Gero Onsen: A Quiet Day of Foot Baths and Thatched Farmhouses in Gifu

This guide covers the way to Gero Onsen, the Fusenchi pool, the foot baths, Gero Onsen Gassho-mura, Onsen-ji Temple, and the practical details for a day out.

The hot spring water of Gero Onsen is an alkaline simple spring. This guide follows the town on foot, from the Fusenchi pool to the thatched farmhouses.

Quick Facts

Item	Detail
Hot spring water type	Alkaline simple spring, pH 9.2
Gassho-style houses in Gero Onsen Gassho-mura	10
Roller slide at Gero Onsen Gassho-mura	About 175 m long
Gassho Foot Bath seating	About 16 people side by side
Fusenchi	Bathing is banned

Stopping at Fusenchi

Fusenchi is a short walk from Gero Station. Bathing in the Fusenchi pool is banned, so treat it as a sight to look at rather than a bath to enter.

Foot Baths in Gero Onsen

The Gassho Foot Bath seats a group of people side by side. Its surrounding board fence and seat boards are made of cypress, and the spout is built from stones taken from a stream.

The Gassho Foot Bath is free of charge, but you pay the Gero Onsen Gassho-mura entrance fee to reach it. Sagi no Ashiyu is open around the clock at no charge, with no regular closing day.

Gero Onsen Gassho-mura

Gero Onsen Gassho-mura is a settlement of gassho-style houses relocated from Shirakawa-go and other places. The former Odo family residence is a thatched gassho-zukuri house under a gabled roof.

Hydrangeas of various kinds bloom throughout the village in early summer. Wildflowers of each season bloom within the village. The Mori no Suberidai roller slide is a long ride.

Take the local bus from Gero Station to the Gassho-mura stop if you want to skip the longer walk.

Onsen-ji Temple and the Hot Spring Baths

Onsen-ji Temple is a longer walk from Gero Station than Shirasagi no Yu or the Kur Garden bath, and about as far as Gero Onsen Gassho-mura. Shirasagi no Yu is a short walk from Gero Station.

The Kur Garden bath is a multi-purpose outdoor hot spring health resort built for comprehensive health promotion. The Kur Garden bath is a little farther from Gero Station than Shirasagi no Yu.

Visitors who want a ready-made plan around the town can browse tours around Gero Onsen.

Costs and Hours

Check official information before visiting, as details change over time.

Item	Price
Admission to Gero Onsen Gassho-mura, adult	800 yen
Admission to Gero Onsen Gassho-mura, child	400 yen
Mori no Suberidai roller slide, per ride	100 yen, with separate Gassho-mura admission
Admission to Shirasagi no Yu, adult	470 yen
Admission to the Kur Garden open-air bath, adult	800 yen

Item	Hours
Gero Onsen Gassho-mura	8:30 to 17:00, open all year
Gassho Foot Bath	8:30 to 16:40
Sagi no Ashiyu	Open 24 hours, no charge
Shirasagi no Yu	10:00 to 20:45, last admission 20:00
Shirasagi no Yu, closed days	Wednesdays, and Fridays when the Wednesday is a public holiday
Kur Garden open-air bath	8:00 to 20:45, last admission 20:00
Kur Garden open-air bath, closed days	Thursdays, or the next day when Thursday is a public holiday

Getting to Gero Onsen

This section starts in Nagoya or Osaka and ends at Fusenchi in Gero Onsen.

1. From Nagoya Station, ride the JR Takayama Line to Gero Station, which takes about 1 hour 30 minutes.
2. From Osaka Station, ride the JR Takayama Line to Gero Station, which takes about 3 hours 30 minutes.
3. Walk about 3 minutes from Gero Station to Fusenchi.

From Gero Station	Detail
Walk to Shirasagi no Yu	About 7 minutes
Walk to the Kur Garden open-air bath	About 10 minutes
Walk to Gero Onsen Gassho-mura	About 20 minutes
Local bus to the Gassho-mura stop, adult one-way	About 6 minutes, 100 yen
Local bus to the Gassho-mura stop, child one-way	50 yen
Walk to Onsen-ji Temple	About 20 minutes