Dogo Onsen (道後温泉)

Since I spent all last Thursday cruising around Matsuyama, I couldn't very well return home without a bath at Dogo.

With a history reportedly stretching back over 1500 years, Dogo Onsen is Japan's oldest and most famous hot spring. The main wooden bathhouse building was built in 1894 and draws tourists and bathing enthusiasts alike nearly year-round.

Bathing at Dogo is a wee bit complicated due to the many different packages available. There are two main bath tubs at Dogo; the larger Kami-no-Yu (Water of the Gods) and the more secluded and elegant Tama-no-Yu (Water of the Spirits). A basic bath-only visit in "Kami" will run you a mere 400 Yen. You can opt to sit on the second floor in a large communal room and drink tea following your bath for an additional fee.

Finally, access to the "Tama" tub runs even steeper. With the added price comes the luxury of a loaned towel (you are normally expected to bring your own or buy one in the gift shop) in addition to snacks in the communal sitting room. The highest price point will give you an hour to kill in your own private changing room as you guzzle tea and eat senbei. At this point you are paying near $20 for the entire bathing experience.

Since I arrived in the middle of the afternoon, the bath was fairly empty. While Dogo gets very crowded towards the evening, the only patrons there when I visited were elderly Japanese men. I was told by a friend that they are always there regardless of the day or time. It seems that octogenarians and tourists make up the basic clientele.

There was however one other foreigner briefly in the bathtub, who, judging by his accent was French. He approached me and asked in English if I thought it wise to sneak into the other more exclusive bath area (we were both in the no-frills Kami tub). I told him he could try, but that the staff members would likely just stop him en route.

This turned out to be exactly true. As I was drying off after my bath, one Japanese patron accidentally wandered up the stairs towards the second floor. He was about to barge in on all the socialites nibbling their crackers and sipping their tea without so much as a washcloth to cover his dignity. A male staff member came bolting through the changing room waving his arms and hollering "STOP!!! WAIT!!! SIR, NOT THAT WAY!!!"

It would seem that nonchalantly wandering naked dude was stopped just in the nick of time.

While we are on the subject of being naked in public, I find that it is always a slightly odd sensation to stand buck naked in a changing room as elderly Japanese women buzz around you, busying themselves with cleaning and straightening. I guess if you've seen one, you've seen them all.

The actual Kami-no-Yu bath tub was exactly what one would expect from the nation's oldest bathhouse - traditional. One giant granite tub in the center of a room with small cleaning stations lined around the perimeter of the pool. That's it. Nothing more needed!

The waters of Dogo are renowned for their purported curative properties. While I still had asthma upon leaving, I can report that the soak was incredibly refreshing, especially in the middle of the hot and humid day.

I certainly look forward to returning to Dogo when I have another free afternoon in Matsuyama. That being said, since there are at least three local onsen here in To-on City, I probably wouldn't travel all the way to Matsuyama just to bathe at Dogo.

Still, it's pretty neat to say that you've gotten squeaky clean at the oldest bathhouse in Japan.

B.E.W.