Japan is indeed one of my favourite places on earth. Even though I always seek for new adventures whenever I travel and wherever I go, this being my third visit to Japan I had a few things on my list of what I definitely knew I would be doing once i returned to this amazing country. One of them is the art of having myself an onsen.

Japan is a volcanic Island and therefore it's filled with natural hot springs that provide common baths, also known as onsens, and the real beauty of the hot-spring culture is the variety and different kinds of onsens you can explore. I've been to a few in my time, and Yukichichibu is definitely in the top of my list of favourite onsens, not just in the Niseko area, but in Japan.

What I fell in love with about Yukichichibu is the natural calmness that fell upon me instantly when we got there. Due to the deserted location the atmosphere out there is really peaceful and quiet and it felt very contagious. The onsen has a number of outdoor baths and it was up to me and only me whether i wanted to stay inside or get heated in the warm pools outside under the stars with snowflakes falling down from the evening sky. No sound but the dripping water. I bet you know how relaxing an ambiance just that sound creates.

On top of that, the milky coloured water in this onsen is very high in sulphur and iron making it very healthy for your skin. The minerals in the water are believed to have healing effect and I actually felt a smoothness to my skin several days after going.

After the bath I spent some time and a bit of money in the onsen shop buying teeny-tiny ceramic figures as well as warm and (very) cheap Christmas socks for my friends at home. One beer after, I was ready to go to bed. All I can say is, that going to Yukichichibu is the perfect way to wrap up an amazing day in the winter wonderland that is Niseko.