Three Chichibu Onsen Stops: Station-Side, Budget or Valley Views?

Updated September 2026

Chichibu has a bathhouse right by the Seibu station, an inexpensive sulphur spring ten minutes from Yokose Station, and a valley-side onsen that fits better with Nagatoro and Minano than with central Chichibu. Those are the useful distinctions between Matsuri no Yu, Buko Onsen and Mangan no Yu. A one-day itinerary usually works better with one of them than with all three.

Mangan no Yu has announced an admission-price change from October 1, 2026. The current prices above apply through September 30; check its updated rate table before an October visit. It also posted temporary bathing and sauna notices for late September, noted below.

Matsuri no Yu is the easy last stop

Matsuri no Yu sits outside Seibu-Chichibu Station; Ohanabatake Station is about a five-minute walk. The regular and morning-bath windows are:

The spring comes from about 2,000 metres underground and is classified as iodine-bearing sodium-chloride cold mineral water. The rock bath is identified as the natural-spring bath; the carbonated bath and seasonal flower bath are separate treatments. So the name on the building does not mean every pool is filled with the same spring water.

Face towels are sold for ¥350 and bath towels rent for ¥200. If you need both, that puts an adult weekday visit at ¥1,650 before food. The higher total buys convenience: the station, bath, sauna, meal and souvenir shops are all together. The tattoo policy is strict, and children still in diapers cannot use the baths.

The other pools are not all natural-spring baths: the high-concentration carbonated bath and seasonal flower bath are artificial treatments. The site lists the source at 22°C and pH 7.5, with an iodine-bearing sodium-chloride classification.

Buko Onsen keeps the bill down

Buko Onsen is about a ten-minute walk from Yokose Station; on weekends, a free shuttle runs between the station and the bathhouse at set times. Its current adult admission is ¥700 on weekdays and ¥900 on weekends and holidays. A towel set adds ¥300, so the weekday total with towels is about ¥1,000.

The facility lists a simple sulfur spring with pH 11.1, plus cypress and rock outdoor baths, jet baths, sauna and a cold bath using Chichibu groundwater. This is the best fit when you want to spend a little time bathing and sauna-going without paying for a larger resort complex.

The price comparison changes if you arrive without towels: Buko’s ¥300 towel set brings a weekday adult visit to ¥1,000, or ¥1,200 on a weekend. The free weekend shuttle from Yokose Station runs only at set times, so check its return departure before choosing the bath over the ten-minute walk.

Tattoos are generally not allowed, but the facility’s designated cover sticker can be used if one sticker, listed at 11 by 20 cm, fully covers the tattoo. Ask in advance if that exception affects your plans. Diapered guests cannot use the bathing area, and children may not enter the opposite-sex bath from age seven or at 120 cm tall.

Mangan no Yu asks for a little more planning

Mangan no Yu is in Shimohinosawa, Minano, facing the Mangan Falls and the Okuchichibu gorge. Its outdoor baths are listed as using 100% source water. That wording confirms the spring-water proportion; it is not enough to claim every bath is untreated, free-flowing water.

The facility is open 10 a.m.–9 p.m., with last admission at 8:30 p.m. From Minano Station, take the town bus toward Hinozawa to the Chichibu Onsen stop, then walk to the bath; a taxi takes about 15 minutes. Check the return bus before staying for the weekday after-5 p.m. rate.

As of September 27, 2026, the male-side sauna has reopened after repairs, and the female-side sauna is reported as operating normally. A separate notice says part of the women’s outdoor-bath area will be unavailable on October 1. Bath sides switch seasonally, so check the latest notices rather than treating September’s allocation as permanent. The facility has also announced an admission-price revision from October 1; the September rates in the table are not a safe budget for later dates unless the current fee page confirms them.

The 2026 maintenance closure ran June 9–11. The facility otherwise closes for about three days around June for equipment work.

For the smoothest day, leave Matsuri no Yu for a Seibu-Chichibu return trip, choose Buko Onsen when Yokose or Mt. Buko is already on your route, and save Mangan no Yu for a Minano or Nagatoro day. If you are comparing other regional day-bath itineraries, the Fuji Five Lakes guide covers a different, more spread-out travel area.

Sources

- [Matsuri no Yu: prices and hours](https://www.seibu-leisure.co.jp/matsuri/serviceguide/index.html), [baths](https://www.seibu-leisure.co.jp/matsuri/onsen/bath/index.html) and [access](https://www.seibu-leisure.co.jp/matsuri/access/index.html) - [Buko Onsen: spring information](https://buko-onsen.co.jp/onsen/) and [prices, access and rules](https://buko-onsen.co.jp/information/) - [Mangan no Yu: prices](https://www.chichibuonsen.co.jp/shisetsu/), [baths](https://www.chichibuonsen.co.jp/furo/) and [access](https://www.chichibuonsen.co.jp/access/) - [Mangan no Yu: announced price change](https://www.chichibuonsen.co.jp/news/2026/08/2688/), [male-side sauna reopening](https://www.chichibuonsen.co.jp/news/2026/09/2752/) and [latest notices](https://www.chichibuonsen.co.jp/blog/)

Checked September 27, 2026.