What Are the Hot Spring Rules in Beppu, and What Is Takegawara Onsen?
This guide is for visitors who want to use a public hot spring in Beppu and are unsure about the manners. It covers the neighborhood baths that locals use every day, the basic rules the city's tourism site lists, and the best-known public bath, Takegawara Onsen, with its sand bath.
We used the English feature pages of Beppu City's official tourism site, Beppu Tabi, and Beppu City's English page on hot springs. All pages were read on 2026-10-04. We name no hotels or restaurants and give no prices.
Why the rules matter in Beppu
The tourism site says Beppu has the largest number of hot springs and the greatest amount of hot spring water of any place in Japan. We have not checked that claim ourselves. It adds that residents also visit the baths regularly, and that many local bath buildings have a public hall on the second floor.
The site says many homes in Beppu do not have a bathtub, so going to a nearby hot spring is a common habit. It calls the small neighborhood baths "jimo onsen" and says they have special rules. It suggests you remember that you are visiting a bath that local people use every day.
The basic manners the city lists
The page was written with the chairman of a local hot spring association, and it says the rules are not complicated. The most important ones are to greet others and to be considerate. It lists these points.
- Say hello first, and say goodbye when you leave the bath.
- Scoop hot water from the bath and pour it over yourself before you enter.
- Do not add cold water on your own. If the water is too hot, ask the local people first.
- Do not sit on the edge of the bathtub. The page says many people dislike it.
- Do not put your towel in the bath water. Only your body goes in.
- Tie up long hair so that it stays out of the water.
The page also says you may be asked where you are from. It describes the talk with residents as one of the pleasures of a local bath. If you feel unsure about a rule, it says you can still relax and ask. Individual baths may post their own notices, so follow the signs at the door.
Takegawara Onsen
The tourism site calls Takegawara Onsen a symbol of Beppu. It says the city opened it as a municipal hot spring in 1879, and that the roof was then made of bamboo, which is where the name comes from. It says the current building dates from 1938 and has a karahafu-style roof that recalls a shrine or temple.
The page describes the inside this way. After the entrance curtain you find a high ceiling and a spacious room, and you pay at the reception desk on the right. You take off your shoes and go up, and there is a tatami resting area at the back. It says the baths are separated by gender and that you step down a staircase from the changing room to the bath.
The sand bath
The same page says you can try a sand bath at Takegawara in addition to the regular bath. The sand is heated by the hot spring. You change into a special yukata, lie down, and staff cover your body with sand. It says the experience lasts about 15 minutes and that you sweat a lot, as in a sauna.
It says you take off the yukata and wash the sand off in the bath next door, and that people who use the sand bath can also take a regular bath. Beppu City's hot spring page also lists municipal baths, and it names Takegawara among them. We did not read opening days or prices for any bath, so check them before you go.
Beppu Hatto and the other baths
Beppu has eight hot spring areas that the tourism site calls Beppu Hatto. Takegawara sits in the Beppu Onsen area, and the other seven are described in our guide to the eight areas. The tourism site also describes a city-run sand bath on the beach in the Kamegawa area, which is a separate experience from the one at Takegawara.
What we could not verify, and therefore left out
- Opening days, closing days and entry fees for any bath, including Takegawara.
- Rules on tattoos, which the pages we read do not mention.
- Whether visitors may use every neighborhood bath, since some may be for local residents.
- Water quality and any health claims about the springs.
Related guides
- How do you get to Beppu from Oita Airport and by train?
- What is Beppu? Eight hot spring areas, the hells and steamed food
Sources
All URLs retrieved 2026-10-04.
- Enjoy the Takegawara Onsen area with Beppu style bathing (Beppu City Official Tourism Site) — (manners, Takegawara, sand bath)
- Beppu Onsen tourism and travel information site Beppu Tabi (English) — (the Kamegawa sand bath and area overview)
- Onsen (Beppu City, English page) — (municipal hot springs)