On a recent concert tour in Japan, I had the chance to visit several thermal baths and to chat with people about the tradition of bathing. I was fascinated by their differences with American spas.

W hile it is the smallest and least populated of Japan’s four major islands, Shikoku is filled with a vast array of historical, cultural and natural gems. History buffs flock to the area for its ...

TOKYO — Onsen and hot spring resorts with konyoku mixed-gender bathing facilities have been feeling the pinch of late, as customers become increasingly reticent about stripping off to take a dip with ...

One of Japan's top luxury hotel firms will open an "onsen" hot spring resort in upstate New York that it says will be the first Japanese-run venture of its kind in the United States. Japanese onsens - ...

For many years after I experienced my first Japanese onsen, or public bath, and whenever I was in Japan on my annual trip, I found myself playing a variation of that game recommended to nervous public ...

Japan’s more than 25,000 naturally-occurring mineral hot springs help power 3,000 spa resorts across the country. Thanks to its location in a volcanic zone, Japan is a hotbed -- quite literally -- of ...

Nothing beats a good soak in a hot bath, and when it really hits the spot, you can almost feel your worries and ailments diffusing out into steam. Perhaps there is nowhere better to treat what ails ...

If you find yourself on Japan’s southwestern island of Kyushu, you will come upon delicacies that are not offered abundantly in other parts of the country. However, what the island is the most well ...