Tohoku in northern Honshu
Tohoku lies in the northern part of Honshu and consists of six prefectures: Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, and Fukushima.
The Pacific Ocean lies to the east and the Sea of Japan to the west, with mountain ranges extending between them. Many places are covered in snow during winter, which is one of the region’s defining features.
Compare Tohoku with mountainous or snowy parts of your country and explore its hot springs with me.
Explore the hot springs of Tohoku on the map
Select a ♨ marker to see information such as the hot spring or source name, recorded area, temperature at the time of investigation, pH, and sampling date.
You can also search by hot spring name, source name, or municipality using text, or use the microphone button to search by voice.
Look near a city you know or a place you would like to visit and see what hot spring records you can find.
About the map data
The ♨ markers represent historical records included in AIST’s Hot Spring Chemical Analysis Data. They are not a list of hot spring facilities currently in operation, and the dates of investigation vary by location.
A place without a marker does not necessarily have no hot springs. Each marker shows an approximate location and does not indicate the exact site of a spring or the entrance to a facility.
The displayed temperature was measured at the source and may differ from the temperature of the water in a bathing pool. The pH value is only a guide to acidity or alkalinity. Temperature and pH alone cannot determine a hot spring’s type or therapeutic effects.
How many hot springs are there in Tohoku?
According to the Ministry of the Environment, Tohoku has 533 hot spring areas and 4,049 hot spring sources. Together, they discharge 480,845 liters of water per minute.
The number of hot spring areas and the number of sources are not the same. A single hot spring area may contain multiple sources.
The data card lets you compare Tohoku’s number of hot spring areas, total number of sources, and discharge volume with the figures for Japan as a whole.
There are 4,049 sources across 533 hot spring areas. What do these two figures suggest to you?
What I noticed while making the map
On the Tohoku map, hot spring markers appear across all six prefectures.
Akita’s pattern looks somewhat different from those of the other prefectures.
What similarities or differences do you notice when you compare Tohoku with hot spring regions in your country?
Why not explore the map to find a hot spring in Tohoku that you would like to visit?
Sources: Ministry of the Environment, Hot Spring Use in Fiscal 2024 (data as of March 31, 2025); Geological Survey of Japan, AIST, Geothermal Resources of Japan: Hot Spring Chemical Analysis Data (published in 2020)
The data card uses Ministry of the Environment statistics, while the ♨ markers use AIST’s historical analysis records. The scope, reference date, and counting method differ, so the figures are not expected to match. Before visiting, check the facility’s or local government’s official information for its current location and operating status.