Jozankei
定山渓42°58′ N 141°10′ EOnsen townSapporo
Sapporo's own onsen town sits in a steaming river gorge about twenty minutes below Sapporo Kokusai, with free foot baths on the main street.
Photo MIKI Yoshihito. (#mikiyoshihito) · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Who should base here
Stay here if Kokusai is your hill and you want an onsen night between ride days. Couples and families who want baths more than bars will be happiest.
The name
Jōzan's gorge
ainu
The name has no Ainu origin. It honours Miizumi Jōzan (美泉定山), a Shingon priest from Bizen Province (today's Okayama) who crossed to Ezo in 1853. In 1866 two Ainu guides from Hariusu on the Otaru coast led him inland to the hot springs on the upper Toyohira River, and he built a bathhouse there for travellers. The 渓 in the name means gorge.
SourceEat · 食べる
Momijitei生そば紅葉亭soba¥
A soba shop open since 1927. The owner makes the noodles every morning from stone-milled flour, and in winter the tempura includes local wakasagi smelt. Open 11:00–17:00 until the soba runs out; closed Wednesdays and Thursdays.
Shokudo Konno食堂こんのramen¥
Forty years of shoyu ramen with a Japanese-style stock and a pile of toppings. It reopens at 18:00 and stays open until midnight, which makes it the late bowl after your bath.
Ramen Karakuラーメン可楽ramen¥
Karaku serves old-fashioned ramen in an old building, and locals rate the fried rice. Lunch and evening service; closed Wednesdays and the second and fourth Tuesdays.
Shokudo Ichi食堂いちshokudo¥
Ichi serves charcoal-grilled set meals like salted salmon or chicken, with rice from a contract farm in Rankoshi and house-made oboro tofu. Lunch only, 11:00–15:00; closed Tuesdays.
MIKI Yoshihito. (#mikiyoshihito) / Flickr · CC BY 2.0 Exclamation Bakeryエクスクラメーションベーカリーbakery¥
A bakery café in the forest at the edge of town with around thirty breads made without margarine. There is a foot bath outside, and the cream buns are filled to order from 14:00. Closed Wednesdays.
Izakaya Kita no Kappa居酒屋北のかっぱizakaya¥¥
The onsen town's izakaya. Sashimi platters and sushi come out alongside sake from around Japan and shochu shipped from Kagoshima.
Drink · 飲む
cafe & bar Wallbar
This casual bar in the middle of the onsen town pours more than fifty whiskies and serves late snacks and rice bowls. Open 17:00–24:00; closed Thursdays and the first and third Wednesdays. No children.
Do · 遊ぶ
Foot bathswalk
Free foot baths dot the onsen town, including Futami no Ashiyu by the river and Ashi no Fureai Taro no Yu. At Jozan Gensen Park you can cook eggs in the spring water.
t-konno / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 Futami Suspension Bridge and Kappa-buchiwalk
A short riverside path from Futami Park to a red suspension bridge over the gorge and the pool where the local kappa legend is set. It looks pretty in snow and gets icy underfoot.
t-konno / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 New Yukitoro 2027culture
The winter light event runs 20 January to 28 February 2027 around the onsen town and Jozankei Shrine. The handmade snow candles retired after the 2026 edition, and this is the new format.
禁樹なずな / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 Jozan-ji Treasure Hallmuseum
This small temple hall keeps relics of Miizumi Jōzan, who opened the springs in 1866.
Jozankei is where Sapporo goes to soak. The hotels stack up both sides of a tight bend in the Toyohira River, and on a cold night the steam rises off the water and hangs in the streetlights while snow falls through it. The big hotels all have their own baths. Go out anyway and walk between the small things, like the foot bath by the Futami bridge or the eggs cooking in the spring at Jozan Gensen Park.
For riding it is the closest bed to Sapporo Kokusai, which gets deeper, drier snow than anything near the coast. You can be on the first gondola without the hour-plus bus from the city, then come down for a bath before lunch. Kiroro and the Niseko road are both reachable by car if the forecast moves west.
Eat simply. Momijitei has been making stone-milled soba since 1927, and Shokudo Konno serves a loaded shoyu ramen until midnight for the after-bath crowd. If you have a car, drive ten minutes up the valley to Hoheikyo Onsen for a big outdoor bath and the naan curry that keeps regulars driving out from the city.
Quick answers about Jozankeiよくある質問
What does the name Jozankei mean?
The name Jozankei means jōzan's gorge.
Is Jozankei a good place to stay?
Stay here if Kokusai is your hill and you want an onsen night between ride days. Couples and families who want baths more than bars will be happiest.
How do you get to Jozankei?
The Kappa Liner bus runs direct from Sapporo Station in about 60 minutes. Otherwise take the Namboku subway to Makomanai and a Jotetsu bus for about 47 minutes. By car it is about 50 minutes from central Sapporo and 80 from New Chitose Airport.
Ride from Jozankei近くの山
Stay in Jozankei宿
Hot springs nearby温泉
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