6 Feb 2027 – 7 Mar 2027
Plum blossom festival at Makuyama
Four thousand plum trees in pink and white bloom at the foot of Mt Makuyama, with stalls, plum soft-serve and hot amazake.
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Around town · Town walk · onsen district
Yutanpo: the onsen district walk, February
6 Feb 2027 – 7 Feb 2027 · Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 February. Hours vary by stop
The onsen district's own festival: shops, inns, cafés and galleries each put on something of their own. Pick up a map and wander.
Coming up
About the event
Yutanpo (湯探歩) is the onsen district's own festival, held on the first weekend of every even month. Shops, inns, cafés, galleries and craftspeople each take part in their own way, so you can drop into two places or spend the whole day going from one to the next.
Pick up the map at the Genkan Terrace at Man'yō Park, the Yugawara Museum of Art or any taking-part shop, or open the PDF online. Each stop has its own programme and a contact for bookings on the Yutanpo website.
The plum blossom at Makuyama is out at the same time, so pair the walk with the plum festival at Makuyama.
If it's called off for bad weather, the Yutanpo website says so by 7:00 that morning.
Yutanpo map
Every stop on the map, from the art museum at the top of the district down to the river. Tap a pin for what's there, and follow the link where we have a page for the place.
Historic inns and baths
- Genzan Uenoya · Registered-heritage inn: tour and bath
- Fujiya Ryokan · Registered-heritage inn: bath and terrace café
- Fujitaya · Registered-heritage inn, open since 1882
- Itoya · Registered-heritage inn where Shimazaki Tōson wrote
Food and drink
- Museum Café and Garden · Local honey and café
- Sake Bar Musubu · Seven-seat sake bar
- Dining Bar Charly's · Pasta and 13 kinds of pizza
- Shinshinkō · Chinese from a Tianjin-born chef
- Shokujidokoro Kato
- Kato Butcher · Croquettes and menchi-katsu to go
- La Terrasse Iwamotoya · Café and salon with events
- Genkan Terrace · Pamphlets, café and a foot bath
- Murosada · Sweets on a river counter
- Kadoya and Ochiai-za · Craft beer stand, with an event space upstairs
- Café & Bar Bon · Terrace café and bar
Art
- Yugawara Museum of Art · Works by Takeuchi Seihō and Hiramatsu Reiji
- Enso · Small inn with an art gallery and antiques
- Antiqart Yugawara · Gallery, café and antiques
Try something
- Medaka-ya Ginga · Medaka-scooping contest
- Yugawara-bayashi taiko · Taiko performance and a go on the drums
- Volunteer guides · A walk through the town's history
- Iyashiba-e · The night walking tour
- Manyōtei · Tea house designed by Horiguchi Sutemi
- Yakamean · Kimono-making workshop
- Kimono Suzuki · Kimono workshop
- Jusuian · Art gallery and bonsai workshop
Shops
- Kurihara · Small goods and pouches
- Tsutaya
- Efuya Honten · Kibimochi, the town's sweet
More stops
- Yukkuri Garage
- Olive
- Creare Atami Yugawara Studio
- EXP. Co-Onsen
Make a weekend of it
The walk falls in plum season: Makuyama's grove is in bloom, and the Buran-ichi market fills the station street on Sunday 21 February. Stay the night and do both.
Plums and the market
Stay overnight anywhere in Yugawara and entry to the plum grove is free (ask at your hotel). Hike on from the grove to the top of Mt Makuyama, or walk the Shiroyama trail from the station.
Sun 22 Nov · 21 Feb 2027
Buran-ichi handmade market
About thirty stalls of local crafts, food and produce on the street by the station, a few times a year.
Makuyama Park
A park along a mountain stream below Mt Makuyama, famous for 4,000 plum trees in February and March, with a playground and a rock-climbing crag.
- 4,000 plum trees
- Bouldering and climbing
- Playground
Shiroyama hiking trail
A loop from the station over Mt Shiroyama, past an 800-year-old juniper, legendary rocks, castle ruins and Shitodo Cave, back down to Gosho Shrine.
- 13.2 km loop
- Views of Sagami Bay
- Starts at the station
A bath and a walk
Kogome no Yu is the town's cheap and cheerful day bath by Man'yō Park (closed Mondays). Soyu Terrace is the long, lazy option with lunch, so book it. Walk the stream through Man'yō Park and have a coffee at the Genkan Terrace, or see the art museum up the road (closed Wednesdays).
Kogome no Yu
The town's own day bath, next to Man'yō Park: big indoor and open-air baths, a free tatami rest room, and cheap entry after 7pm.
- Open-air bath
- Free rest room
- Half price after 7pm
Soyu Terrace
A quiet, beautifully designed bathhouse in the woods of Man'yō Park. Book a half day with lunch, the baths, a sauna and a library.
- Lunch and baths
- Sauna and library
- Ages 12+
Man'yō Park
A wooded park along the Chitose River in the heart of the onsen district, with stream-side decks, a thatched tea house, a café and a day spa.
- Stream-side decks
- Tea house
- Free to enter
Yugawara Museum of Art
The town's small art museum in the onsen district, with a café terrace, a garden and a foot bath by the stream.
- Café terrace
- Foot bath
- Good in rain
Genkan Terrace
A glass-walled café and library at the entrance to Man'yō Park. Free to walk in, with terraces among the trees and by the river.
- Free to enter
- Library and Wi-Fi
- Riverside terraces
Dinner and a drink in the onsen district
Book ahead: Torisuke for yakitori over charcoal (closed Mondays and Tuesdays), Yoru no Ajito for Italian wine and gibier, or Iroha for hamburg steak (closed Mondays). Beer Stand Kadoya pours craft beer by the Ochiai-bashi bus stop every day until 22:00.
Torisuke
A husband-and-wife yakitori house grilling over binchōtan, with clay-pot rice cooked to order.
- Binchōtan yakitori
- Kamameshi
- Cash only
Yoru no Ajito
A small evening spot for Italian wine with cured ham, cheese, house bread, and Yugawara wild boar and venison.
- Italian wine
- Local wild boar and venison
- Evenings
Iroha
A cosy evening yōshoku restaurant with wood-panelled walls, known for hamburg steak and tomato curry.
- Hamburg steak
- Tomato curry
- Evenings
Beer Stand Kadoya
The only place in the onsen district to drink fresh local beer on tap, with a terrace over the Chitose River.
- Local beer on tap
- River terrace
- Open daily
Where to stay
For a group, Shiroyamakan (formerly Shiroyama Bekkan) rents out the whole annex of an onsen inn two minutes from the station, with a spring-fed bath and room for 12. Or stay in the onsen district, where the baths, Man'yō Park and dinner are all a short walk away. Hotel Shikisai and Megumi are easy with children, Genzan Uenoya is old Yugawara in a 1930 wooden inn, and The Ryokan Tokyo is the budget pick. For dinner served in your room, Fukiya. Treeside is four minutes from the station, if you'd rather come and go by train. Friends of Matt's run Shiroyamakan.
Shiroyamakan
The detached annex of an onsen inn two minutes from Yugawara Station, rented whole: three bedrooms, room for up to 12, and a half-open-air bath fed from the hot spring.
- Whole annex to yourselves
- Spring-fed bath
- 2 minutes from the station
Hotel Shikisai
A big, easygoing onsen hotel by the river with buffet dinners, a station shuttle, table tennis and a summer pool. Good value for families and groups.
- Buffet dinner
- Station shuttle
- Summer pool
Onyado Megumi
A family-friendly ryokan with rooms for four, a children's playroom, a bookable private bath, and meals in the room in the larger suites.
- Family-friendly
- Kids' playroom
- Private open-air bath
Genzan Uenoya
One of Yugawara's oldest inns, in a four-storey wooden building from 1930 that's a registered cultural property. Two springs of its own, free private open-air baths, and a hinoki foot bath on the top floor.
- Registered cultural property
- Free private open-air baths
- Rooftop foot bath
The Ryokan Tokyo Yugawara
A relaxed, modern onsen inn for writers and solo travellers, with a library lounge, desks, ink-making, and a spring-fed bath.
- Writing plans
- Solo-friendly
- Day bath and lounge
Fukiya
A sukiya-style ryokan with seven baths, including two hinoki tubs on the roof, and dinner and breakfast served in your room. Good with children.
- Meals in your room
- Rooftop hinoki baths
- Family-friendly
Treeside Yugawara
A small design hotel and apartments four minutes from the station, with rooms that look out to the hills and a restaurant downstairs.
- 4 minutes from the station
- Apartments with kitchens
- Restaurant downstairs
Tickets and details
Plans can change with the weather. The organiser's page has the latest.
Also coming up
On now
From 24 Nov 2025, no end date
Dragon God's Secret Hot Spring
A puzzle game you play on foot from Fudō Falls down to Man'yō Park, following a story on your phone. Go any day.
On now
Tue 1 Sept – Sat 31 Oct
The 1,200-Year Mystery: a puzzle trail round Yugawara
Pick up a free puzzle booklet, walk the town from the station to the onsen district collecting clues, and enter a draw for ¥1 million in prizes.
On now
Sat 5 Sept – Sun 29 Nov
Weekend rakugo
Japanese comic storytelling every Saturday and Sunday afternoon in the geisha house, plus a Saturday-night show with a bath.