Ginzan Onsen – Night View Heritage of Japan | Obanazawa, Yamagata Japan

[4K UHD] Ginzan Onsen – Night View Heritage of Japan | Obanazawa, Yamagata Japan

Ginzan Onsen, located in Obanazawa City, Yamagata Prefecture Japan, is a historic hot spring town with ryokan inns built from the late Taisho period to the early Showa period lining both banks of the Ginzan River.
Nobesawa Ginzan, once known as one of the three major silver mines along with Shimane’s Iwami Ginzan and Hyogo’s Ikuno Ginzan, was located here.
It is said that the origin of Ginzan Onsen was discovered by a miner in the Nobesawa Ginzan Silver Mine, who found a hot spring in the Ginzan River flowing through the area.
The population around Nobesawa Ginzan plummeted after the mine was abandoned due to a decrease in the amount of silver mined and a major collapse of the mine shaft in 1682.
In this area, it is said that hot spring cures took the place of silver mining, and the local people began to run hot spring inns(Yuya-湯屋).
In modern times, it prospered as a hot spring town lined with hot spring inns along the Ginzan River, but most of the inns were washed away by the great flood in the Taisho era.
The popularity of Ginzan Onsen declined because the river water flowed into the source, but it is said that it was revived by mining a new source and building a new inn.
When it suddenly came into the limelight when it became the setting for the NHK TV novel “Oshin” broadcast in the late Showa period, it also attracted attention as a hot spring town with rows of wooden inns built from the Taisho period to the Showa period.
Also, when rumors arose that it was the model for the Studio Ghibli movie “Spirited Away,” it became known as a hot spring town that even foreign tourists visit.
The scenery of retro-modern hot spring inns that retain the atmosphere of those days and the nostalgic nighttime hot spring town with the warm light of gas lamps is beautiful, so it is registered as a night view heritage of Japan.
Regarding the model for the Studio Ghibli movie “Spirited Away”, director Hayao Miyazaki himself said, “There are various hot springs, and there is no specific model, but Dogo Onsen certainly does.”
As for other hot spring towns, it has been officially announced that it is not correct, as long as director Hayao Miyazaki says that there is no specific model.
However, it is also announced that it is not known whether the director has visited these hot spring resorts.