Dogo (Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture) is said to be the oldest hot spring in Japan, with a history of around 3,000 years. It has risen to second place in the 2024 "Top 100 Hot Springs in Japan" list, voted for by travel agency staff and others, solidifying its popularity.

The Dogo Onsen Main Building, the symbol of Dogo Onsen, underwent preservation and repair work that began in January 2019 and was completed in December of last year. Prior to this, in July of the same year, the entire building reopened for business for the first time in about five and a half years.

The magnificent three-story building that we see today was built in 1894 (Meiji 27). Yukiya Isaniwa, the first mayor of Dogo Yunomachi, said, "It's only when we create something that can't be imitated even 100 years from now that it truly counts," and he renovated the dilapidated building, which took about 20 months and cost a total of 135,000 yen (at the time).

The bathhouse is located on the first floor, with resting rooms on the second and third floors. The building is comprised of the "Kami no Yu Main Building" with its impressive turret on a large gabled roof, the "Yushinden/Tama no Yu Building" completed in 1899 (Meiji 32) which houses the only bathhouse in Japan reserved for the Imperial Family, and the "South Building" and "Entrance Building" completed in the Taisho era. In 1994 (Heisei 6), it was designated an Important Cultural Property as the first public bathhouse in Japan.

In the preservation and repair work completed last year, the baths and rest rooms were renovated while maintaining their original appearance, and two rooms that had not been open to the public before, the Flight Room on the third floor of the Rei-no-Yu and the Shirasagi Room on the third floor of the South Wing, are now available as rest rooms (advance reservation required). This popular facility has become even more appealing, and even those who are not hot spring lovers should definitely check it out!

There are two other main baths in the hot spring town. Dogo Dogo Onsen Annex Asuka no Yu is a new facility that opened in 2017 (Heisei 29) with the concept of a bathhouse incorporating the architectural style of the Asuka period, befitting "the hot spring said to be the oldest in Japan." It is equipped with an open-air bath and an open-air bath that is not available at the Dogo Onsen Main Building. Another unique feature is that you can experience bathing in an old-fashioned yukata called a "yucho" in the special bathroom, which is a reproduction of the Matashinden Hall of the Dogo Onsen Main Building.

Dogo Onsen Tsubaki no Yu was built in 1953 (Showa 28) when the 8th National Athletic Meet was held across the four prefectures of Shikoku. With the camellia as its symbol, it is a public bathhouse that is widely loved by the citizens of Matsuyama as a "friendly bath" and is an essential part of the local community.

Dogo's hot springs are alkaline simple springs. They are popular for their mildness and suitability for hot spring therapy and beauty. Hot spring water with temperatures ranging from 20 to 55 degrees Celsius is blended from 18 springs and adjusted to an ideal temperature of around 42 degrees Celsius. The water is not heated or diluted, making it a "free-flowing hot spring."