Hamawaki Onsen

Together with Beppu, Kamegawa, Kannawa, Kankaiji, Horita, Shibaseki, and Myoban, this hot spring district is one of the eight Beppu Hatto spas and, alongside Kannawa Onsen; it is considered the birthplace of the Beppu Onsen group of hot springs. Hamawaki means seaside but can also mean welling forth at the beach, a name it gained from the fact that a hot spring does indeed gush forth from the beach here. From the early Kamakura period through the Edo period, the area developed as a key land transportation point. The waters of the simple hot spring here are gentle on the skin and are said to ease lower back pain, sprains, sensitivity to cold and mild asthma. Unusual among the municipal public bathhouses in Beppu City, the Hamawaki Hot Spring bathhouse is open until late at night and is frequented by a broad range of customers.