Best of Beppu's Hells!! Relaxing time and exquisite sweets at Umi Jigoku

The beautiful cobalt blue Umi Jigoku!

Umi Jigoku (Sea Hell) is the biggest hot spring in Beppu created by a volcanic explostion of Tsurumidake mountain about 1200-1300 years ago. There are many things to see around, so your trip around the Hells should start with Umi Jigoku! Pay the entrance ticket and enter the spacious gardens, then continue towards the shop and you will see the cobalt blue pond!

You will be so fascinated by the beautiful shade of blue that you will wonder if that really is a hell. Umi Jigoku has the color of the sea and the sky, and is designated as a national scenic beauty spot. The steam of the boiling water is all around the garden so you have to pay attention to the wind movement before taking a photo.

The water temperature is 98 degrees Celsius!! The pond is 200 meter deep. Of course, there are hot spring eggs boiled in the water of Umi Jigoku! It takes about 6 minutes to boil them. If you feel a little peckish, be sure to try them.

The greenhouse with beautiful tropical flowers is highly recommended!

In the garden there is a greenhouse which uses the natural steam of Umi Jigoku. Inside you can see pretty tropical water lilies, lotuses and moth orchids.

By the way, have you noticed how similar the water lilies and the lotuses are? You can tell the difference by the leaves. The water lilies have a single cut on their floating leaves, while the lotuses have circular leaves.

From May to November you can see Amazon-born royal lotuses whose leaves grow to 1-2 meters wide! They are so big and strong that small children can walk over them without a problem. You can see them in the outside pond too, because pipes with hot water go under it and warm up the water to a temperature necessary for these tropical plants. The hot spring water of Umi Jigoku is used in various ways around the place.

Exquisite taste at Umi Jigoku! "Jigoku steam pudding" is recommended!

At Umi Jigoku you simply have to try “Jigoku steam pudding”! This soft sweet is popular among tourists. It is steamed and baked using the heat Umi Jigoku, and consists of the classical ingredients: eggs, milk and sugar. This pudding is an ideal dessert after you try the hot spring eggs.

You can buy it from the shops or eat at the small restaurant while enjoying the view of Umi Jigoku. It’s possible to take out, but puddings can’t last long time, so be careful! That’s a local specialty whose taste is unique to Umi Jigoku.

Free to use! Umi Jigoku's footbath is recommended too!

There is also a footbath which uses Umi Jigoku’s hot water! You’ll be walking around a lot because there are so many interesting things to see at Umi Jigoku. When you need a little rest, this footbath is the place to stop.

A towel vending machine next to the footbath sells towels if you don’t have one. The place is covered with a roof so it’s convenient to use during any type of weather. Free of charge, only at the hot springs kingdom Oita! Visiting many touristic spots can be a bit exhausting, so such precious relaxation time like at the footbath is one of the pleasures of travelling.