Shirahone Onsen

Mountain hot spring village inside Chubusangaku National Park where the water is naturally milky white from dissolved calcium and magnesium. Local records suggest samurai stopped here during mountain crossings as far back as the Kamakura period, and by the late Edo period farmers from Matsumoto were making regular visits to recover from fieldwork. Eleven inns make up the village today, offering tatami rooms, elaborate meals featuring local salmon-trout sashimi and mountain vegetables, and baths fed by the distinctive mineral springs. Day visitors are welcome at select outdoor baths.