---
title: The Oyu and the 13 sotoyu bathhouses
url: https://karigurashijourney.com/en/notes/oyu-and-the-13-sotoyu-bathhouses/
lang: en
journey: https://karigurashijourney.com/en/episodes/nozawa/
---

# The Oyu and the 13 sotoyu bathhouses

A little of each town’s story　/　Nozawaonsen, Nagano

Nozawa Onsen has 13 sotoyu, communal bathhouses, kept up by villagers through a system called yunakama. The water is 100% natural spring water flowing straight from the source, and instead of a fee, bathers leave a small donation for the yunakama. The Oyu, in the center of town, is the village symbol and preserves the look of an Edo-period bathhouse (one source says the present building was rebuilt in 1994). The water is a simple sulfur spring, with a hot tub and a cooler one.

## This moment in the journey: The bathhouse in the old style

After dark, back to the town. Past the steaming wooden lids, I headed for the Oyu, the village's symbol: a bathhouse with a sweeping karahafu gable in the traditional yuya style. Thirteen of these sotoyu, communal baths, are scattered through Nozawa Onsen.

At the entrance hung a sign for the men's bath and an offering box. A notice explained that the Nozawa-gumi supplies the spring water and that the local yunakama, the bath fellowship, fund and run the place. I looked up at the wooden plaque reading 'free-flowing from the source' and slipped through the curtain. Along the night street, the lights of inns and souvenir shops were glowing.

![The Oyu bathhouse with its karahafu gable](https://karigurashijourney.com/img/nozawa/s61-1200.jpg)
- Sources: https://nozawakanko.jp/hotspring/
- Sources: https://tabi-mag.jp/nn689/

Read this scene in the full journey: https://karigurashijourney.com/en/episodes/nozawa/