Japan
Wellness retreats in Japan
The 2 wellness houses in Japan worth the flight, what each is good at, and how long you need. Nobody pays to be listed.
- Houses
- 2
Where to go
2 houses, and what each is for
Thermal cure
Kankaiji, above Beppu bay · Japan
Suginoi Hotel
The best-known onsen hotel in Beppu, and the one whose terraced Tanayu baths looking down over the bay appear in most photographs of the town.
Price on enquiryReference onlyRetreat
Yomitan, west coast of Okinawa Main Island · Japan
Hoshinoya Okinawa
The Hoshino group’s Okinawan house — a walled seafront village built on Ryukyuan forms, and the most considered contemporary reading of Okinawan living.
Price on enquiryReference only
When to come
The season, place by place
| Destination | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BeppuJapan | Jan: perfectly good | Feb: perfectly good | Mar: book this | Apr: book this | May: perfectly good | Jun: we would talk you out of it | Jul: we would talk you out of it | Aug: we would talk you out of it | Sep: perfectly good | Oct: book this | Nov: book this | Dec: book this |
| OkinawaJapan | Jan: perfectly good | Feb: perfectly good | Mar: book this | Apr: book this | May: we would talk you out of it | Jun: we would talk you out of it | Jul: perfectly good | Aug: we would talk you out of it | Sep: we would talk you out of it | Oct: book this | Nov: book this | Dec: perfectly good |
Beppu. Onsen is a cold-weather practice: much of the physiological point is the contrast between chilled air and 42 °C water, and the steam columns that make Beppu photogenic only show in cold air. Late October to early December is the best of it. June to August combines heat and humidity with very hot bathing, which is a poor combination — locals bathe less in summer for exactly that reason.
Okinawa. October to early November is the best window: the summer humidity has broken, the sea is still warm, and the major typhoon risk has largely passed. March to April is the second window. June to September combines heat, humidity and typhoon season, when flights are cancelled at a day’s notice — we do not sell it.
Asked and answered
Questions we actually get
Is there any actual treatment, or is it just bathing?
Will I be uncomfortable bathing communally?
Will this make me live longer?
If the data is contested, why go?
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