Family Mart releases new “raw” bread collection that bucks tradition, messes with your mind

Shironama breads shake up the Japanese convenience store food scene.

Back in 2023, Family Mart released a range of “Nama Koppepan” that became a hit with customers. With “nama” meaning “fresh” or “raw”, the range consisted of long bread rolls, or “koppepan”, that were especially soft and moist, with a creamy texture that drove customers wild.

▼ Family Mart’s Nama Koppepan were so popular over 260 million were sold.

Now, the Japanese convenience store chain is bringing its super-soft breads back with a new range called “Shironama“. With “shiro” meaning “white”, these breads have a whole new look that makes them appear even more “raw” than before, and this time the range serves up three different types of bread — koppepan, Francepan, and a croissant.

With a look that makes it seem as if they’re yet to touch an oven, these are very unusual breads, and we were lucky enough to be sent all three for a taste test.

▼ Let’s start the proceedings with the Shironama Koppepan.

Koppepan takes its name from “coupé”, the French word for “cut”, and combines it with “pan”, the Japanese word for bread. While it might look like a bun you’d make hot dogs with, it’s commonly filled with all sorts of ingredients in Japan, from red bean paste through to yakisoba noodles, and it’s close to everyone’s hearts as children grow up eating this style of bread as part of their school lunches.

It never looks as quite as white as this, though, so we were a bit nervous when we took it out of the bag, but those nerves soon dissipated when we were greeted by a soft filling of whipped cream and strawberry cream with crushed strawberry pulp. The acidity and sweetness was perfectly well balanced, and the pillowy soft, chewy texture of the bread made this a heavenly pairing.

▼ Moving on to the next item in the range, we have the Shironama Croissant.

With a look that would make French pastry purists shudder, this is likely to be the most divisive item in the range, because not only is it a lot paler than a traditional croissant, it’s a lot less crispy, with nothing but a soft chewiness the whole way through. Looking past the sacrilegious aspect of it all, the soft texture blends well with the sweet double-chocolate cream centre while maintaining the laminated look of the pastry in an impressive way.

▼ Finally, we have the Shironama Francepan.

“Francepan“, or “French bread“, usually refers to a crusty style of bread in Japan, but this range turns that theory on its head by doing away with the crunch and going all in on softness. While it mimics the look and shape of Francepan, the airy softness gives it a whole new mouthfeel, messing with your mind and your taste buds while seducing them with the sweetness of Hokkaido Double Condensed Milk and whipped cream as its filling.

While the soft texture of the bread will definitely surprise you, the fillings are just as special, with the cream centres giving you a choice of either strawberry in the koppepan, chocolate in the croissant or plain milk in the Francepan.

It’s a very Japanese take on traditional bread, and every item in the range is designed to make you feel as if you’re eating a cloud, as shown in the accompanying commercial for the collection.

The breads retail for 168 yen (US$1.12) each and can be purchased at Family Mart branches around Japan from 25 March.

Related: Family Mart
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Studio Ghibli bean bag plushies let you bond with animals of Princess Mononoke, Castle in the Sky

Yakul was always a good friend to Ashitaka, and now he can be your pal too.

Princess Mononoke is one of Studio Ghibli’s darkest anime films, with a somber understanding that conflict between the sanctity of nature and the march of societal development is inevitable. The visuals play to that theme, with the animals in the movie depicted with either a latent capacity for deadly force if their territory is encroached upon or a mysteriously detached attitude regarding those base creatures known an humans.

Except for Yakul.

In a story that’s otherwise all about how hard it is for people and animals to get along, Ashitaka’s red elk steed is an exception. Even when Ashitaka and San come to the conclusion that they need to live in separate worlds for the time being, Yakul is still Ashitaka’s faithful companion, from the anime’s opening scene until its very last.

If you’d like a dedicated Yakul of your very own, Ghibli specialty shop Donguri Kyowakoku is now offering Yakul bean bag plushies. Measuring 19 centimeters (7.5 inches) in length, the adorable little guy is to small to ride on, but is big enough to perch on your shoulder if you want to let him take a ride there instead of carrying other people around for a change.

Available alongside Yakul is a fox squirrel bean bag plushie.

These creatures have actually appeared in two different anime, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and Castle in the Sky. However, Donguri Kyowakoku specifies that this is a Castle in the Sky fox squirrel, so it’s not Teto, the fox squirrel who’s along for the ride with Nausicaa on her adventures.

At 22 centimeters long, the fox squirrel plushie is just a little bigger than Yakul, but they’re identically priced at 3,080 yen (US$20.51), and both can be ordered through the Doguri Kyowakoku online store (Yakul here, fox squirrel here) thanks to a recent restock.

Source: Donguri Kyowakoku
Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku
Insert images: Studio Ghibli, Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2)
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Sweets maker Funabashiya celebrates 220 years at popular Tokyo shrine’s Wisteria Festival

Enjoy limited-edition sweet treats from a master wagashi maker directly under the wisteria flowers at Kameido Tenjin Shrine in April.

Japanese traditional confectioner Funabashiya will celebrate 220 years in business this April by setting up a limited-time shop in the area where it was originally founded: Tokyo’s Kameido Tenjin Shrine. The brand’s trademark wagashi (traditional Japanese sweet) is its famous kuzu-mochi, which involves a unique and very long production process that hasn’t changed over the centuries.

▼ A Funabashiya storefront

The history of Funabashiya is inextricably intertwined with that of Kameido Tenjin, as the company was originally created on the shrine’s grounds in 1805. Its founder hailed from Funabashi, located in present-day Chiba Prefecture, which at the time was known for its high-quality wheat. While visiting the shrine, the founder realized that the grounds were bustling with crowds during the peak plum and wisteria flower-viewing seasons. He subsequently moved to Tokyo, made confectioneries such as mochi, and sold them on the shrine grounds. The rest is, well, history right up until the present.

▼ A snapshot of the past under the shrine’s wisteria

Today, Kameido Tenjin is still known as a premier viewing place for wisteria blossoms, which is why the shrine holds an annual Wisteria Festival around the peak flowering time. This year’s festival will take place between April 5 and April 30, with Funabashiya’s pop-up shop available for a tiny bit longer until May 6. Why not enjoy some sweets under the wisteria the way they were originally intended?

▼ Kameido Tenjin cultivates more than 50 wisteria vines, which makes for an impressive cascade of petals when they’re in full bloom.

▼ The flowers are illuminated at night, creating an ethereal atmosphere with the nearby Tokyo Skytree rising in the background.

The following is a sampling of the items that Funabashiya’s pop-up store will offer throughout the Wisteria Festival.

Tenjin Wisteria Anmitsu (650 yen [US$4.33])
Available at Kameido Tenjin Shrine from April 5-30

Anmitsu is a beloved traditional Japanese sweet consisting of small cubes of agar jelly garnished with sides such as anko sweet bean paste, shiratama dango dumplings, small fruit slices, and a sweet syrup topping. This festival-exclusive version includes grape-flavored agar cubes and aya-murasaki sweet potato paste, all in gorgeous, pinkish purple hues to match the wisteria. The dish comes with a refreshing white syrup to drizzle over the top as you like.

Kuzu-mochi (starting at 6 pieces for 500 yen, up to 60 pieces for 1,650 yen)
Available at Kameido Tenjin Shrine from April 5-May 6

Of course Funabashiya’s signature product has to make an appearance! This kuzu-mochi is made from wheat starch fermented for 450 days and steamed. It has a slight fragrance and acidity in addition to its trademark elasticity. The dish is perfected with toppings of kuromitsu (sweet brown syrup) and kinako (soybean flour) powder.

Drinkable kuzu-mochi lactic acid bacteria (150-gram [5.3-ounce] bottle for 375 yen or 520-gram bottle for 1,300 yen)
Available at Kameido Tenjin Shrine from April 5-May 6

Cultivated in the kuzu-mochi’s fermentation tank, this natural, plant-based drink is bursting with healthy lactic acid bacteria. Its only ingredients are rice, water, and kuzu-mochi lactic acid bacteria, with absolutely zero sugar or other additives. It’s a delicious cloudy drink that even people with milk allergies can enjoy.

Thought often overshadowed by the cherry blossoms in Japan, wisteria flowers add just as much beauty to the springtime as anything else. Check out this other place a bit to the north of Tokyo that always celebrates the cascading vines of purple.

Festival information
Kameido Tenjin Shrine Wisteria Festival / 亀戸天神社 藤まつり
Address: Tokyo-to, Koto-ku, Kameido 3-6-1
東京都江東区亀戸 3-6-1
Duration: April 5-April 30
Website

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Sayonara, paper straws? Starbucks Japan rolls out new biomass plastic straws, we test them out

Nobody really liked Starbucks’ paper straws, but can we fall in love with this new eco-friendly model?

As part of its efforts to be more eco-friendly, roughly five years ago Starbucks Japan switched from plastic straws to paper ones. However, consumers haven’t been happy with paper straws in general, and you could argue that they’re an especially unpleasant way to drink beverages from Starbucks, which many people want to leisurely savor, meaning that the paper straw’s material has plenty of time to break down from being submerged in liquid.

After seeing the negative reaction about the texture and taste imparted by soggy straws made of paper, Starbucks Japan announced in December that is was once again going to change its straw material, this time switching to Green Planet, a plant-based biomass plastic material made by Osaka’s Kaneka Corporation. Rather than a simultaneous nationwide changeover, Starbucks is introducing the new biomass plastic straws in a gradual rollout that started on March 24, and that gave us the opportunity to test its new straw against the old one.

Or actually we should say it gave us an opportunity to test the new straw against the old ones. See, while Starbucks has been serving its drinks with paper straws for the last few years, people have been grumbling about how they don’t like them for pretty much just as long. So though they won’t give them to you unless you specifically ask for them, Starbucks Japan branches have also kept a stock of the old-version plastic straws on hand too. By heading to multiple Starbucks locations in Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture, we were able to get our hands on not only the new biomass plastic straw, but also the old plastic straw, and a paper one too, for a three-way comparison.

By the way, looking at their wrappers, we were surprised to see that even the old plastic straw is listed as being made with “biodegradable environmentally conscious” material. However, with the new straws being both biodegradable and made from biomass plastic, as opposed to petroleum-derived plastic, they’re still a step up in environmental friendliness.

▼ Top to bottom: paper straw, new biomass plastic straw, old plastic straw

The new straw is just a little shorter than the old plastic one, but potentially will reach closer to your mouth from the bottom of the cup since it doesn’t have a bendy portion.

Color-wise, the new biomass plastic straw is a slightly brighter shade of green, and if you hold it up to a light, you’ll see it’s much less opaque as well.

But while Starbucks makes some very pretty drinks, we’re more concerned with the functionality of the new biomass plastic straws than we are with their appearance. The paper straw had already eliminated from the top spot by nature of it feeling/tasting worse than the old plastic straw, so really this was a contest between the old plastic straw and the new biomass plastic one, and after trying them both, there’s a clear winner: the new straw.

Why? Texture. Since they’re both made of plastic, neither the old plastic straw or the new one have that unpleasant, cardboardy taste that makes the paper straw so unpopular. But whereas the old plastic straw has a subtle roughness to it, the new biomass plastic straw is slick and smooth all over. We were never going to miss the paper straw, but after trying the biomass plastic straw, we no longer miss the old plastic one either.

We should point out, though, that the new plastic straw is less rigid than the old one. That’s not really a problem for liquidy drinks like standard coffees or teas, but if you’re ordering something thicker or more viscous, like a Frappuccino, Starbucks will still give it to you the paper straw, since the new biomass plastic one isn’t stiff enough or large enough in diameter to accommodate those weightier beverages. Hopefully Starbucks is working on a Frappuccino biomass plastic straw as we speak, though, because otherwise they’re fantastic.

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New form of luxurious poverty arrives at Japanese convenience stores with Tenkasu Gohan

Lawson tempts us with rice topped not with tempura shrimp, but tempura nothing.

With prices for just about everything continuing to rise in Japan, putting together a “one-coin” lunch, i.e. a lunch that costs 500 yen (US$3.40) or less (500 yen being Japan’s largest denomination of coin), at a convenience store is getting harder and harder to do. Sure enough, on our recent trip to a branch of the Lawson chain, the fried chicken bento boxed lunch that caught our eye was 599 yen…but next to it was a much lower-priced option.

Lawson’s Tenkasu Gohan is priced at just 297 yen. Not only is that cheaper than their other bento and rice bowls, it’s no more expensive than some of their premium onigiri rice balls.

So just what’s in the Tenkasu Gohan? Rice, naturally, as that’s what the Japanese word gohan means. Similarly straightforward, the rice is topped with tankasu…or tempura flakes.

Note that we said “tempura flakes” and not “tempura.” That’s because while the word tempura is often used as a catch-all for Japan’s various deep-fried fritters of seafood, chicken, and assorted vegetables, tenkasu is strictly bits of fried batter, with no fancy filling inside. As a matter of fact, tenkasu literally translates to “tempura dregs” or “tempura trash,” as it’s essentially the same as the incidentally formed flakes that get fried when intentionally making tempura shrimp, tempura sweet potatoes, and so on.

That doesn’t mean that tenkasu isn’t loved, though. It shows up most commonly at noodle restaurants, where it’s sprinkled across the top of a bowl of hot soba or udon for one of the least expensive menu items. You don’t usually see tenkasu on rice, though, but then again you also don’t usually see this much of it all in one serving.

Honestly, looking at the Tenkasu Gohan left us with a complex swirl of emotions, in that it’s a luxuriously large portion of a very cheap ingredient. It certainly looked enticing, though, beckoning us not only with its promise of satisfying starchiness but also the scent of the sweet sauce poured over tempura bowls and the dash of aonori (powdered seaweed) that Lawson seasons the Tenkasu Gohan with.

We took our first bite, and quickly discovered that it tasted just as we’d expected, and hoped, that it would. Though regular tempura rice bowls aren’t purposely sprinkled with tenkasu, inevitably some of the batter ends up flaking off the tempura pieces, and the sauce poured over them trickles down to the rice below as well. For more than a few diners, the mixture of rice, sauce, and tenkasu that makes up the last mouthful of their tempura bowl eating session is one of the most enjoyable parts of the experience, and Lawson’s Tenkasu Gohan cuts to the chase and gives you that sensation the whole way through, rather than saving it for just the tail-end of the meal.

That said, we can’t ignore the fact that this is, ultimately, a rice bowl without the traditional toppings of protein and/or vegetables, like you’d get with a tempura bowl, beef bowl, or pork cutlet bowl. As such, it’s a little hard to escape the feeling that something is missing, and you might feel a certain sense of emptiness if this is the sole component of your meal.

▼ Maybe it would help if Lawson renamed it “Tanuki Gohan,” since tanuki soba/udon is what noodles topped with tempura flakes are called.

Still, judged solely on the question of how it tastes, we came away very happy with the Tenkasu Gohan, and even if we’re not quite sure we’d say this is a case where less is more, what it is is enough to satisfy your cravings if you’re after that end-of-tempura bowl deliciousness.

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Fake Japanese whisky countermeasures now include official Japanese whisky emblem

With so many “Japanese whiskies” available overseas being less than genuine, logo seeks to keep buyers’ expectations in line with what’s actually in the bottle.

In recent years, Japanese whisky has exploded in popularity internationally. Even if you’re a seasoned veteran of Japan’s pub and bar circuit, if you walk into a liquor store overseas you might be surprised at how many brands of Japanese whisky they offer that you’ve never seen before.

However, this proliferation of Japanese whisky options outside Japan isn’t because importers are a step ahead of anyone else. It’s because a lot of the “Japanese whisky” you can buy overseas isn’t actually Japanese whisky at all, in the sense that it wasn’t fully produced in Japan. Piggybacking on the success and worldwide recognition of genuine Japanese distilleries, there’s now a whole sub-industry of companies that simply bottle or blend imported whiskies at facilities in Japan, then export it for sale overseas, often with gaudy packaging touting how very “Japanese!” it is.

The Japan Spirits and Liqueurs Makers Association, an industry group with 104 members, has decided that enough is enough and is taking steps to put a stop to the intentionally misleading presentation of such whiskies. On March 27, the association announced its latest countermeasure as it unveiled a new labeling mark to be placed on products that meet the organization’s criteria for authentic Japanese whisky.

The emblem consists of the letters JW stylistically stamped on the top of a whisky cask, along with the designation Japanese whisky and the initials of the Japan Spirits and Liqueurs Makers Association. To qualify for use of the emblem, the following conditions must be met:

1. Malted grains must be used, and raw ingredients must be limited to malted grains, other cereal grains, and water. The water used must be extracted in Japan.
2. Saccharification, fermentation, and distillation must be carried out at a distillery in Japan.
3. The distilled product must be aged for at least three years within Japan in wooden casks not exceeding 700 liters in size.
4. Bottling must take place in Japan, with alcoholic strength of at least 40 percent at the time.

These conditions were first codified by the JSLMA in 2021, but with a lenient provision of three years for whisky sellers to revise their packaging. However, since the JSLMA is a trade association, it doesn’t have the authority to compel companies to comply with its rules, so it’s currently still legal for companies to bottle imported whisky in Japan and label it as “Japanese whisky.” What the JSLMA can do, though, is deny usage of its seal of approval to companies who don’t adhere to its definition of Japanese whisky, signaling to shoppers overseas that without the JW mark, it probably isn’t what they’re thinking of when they hear “Japanese whisky.”

“By having JSLMA members apply this logo to their products that comply with the industry standards, the association hopes to raise awareness of Japanese whisky both in Japan and abroad while also making it easier for consumers to distinguish it from other types of whisky,” says the organization in its announcement of the emblem. The statement also specifies that this is part of the JSLMA’s “ongoing efforts to make their industry standards into a legally binding definition, as they begin preparation for Geographical Indication (GI) status application,” which, if granted, would apply official legal penalties against companies that label their products as “Japanese whisky” without meeting its criteria, similar to the protected status of “champagne,” as opposed to “sparkling wine” in some jurisdictions.

Source: Japan Spirits and Liqueurs Makers Association via Yomiuri Shimbun
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Insert image: Japan Spirits and Liqueurs Makers Association
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New Takoyaki Burger from Wendy’s Japan makes us rethink Osaka’s specialty food

Find out if octopus balls taste better in burger form.

On 27 March, Wendy’s First Kitchen began selling a new burger in Japan that set tongues wagging. Released to celebrate the 13 April opening of Osaka Expo, the star ingredient in this limited-edition burger is a surprising one, as it’s none other than takoyaki, or fried octopus balls, which are a famous specialty of Osaka.

▼ This was a weird food offering that we couldn’t pass by, so our reporter Mr Sato stopped by his nearest Wendy’s to check it out for us.

Looking at the menu, he was surprised to find the burger wasn’t given a lot of advertising space, appearing under the moniker, “Osaka Tasty Food“.

▼ At 780 yen (US$5.17), it was slightly more expensive than other items on the menu, but not a big price to pay for such a unique offering.

Mr Sato was especially hungry so he ordered the burger as part of a set with medium fries and a drink for 1,250 yen. This was no ordinary set, though, as it continued the Osaka-specialty theme with takoyaki-flavoured seasoning sprinkled on the fries, and the drink, which cost an additional 330 yen, was a Tapioca Mix Juice.

▼ Mix Juice, which blends mixed fruit with milk, is another specialty of Osaka.

It was hot when Mr Sato visited, so the first thing he reached for was a sip of the drink. Having tasted Mix Juice in Osaka before, Mr Sato was pleased to find it tasted like the real thing — deliciously milky, with hints of banana, apple, peach, and orange throughout.

▼ The tapioca-style balls added a fun new twist to the usually silky smooth beverage.

As for the fries, they were another exciting adventure in flavour, with the seasoning replicating the taste of takoyaki to a T. The mayonnaise that regularly tops takoyaki was also clear on the palate, adding to the realism of it all, with the potatoes creating an element of surprise that paired well with the flavour.

With the drink and fries tasting so good, Mr Sato’s expectations rose in anticipation for the burger.

▼ Would it meet his expectations?

Opening it up for a brief inspection, Mr Sato found there were actually three takoyaki on the patty, casually sitting there like a trio of cheeky children playing hide-and-seek in a place they weren’t meant to be.

It was an odd sight to see these octopus balls tucked away inside a burger, and though it would be enough to make a purist run for the hills, Mr Sato kept an open mind as he opened his jaw for a bite.

After his first mouthful, Mr Sato was sold on the flavour. The trio of takoyaki was in perfect balance to the rest of the burger, standing up well against the beef patty and allowing the taste of fried octopus to hold centre stage. In addition to being delicious, the octopus balls filled the mouth and the belly in a very satisfying way, and the weirdness of being able to take bites out of them from a handheld burger never lost its novelty.

▼ Mr Sato says it was even better than the Dom Dom Takoyaki Burger he tried in 2022, which didn’t contain any conventional balls.

After trying the Takoyaki Burger from Wendy’s, Mr Sato was so impressed with it he swore to return for another taste of it while it’s still available. It’s only on the menu at select stores* and for a limited time until mid-May, though, so you’ll have to get in quick to try it before it disappears forever and becomes a distant memory…like this convenience store takoyaki ice cream.

Store information

Wendy’s First Kitchen Keio Frente Shinjuku 3-chome store / ウェンディーズ・ファーストキッチン 京王フレンテ新宿3丁目店
Address: 3-4-8 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo Keio Frente Shinjuku 3-chome B1
東京都新宿区新宿3-4-8京王フレンテ新宿3丁目B1
Open: 7:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. (weekdays) 7:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m.(weekends and public holidays)

*All products available at Wendy’s First Kitchen branches around Japan, except for the Takoyaki Burger, which won’t be sold at the WFK Namba Ebisubashi, WFK Kyoto Shinkyogoku, WFK Tempozan Marketplace, Aqua City Odaiba, and Racetrack branches.

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Japan’s top 10 open-air hot spring baths with cherry blossom views【Survey】

Travelers pick their favorite spots for a springtime soak.

It’s hard to think of a better way to enjoy a day in Japan than by admiring cherry blossoms…but then again, taking a nice, long soak in an open-air onsen (hot spring) bath is also pretty hard to top. So rather than spend time trying to figure out which is the more quintessential Japanese experience, why not do both at the same time?

To help us do just that, Japanese travel website Jalan has compiled a list of the top 10 outdoor onsen with sakura views, as chosen via a survey of the site’s users. With the cherry blossoms already starting to bloom, there’s no time to waste, so let’s dive right in.

10. Kurama Onsen (Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Early April
Website

Tucked away in the mountains north of down Kyoto City, the non-sakura forests of Mt. Kurama make for a contrasting background as the cherry blossoms visible from the bath unfold their pink petals.

9. Iwakuni Kokusai Kanko Hotel (Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefeture)
Best sakura viewing time: Early April
Website

Located just a three-minute walk from the majestic five-arched Kintai Bridge, Iwakuni Kokusai Kanko Hotel’s open-air bath offers a view of the cherry blossoms that line the far shore of the Nishiki River (and should you be craving a sweet snack after you get out of the bath, you’re only a short walk from one of the most unique ice cream stands in all of Japan).

8. Uesugi Onsen Gotenmori (Nanyo, Yamagata Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Mid-April to early May
Website

In addition to stretching out in the bath and gazing up at the boughs of the sakura trees in Eboshiyama Park (voted one of the 100 best cherry blossom viewing venues in Japan), this inn also has a courtyard hot spring foot bath where you can see the blossoms while remaining clothed from the ankles up.

7. Nansuikaku (Miyakawa, Fukuoka Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Late March to early April
Website

Some hot spring inns have only two hot spring baths, one each for men and women, but Nansuikaku has a whopping nine, plus private baths that can be reserved for use by couples or families. Among the non-reserved baths, the women’s Princess Kaguya Bath, named after the folktale character found inside a stalk of bamboo, is particularly popular for its surrounding grove of 17 different bamboo types.

6. Kintaro Onsen (Uozushi, Toyama Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Early April to mid-April
Website

The two-tone stonework of this outdoor bath gets a third dose of color when the cherry blossoms come into bloom, and the flowers’ hue becomes even more dramatic when the trees are illuminated at night. It might also be the perfect outdoor hot spring bath for those who are new to onsen and still a little self-conscious about communal bathing, since the naturally murky water provides some extra visual coverage.

5. Sansuikan (Yufuin, Oita Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Late March to early April
Website

Located in what’s widely considered one of Japan’s most elegant hot spring towns, Sansuikan’s outdoor bath is beautiful in any season, what with its view of Mt Yufuin in the distance, but especially so in spring with sakura in the foreground.

4. Takaragawa Sanso (Tone, Gunma Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Late April to mid-May
Website

Takaragawa Sanso’s claims to fame are its massive Kodakara no Yu and Maka no Yu baths, with areas of approximately 365 and 219 square meters (665.8 and 399.5 square feet). Though there is an attached inn, non-gest day trippers can use the baths for a fee as well, and the surrounding grounds also have many sakura trees, so make sure to take a walk around the facility either before or after your soak.

3. Hounkan (Yoshino, Nara Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Late March to early April
Website

Yoshino is thought by many to be Japan’s most beautiful sakura town, thanks to its mountainside known as the senbonzakura, or “thousand cherry blossom trees.” The Hounkan’s outdoor bath (and some of its indoor ones as well) let you relax in the warm waters as you take in the gradation of shades of pink stretching up and down the slope.

2. Oga Hotel (Oga, Akita Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Mid-April
Website

Much like the cherry blossoms themselves, the Oga Hotel closes up every winter, and then when spring comes, it opens up and welcomes guests. This year’s opening date is set for April 12, when the 50-year-old somei yoshino sakura tree that stands next to the bath should be blossoming, and the bath is illuminated at night as well, with the steam rising into the air creating an enchanting, mysterious atmosphere.

1. Tenku Kaiyu no Yado Suehiro (Kamagori, Aichi Prefecture)
Best sakura viewing time: Late March to early April
Website

Aichi Prefecture often gets overlooked by travelers, but in doing so they’d be missing out on this inn where the open-air hot spring lets you take in a grove of 300 cherry blossom trees with the wide blue expanse of Mikawa Bay beyond. Day-use is available for non-hotel guests as well, and there’s also a rooftop hot spring foot bath with the same view if you don’t have time for a full bath.

The start-of-blooming and full-bloom sakura forecasts can be found here, and if this year’s dates don’t align with your travel plans this spring, don’t forget that all of these hot springs’ views should be just as beautiful next year too.

Source, images: PR Times, Jalan
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