Niseko Onsen for Day Visitors: Goshiki, Yukichichibu and Makkari Onsen Compared

Niseko's hot springs are not only for hotel guests. Around Mt. Yotei and up in the Niseko mountains there are day-use baths that cost 600 to 900 yen, with sulfur water that runs down the hillside, a public bath fed by a steaming volcanic pond, and an open-air bath that faces the volcano head-on. All three of the ones below are on the summer loop I drive from Sapporo. This guide covers these three public day-use onsen around Mt. Yotei; the resort hotels in Hirafu and Niseko Village have their own baths, which I have not covered. Here is how the three compare, what they cost, when they are open and how to get to them by car.

1The day-use onsen at a glance

Prices and hours are from the official sites as of October 2026.

If you want the view, go to Makkari Onsen: the outdoor bath faces the mountain so closely that you can see the trees on its slopes and the gullies cut by old eruptions. If you want the water, go to Goshiki Onsen, where the sulfur spring is milky, source-flowing and keeps you warm long after you get out. If you want to bathe in the water of a volcanic pond you have just watched steaming, go to Yukichichibu, the public bath beside Oyunuma. On a summer day trip you can do all three, with Takahashi Dairy Farm in between.

I have not found a published tattoo policy for any of the three, so ask at reception before you pay.

2Goshiki Onsen: sulfur water in the mountains

Goshiki Onsen is a hot spring village about 750 meters up between Mt. Niseko-Annupuri and Mt. Iwaonupuri. Hikers start here in summer and skiers in winter. Sulfur water runs down the hillside like a stream, the smell hangs in the air, and from the viewing deck you look out over the Niseko peaks. The inn's water is source-flowing, milky and full of sulfur; it is said to help tired muscles and nerve pain, and your skin feels soft afterward.

Day bathing is 800 yen, 9:00 to 20:00 from May to October and 10:00 to 20:00 from November to April, with last entry at 19:00. There is free parking for about 80 cars. The drive up is half the reason to come: the Niseko Panorama Line winds through the mountains with the town far below, though the road is closed in winter (from October 23 in 2026), when you reach Goshiki from the Kutchan side on Prefectural Road 58.

Goshiki Onsen: A Mountain Hot Spring on the Niseko Panorama LineA local's guide to Goshiki Onsen, 750 m up in the Niseko mountains on the Panorama Line: the milky sulfur water, the views of Mt. Niseko-Annupuri and Mt. Iwaonupuri, the drive, parking and the winter road closure.

3Oyunuma and Yukichichibu: the steaming pond and the bath beside it

Ten minutes down the road from Goshiki, from late April to October, the Oyunuma pond of Niseko Yumoto Onsen steams with hot spring water bubbling up from below, and the sulfur smell reaches you in the car. You cannot bathe in the pond itself, but its water feeds the baths around it, and you can soak in it at Yukichichibu, the public bath run by Rankoshi town right next door: 900 yen for adults and 300 yen for children, open 10:00 to 19:00 (12:00 to 19:00 in winter) and closed on Tuesdays, with bath towels to rent for 300 yen and face towels for 250 yen (Rankoshi town, October 2026). The free car park for about 30 cars serves both the pond and the bath. This stretch of the Panorama Line is closed in winter, so check access before a winter visit.

Oyunuma, Niseko Yumoto Onsen: A Steaming Hot Spring PondA local's guide to Oyunuma at Niseko Yumoto Onsen on the Niseko Panorama Line: the steaming hot spring pond, a bath at Yukichichibu next door (900 yen), hours, parking and how to get there.

4Makkari Onsen: an open-air bath facing Mt. Yotei

Makkari Onsen, in the village of Makkari on the south side of Mt. Yotei, is a source-flowing hot spring whose open-air rock bath faces the mountain head-on. The water is clear but silky, and the outdoor bath is a little cool, so you can stay in and look at the mountain for a long time. There is a sauna for five or six people and a properly cold plunge, and you cool off outside with Mt. Yotei right in front of you. In the grounds are a restaurant and a tofu workshop using water from the mountain, and cottages where you can stay.

Day bathing is 600 yen (children 250 yen), 10:00 to 21:00 from April to September and 11:00 to 21:00 from October to March, closed on Mondays (the next day when Monday is a holiday). It is closed for maintenance from November 2 to December 21, 2026. Parking is free for about 100 cars.

Makkari Onsen: An Open-Air Bath Facing Mt. YoteiA local's guide to Makkari Onsen at the foot of Mt. Yotei: the open-air rock bath facing the mountain, the water and sauna, the cottages and restaurant, price (600 yen), hours, closed days and parking.

5Getting there by car

Both are about two and a half hours from Sapporo on ordinary roads with no toll: Route 230 south over the Nakayama Pass, where Mt. Yotei comes into view as you come down, then Route 276 to Kyogoku. From Kyogoku, Makkari is around the south side of the mountain, and Goshiki is up Prefectural Road 58 from the Kutchan side, or along the Panorama Line in summer. From New Chitose Airport it is also about two and a half hours, via Lake Shikotsu and Route 276. My summer route links Aikawa's straight road to the mountain, the spring water at Kyogoku, a farm soba lunch, the Panorama Line to Goshiki and Oyunuma, Takahashi Dairy Farm and a final bath at Makkari.

Niseko Day Trip from Sapporo by Car: A Local's Summer RouteA local's summer day trip from Sapporo to Niseko by car: over the Nakayama Pass, around Mt. Yotei, up the Niseko Panorama Line to Goshiki Onsen and the Oyunuma pond, Takahashi Dairy Farm, and a bath facing Mt. Yotei at Makkari Onsen.

In winter, from November to April, the roads around Mt. Yotei are snowy, the Panorama Line is closed and the Nakayama Pass can close in storms; stick to the main roads and allow extra time.

Driving in Hokkaido: A Local's Guide to Renting a Car and the RoadsHow to rent a car and drive in Hokkaido, from a Sapporo local who drives every week: the license you need, expressway tolls and the Hokkaido Expressway Pass, road rules, and winter driving.

6Onsen etiquette for first-timers

• Men and women bathe separately, with no swimsuits.
• Wash and rinse at the washing stations before you get in.
• Keep your towel out of the water, and do not take photos in the bathing area.
• Ask about tattoos at reception; I have not found a published policy for any of the three.

For the other places to see Mt. Yotei, and for hot springs closer to Sapporo, see these guides.

Where to See Mt. Yotei: A Local's Guide to the Best Viewpoints by CarThe best places to see Mt. Yotei, the Mt. Fuji of Hokkaido, from a Sapporo local who has driven all the way around it: the straight road at Aikawa, its reflection in a pond, the view from an onsen, and a one-day loop from Sapporo. Onsen Near Sapporo: A Local's Guide to Day-Trip Hot SpringsThe best onsen near Sapporo for a day trip, chosen by a local who has bathed at all of them: Jozankei, Lake Shikotsu, Noboribetsu, Shakotan and Lake Toya, with prices, tattoo-friendly and private baths, and shuttle buses.

7FAQ about day-use onsen in Niseko

Q1. Are there day-use onsen in Niseko?

Yes. Goshiki Onsen in the Niseko mountains (800 yen), Yukichichibu beside the Oyunuma pond (900 yen) and Makkari Onsen at the foot of Mt. Yotei (600 yen) all take day visitors.

Q2. Which onsen in Niseko has a view of Mt. Yotei?

Makkari Onsen: its open-air rock bath faces the mountain head-on, and you cool off after the sauna with Mt. Yotei in front of you.

Q3. Is Goshiki Onsen open in winter?

Yes, 10:00 to 20:00 from November to April, but the Panorama Line is closed, so you reach it from the Kutchan side on Prefectural Road 58.

Q4. Are tattoos allowed at onsen in Niseko?

I have not found a published tattoo policy for Goshiki Onsen, Yukichichibu or Makkari Onsen, so ask at reception before you pay.

Q5. Can you bathe in the Oyunuma pond?

Not in the pond itself, but its water feeds Yukichichibu, the public bath next door, where a bath is 900 yen; it is closed on Tuesdays.

Q6. How do you get from Sapporo to the Niseko onsen?

By car, about two and a half hours on Route 230 over the Nakayama Pass with no toll. The viewpoints and baths are spread around the mountain, so a car is the practical way.