A day-use onsen in Nagano, with a private room.
Choosing a rest and lunch plan

When you look for a day-use onsen in Nagano, where you rest afterwards matters nearly as much as the water itself.

A large communal hall can be noisy, and dozing off with your bag beside you is not restful. Whether you can rest in a private or semi-private room changes how the whole day feels, even on the same day trip.

Below we explain how to choose a day-use onsen with lunch and somewhere private to rest, using The TOJI.ba MATSUKAWAKAN in Takayama Village, Nagano, as the example: prices, hours, and the order to put them in.

Bathing alone is 650 yen, and no reservation is needed

Start with the lightest way to use the place. Day-use bathing here is 650 yen (tax included) per person, and you do not need to book. Simply come as you are.

The baths are open from 11:00 to 20:00, with last entry at 19:30. The inner bath runs with water flowing straight from the Yamada Onsen source, and natural light falls into the room.

Face towels are 150 yen and bath towel rental is 200 yen. Prices are subject to change; please confirm on the booking site. Arriving empty-handed is no trouble at all.

The full list of prices and hours is on our day-use onsen in Nagano page.

Order lunch and bathing is free, with the rest room open until 16:00

This is the way to use the place if you want somewhere private to rest. Order lunch, and the bathing is free.

On top of that, the semi-private space and the rest room are yours from 11:00 to 16:00. Guests bathing without lunch may use the semi-private space too, but guests having lunch have priority.

So the 650 yen goes back in your pocket and you gain a place to lie down. If resting privately is the point of the day, ordering lunch is the cheaper route in the end.

What the plan includes is set out on the lunch and day-use onsen in Takayama Village page.

For the semi-private space, arrive at 11:00; last order is 14:00

Working backwards from the clock keeps the day calm. Three times matter here.

Lunch is served from 11:00 to 14:30, with last order at 14:00. The baths and the semi-private rest room run from 11:00 to 16:00. Bathing alone is accepted until 19:30.

The most unhurried version is to arrive at 11:00, bathe first, eat around midday, and rest in the semi-private space afterwards. Put that way round, the five hours until 16:00 are all usable.

Arrive after 14:00 and lunch can no longer be ordered, which takes the free bathing and the rest room combination off the table. On a day when you want to rest privately, leaving in the morning is the safe choice.

The Shinshu Takayama Bowl is 2,680 yen, with a mushroom hotpot

The most popular order is the Shinshu Takayama Bowl with the mushroom hotpot set. Steak is piled generously over the bowl, and the hotpot brings more than ten kinds of mushroom from the hills nearby, in a house-made fermented sauce. It is 2,680 yen (tax included).

There is also a Shinshu eel set at 3,680 yen (tax included) and our aufguss master's fierce fried rice at 1,680 yen (tax included). Soba and other dishes are available as well.

Lunch hours	11:00–14:30 (last order 14:00)
Shinshu Takayama Bowl set	2,680 yen (tax included)
Shinshu eel set	3,680 yen (tax included)
Aufguss master's fierce fried rice	1,680 yen (tax included)
Soft drinks, free refills	780 yen

How we think about the food is set out on our dining page.

The private open-air bath is 1,000 yen for 45 minutes

On a day when you want somewhere quieter, there is the private open-air bath. For day visitors it runs from 11:30 to 15:00 and costs 1,000 yen for 45 minutes.

It can be booked on arrival, but slots are limited, so booking ahead is recommended. Slotting 45 minutes in between lunch and the semi-private room is easy to arrange.

You can add the sauna as well. With lunch, the Forest Sauna is 1,700 yen and the private Tenku Sauna is from 9,800 yen (tax included) per group.

After bathing, the public bathhouses: Oyu is a separate 300 yen

There are two public bathhouses within walking distance of MATSUKAWAKAN. Both are old communal bathhouses drawing on the Yamada Onsen source.

Oyu, the central bath of Yamada Onsen, has been in use since the Edo period and costs a separate 300 yen. Takinoyu is the communal bathhouse long used by people who live here, and day visitors are welcome (it may occasionally be closed for cleaning).

The order to walk them in, and the etiquette, are gathered in the etiquette of the Yamada Onsen bathhouse round. For the baths inside the inn, see four onsen baths.

About 40 minutes by car from Nagano Station, with free village parking

MATSUKAWAKAN is at Yamada Onsen, Takayama Village, Kamitakai District, Nagano. It is about 40 minutes by car from Nagano Station, and parking is free at the village car park.

In winter there may be snow and ice on the road, so please come with snow tyres fitted.

By train, the Nagano Dentetsu Nagano Line runs from JR Nagano Station to Suzaka Station in about 20 minutes. From Suzaka it is about 30 minutes by taxi, or about 50 minutes on the Nagaden bus to the Yamada Onsen stop.

Note that the free shuttle from Nagano Station is a service for overnight guests only. For a day visit, please come by car or public transport. Directions in full are on our access page.

Frequently asked questions