Akan National Park

The best-known of the trio, largely thanks to mysterious fuzzy green algae balls known as "marimo", which you can view at the free visitor's center. There is also a small Ainu museum and lacklustre dance performances in the village of Ainu Kotan.

Entirely protected, without a single building along its pristine shores, Lake Mashu can only be viewed from two designated lookout points, known as #1 (the larger and busier of the two, on the south shore) and #3 (on the north shore). A deep volcanic caldera lake, the lookout points are suspended high on cliffs above, and the bonzai-esque appearance of the gnarled trees nearby are a testament to the strong winds that seem to blow incessantly. Often blanketed with a thin layer of fog. Starkly beautiful and worth a visit..

Literally "Child of God Pond", this is a small pond in the middle of the forest, reachable only by a long dirt track (no 4WD needed). What makes the bumpy trip worthwhile is that the water in the pond is a truly unearthly shade of transparent sapphire blue. The track is a few kilometers north of the Ura-Mashuko (#3) lookout.

Also a caldera lake, but a bit livelier than the others as the volcanic peak of Mt. Wakoto (和琴山 Wakoto-san, 266m), jutting out from the southern shore, still bubbles, hisses (and stinks) with geothermal activity. An easy trail runs around the island. Good swimming in the summertime.

Literally "Sulphur Mountain", which is a fairly good hint of what you will see and smell if you go poke around the hells (jigoku). It is also called "Atosanupuri" by the Ainu (indigenous people of the Nord of Japan and nearby Russia).

This hotel and onsen has three onsen buildings — choose which one you want to enter when you buy your ticket. Two of the three buildings have outdoor baths..