We visited Nango Onsen “Yamagiri” in Nangōmikado, Misato-chō, Miyazaki, which opened in 1998 as the first onsen in the north part of Miyazaki Prefecture. This area was called as Nango-mura, that’s why the onsen was named Nango Onsen. Also, Yamagiri, which literally means “Mountain and Mist”, derives from the fact that it is located in the middle of a mountain in a sea of clouds.

Miho welcomed us with a smile at the reception. On average, 300 visitors come everyday, especially from Hyuga City.

This is the dressing room. If you have valuables, you can use a locker to keep them safe.

The bathroom is big. When you soak in the bath, you will soon notice the unusual smoothness of the water whose pH value is 8.7. You can touch your skin to physically experience the smoothness. According to Toshihiro, as the water is alkaline, if you make yudōfu or cup noodle using this water, tōfu and noodles will melt in the water.

There is an open-air bath outside of the room. The water is almost the same but a little bit cool, and good for a long soak, also the touch is really smooth as well. Note that the floor is slippery, make sure to watch your step.

A large amount of water flows out of the faucet. Approx. 100 liters of hot spring water is pumped up from the ground per minute, and the amount to pour to the tub is adjusted to control the temperature and freshness. In the past at the time Yamagiri opened, the water was recycled, however, it has changed. The water has not been recycled since 10 years ago, the freshness and cleanliness of the water is maintained by just pouring a large amount of water. Also they adopted a technology to remove smell of chlorine (Cl2) used for sanitation.

Tatsuhiko (left) and Takenori (right) was classmates when they were young. On this day, they had an alumni reunion, and they came to Yamagiri before that. Takenori really likes this bath, and he said “I brought Tatsuhiko here so that he can expericne an excellent touch of water!”

He is an acting manager Toshihiro, he really loves this onsen and says “This onsen is recommendable regardless of the season, in all time!” Also, he says cleanliness is the most important thing for public bathhouses, and he makes every effort to keep the bath clean and always takes care about it, so that he can recommend Yamagiri to everyone including his family and grandsons. According to him, Yamagiri has not been well known in the public yet and only onsen geeks know it. He is trying to tell the attractiveness of Yamagiri to the wide range of people.

In this area, a folklore about an ancient king of Baekje. It is said that, a long, long time ago, two kings (Teikaō and Fukuchiō) escaped from Baekje to this area. Teikaō is enshrined in this Mikado Shrine. Also, the name of the mascot “Dontarō” derives from the name “Masumitarō” of a man who took care of Teikaō after he escaped from Baekje. Miyazaki is famous for myths like Takachiho, and here in Yamagiri, we can see a myth still has a close relationship with the locals. That’s quite interesting.

MAP

INFORMATION

Name: Yamagiri

Address: 151-1 Nangōmikado, Misato-chō, Higashiusuki-gun, Miyazaki

Tel: 0982-59-0100

Access (Car): 1 hour 50 min from the centre of Miyazaki City. 1 hour 53 min from the Miyazaki airport

Parking Lot: 50

Opening Hours: 10:00 - 20:00

Closing Days: Thursday

Price: JPY 510