Western Japan’s Best Wellness Travel Destinations in 2025: Guide

Yakushima is, after several months spent in Japan, one of my favorite destinations in the country. It’s hard to discuss the place without saying, in somewhat languorous tones, that “this is the lush island where Hayao Miyazaki found inspiration for Princess Mononoke.” Fans of the film will instantly see that connection. Yakushima’s forests offer a unique immersion in each season. You may get the mossier, damper trails in summer, or go cedar hugging in winter. No matter what time of year you go, please make it a priority to take a “forest bath.”

Specifically, take one with Kaleidoforest. They’ll craft an itinerary that suits the day and the hiker, but if it’s warm enough, take off your shoes at least once to walk across the mossy forest floor. This stands out as the single most centering experience we had across the islands. It was humbling to embrace quietude and simply hide away on the forest floor, with only a soundtrack of babbling brooks and birds. You may even spot some deer and monkeys.

Where to Stay in Yakushima: Sankara Hotel & Spa

This Michelin-key retreat offers a luxe reprieve. You can take a daily forest bath just outside of the lobby, but if it’s cold, you can also book the property’s private mirror-glass sauna overlooking the Pacific. The spa offers Yakushima-inspired treatments, harnessing elemental essences of rain, sun, forest, and mountains (as well as a Thai massage menu). Settle in for a few days; the luxe cabin suites feel instantly like your home-far-away-from-home.

You’ll want to make multiple appearances at the francofied Okas, which serves seasonal fare from sea and land alike. And spend one evening at the prix-fixe Ayana for your wagyu fix.

Okinawa is known for its long life expectancy—it’s one of the world’s five “Blue Zones,” where residents have a well-balanced schedule of diet, exercise, and social activity. For the aquatically inclined, it’s a terrific excuse for surfing, diving, and fishing. (The world-class Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium is a must-see.)

Technically speaking, Okinawa isn’t part of the Kyushu region—though, depending on who you ask, these far-west islands may be grouped with the larger Kyushu ones. Okinawa houses multiple American military bases, and at times feels like a marriage of east and west, especially on the main island of Naha. That’s where you’ll find Halekulani Okinawa, a Hawaiian resort, believe it or not, that’s much larger than its Honolulu flagship. And for what it’s worth: two five-star hotel managers in Nara and Tokyo called this property their “favorite hotel in the world.”

If you can time a trip to Halekulani’s annual Blue Zones Retreat (late October) for a diet-and-exercise immersion, I’d encourage it. But at any time of year, this five-star property plays host to the island’s best dining and wellness facilities. The Japanese restaurant AOMI offered a standout Shabu Shabu, and be certain to book the enormous spa for a private hot spring soak and a Nuchigusui-powered treatment (which harnesses Okinawan medicinal ingredients).

Many travel to Kyushu’s southernmost tip to simply bury themselves in hot thermal sands. It feels like a weighted blanket, and this circulation booster will have you sweating out your stresses. You’d be remiss not to seek out a thermal spa, too, given the volcanic powers beneath your feet. (Speaking of volcanoes, look out for the active Sakurajima crater between Kagoshima and Ibusuki, if you take the train south.)

In fact, the best place to experience both onsen and a hot sand burial is also a terrific overnight stay: the storied Ibusuki Hakusuikan hotel. The enormous Genroku-era spas are reason alone to visit, as are the traditional private dining and late-hours pub and the adjacent Satsuma Denshokan art and history museum. It’s all backdropped by Pacific views, and better yet, Ibusuki harbors the boats that take you to Yakushima, our No. 1 spot on this list.

Midway between Fukuoka and Nagasaki is Ureshino-Onsen, whose name gives away its primary attraction: the hot springs, which have a give your skin a noticeably improved feel. Locals even call them “Bihada no Yu” or “beautiful skin waters.”

However, Ureshino is also renowned for its tea, thanks to optimal soil, weather, and farming techniques. The region famously prepares its tea through pan frying and steaming methods, too, which yields unique and vivid expressions.

To experience both of these in one place, all signs point to Ureshino Yadoya hotel. Here is one of the traditional-style, tatami-floored reprieves that checks your street shoes upon arrival, but it is far from traditional in terms of your experience. Book the tea room for a private tasting—to try all shades of green freshly prepared—and cozy up in their suites with private onsen baths and saunas.

If we made one mistake here, it was staying just one night en route from north to south. We wished we had stayed at least three, though we consumed enough tea for a lifetime. But caffeine fiends beware: The only way to get coffee here is to head to the reception desk and make it in an espresso machine. Yourself.

Goto Island is a half-hour puddle jump from Nagasaki (or, more commonly, a 90-minute express ferry). It feels the most isolated and foreign of everything on this roster, which means you can actually get some peace and quiet here. There’s an alluring strangeness to the island—I’d compare it to Iceland in how removed its residents feel, and the juxtaposition against volcanic fields. (I wonder if its predominantly Christian population adds to the sharp contrast to most of mainland Japan, too.)

There are over 150 islands comprising the Goto Prefecture, but I suggest you point to the main island and stay at Goto Retreat by Onko Chishin, which manifests as a five-star “Goto Reprieve” and is as beautifully appointed as any Hollywood set. We were blessed with a blanket of January snow—a rarity, but a serene visual I’ll never forget as we looked out over the Sea of Japan. As if the storied Goto beef wasn’t enough of a culinary attraction, Goto gave us the absolute best seafood of our recent visit—a menu they call the “Japanese Cuisine of Light.”

On paper, it feels odd to categorize this as a wellness stay, and yet after three days here I felt so superbly renewed. Plus, the fabulous Vichy water shower in the retreat was a nice punctuation. There’s something magnetic and stirring about Goto. Maybe the volcanic energy, and certainly the removal of routine.