Kaikake Onsen

This hot spring is rare for being a “hot spring for the eyes” and since ancient times it has been known as a place to cure eye-related ailments by washing your eyes in the warm water. It is said that if you catch a handful of warm water that wells from the spring in the outdoor bath and open up your eyes wide and rinse them in the water, it can improve everything from cataracts, to fundal haemorrhages and dry eye. The extremely relaxing lukewarm water that is conducive to long soaks in the water is also said to be effective for rehabilitation purposes when used as a pressure bath or buoyancy bath.This single ryokan hot spring in the secluded hamlet of Okuyuzawa is also said to be where Kenshin Uesugi, a famous Sengoku period warrior, would come and bathe. The separate rocky outdoor baths for men and women are surrounded by the nearby river and the trees of the forest so that bathers feel totally enveloped by nature. The tree-covered mountains and valleys tower over the hot spring and on a clear night you can see countless stars twinkling in the inky darkness. In the winter there is nothing better than soaking in the outdoor bath and gazing out at the deep snow.Although this hot spring is secluded and surrounded by nature it is in fact only 25 minutes by bus from Echigo-Yuzawa Station. Why not leave behind the noise and stress of the city, and come and relax in the calming depths of the mountains, where scenes change with the seasons?