. The water is good, the design is unique and it really made me think about a lot of things. Visit Date: October 2019 *Hot Spring Data*Spring Type: Simple spring - 単純温泉Temperature Type: Warm spring - 低温泉pH Type: Weak alkaline - 弱アルカリ性Osmotic Pressure: Low - 低張性Well Name: Kashiba-Donzurubo Onsen - かしば・屯鶴峯温泉