What to pack for a winter onsen trip in Japan: heat packs, snow boots and warm layers

Disposable heat packs, kairo, are the simplest piece of winter kit. JNTO says they are sold in convenience stores everywhere, start to warm as soon as you take one out of its packet and shake it, and come in versions for hands and for boots. In shops you will see stick-on packs (貼る, haru) that attach to clothing and loose ones (貼らない, haranai) for a pocket or glove; packs made for shoes and socks are labelled くつ用 or くつ下用.

Flying with them: Kobayashi Pharmaceutical, which makes Kiribai kairo, says its disposable heat packs can go in both cabin and checked baggage — they are not classed as dangerous goods under Japan's Civil Aeronautics Act — but the iron powder inside may set off a metal detector. The US TSA also lists hand warmers as allowed in carry-on and checked bags, with the final decision resting with the officer at the checkpoint. Other types are different: Japan's transport ministry (MLIT) includes oil-filled portable warmers and platinum (catalytic) warmers in its list of items with carriage restrictions. MLIT advises asking your airline, which may have stricter rules, and notes that other countries may add their own rules on international flights.

Use them safely. Kobayashi's instructions say not to use heat packs while sleeping or together with bedding or a heater, not to put them directly on skin, and to stop at once if one feels too hot, because low-temperature burns can damage deeper skin. They contain water, so a pack that freezes below zero may not heat — keep spares indoors. How to throw used packs away depends on the municipality, so ask the inn which bin to use.

Footwear matters most. Sapporo's Winter Life Promotion Council, which runs the city's Walk Smart site, cites a questionnaire in which one in five overseas visitors to Hokkaido in winter had fallen. It says sneakers and leather-soled shoes don't suit snowy streets, and that a winter shoe should be non-slip, waterproof and warm. Soles with metal pins grip hard ice but become slippery on tiles and indoor floors; deep treads grip well but get slippery once packed with snow; soft rubber and soles with anti-slip material work on many surfaces. It adds that no shoe is non-slip on every surface.

For a trip of a few days, the council suggests detachable grips that strap onto the shoes you already have — toe-only types for narrow heels, full-sole types for flat sneakers, with or without metal pins. Take pinned ones off before you go indoors. That fits ryokan life: you take your shoes off at the entrance anyway, so a grip you can slip off is easier than boots with built-in studs.

Our reports show why it matters at snow-country inns. At Magoroku Onsen in Nyūtō there is no car access — about 15 minutes on foot along a snowy path in winter — and in 2026 only geta were left out for walking outside. Ryokan Sakaya in Nozawa Onsen sits on narrow, steep lanes, and the street out front froze in heavy snow over New Year 2022–23. Some inns lend footwear: Zao Onsen Kinosato lends boots for the outdoor walk to its bath, and Shosenkaku Kagetsu in Echigo-Yuzawa lent a family snow boots before check-in in 2024 — useful, but don't count on it for walks around town.

On the street, the council's advice is small steps with the whole sole on the ground, no rushing, and both hands free — so carry a backpack rather than a hand-held bag, and keep your hands out of your pockets. Watch bus and taxi stops, and knock the snow off your soles before stepping onto a tiled entrance.

Layers beat one heavy jumper. The Winter Life Promotion Council says two thinner sweaters trap more warm air than one thick one and let you take a layer off indoors; JNTO's Hokkaido advice likewise suggests layering — turtlenecks and fleece jackets — so you can adjust as you move in and out of buildings, plus a windproof winter jacket. JNTO also notes that thermal underlayers are popular in Japan and well worth the small cost on arrival.

For the coat, the council recommends synthetic fill or down in a polyester shell, which resists wet and dries quickly, long enough to cover your hips, and ideally with a hood for wind and heavy snow; wool and cotton stay wet once soaked. It prefers trousers to skirts, with tights underneath, and a layer under jeans and sweaters rather than bare skin.

Inside the ryokan you'll mostly wear the inn's yukata, so pack a thin layer that fits under or over it. Some inns lend extras in winter: Notoya Ryokan in Ginzan Onsen lends red coats for winter walks, and Zao Onsen Kinosato lends blankets as well as boots for the walk to the bath. Ask at check-in whether your inn has a padded jacket to wear over the yukata.

JNTO calls a good pair of gloves and a warm hat essential, and notes that many Japanese gloves have touchscreen fingertips — handy for maps on a cold night. The Winter Life Promotion Council suggests thick gloves in a material that doesn't soak through, such as leather or polyester with a warm lining, long enough to close the gap between glove and sleeve; a thick wool hat that covers your ears; and a long, wide scarf you can wrap or wear over your head, without letting the ends hang loose.

Falling snow is the other problem. Kyukamura Nyuto Onsenkyo in Akita has kasa hats to keep your head dry in falling snow, but between baths and around town, a hood or a hat you don't mind getting wet is worth packing.

JNTO's Hokkaido advice notes that the air is particularly dry in winter and suggests packing moisturisers and lip balm, especially if you are used to a humid climate. Bathing several times a day at an onsen, then stepping out into cold wind, adds to it.

Pocket sizes are easiest: a lip balm and hand cream in a coat pocket, and a body moisturiser in your bath bag for after soaking. These are everyday items in Japanese drugstores and on Amazon.co.jp and Rakuten, so there's no need to fill your suitcase with them.

At many snow-country inns the outdoor bath is a walk away, and what you carry gets wet with snow. Our reports on Takaragawa Onsen Osenkaku say the paths between its riverside pools are long, the changing rooms are far from the building, and a re-used wet robe gets cold — wear something warm between baths. At Magoroku Onsen the rooms and bathhouses are in separate buildings, so you walk outdoors to bathe; at Tsurunoyu the changing rooms are cold and the outer baths have no taps or showers. Awanoyu in Shirahone has about six slippery steps down into its mixed outdoor bath, and at Ginzan Onsen Fujiya the semi-open-air bath on the top floor is the coldest option on a winter night.

A small waterproof bag keeps a dry towel, your phone and a spare layer dry on the way, and a quick-drying towel is lighter to carry around than the inn's cotton one once it's wet. If you go bath-hopping, check the winter arrangements: at Nyūtō, the bath-hopping bus runs a winter timetable, Kuroyu closes from mid-November to mid-April, and a guest in November 2025 had to walk 20 minutes through snow to Magoroku.

Bulky winter clothes fill a suitcase fast, so consider buying some of them in Japan and having them sent ahead. Rakuten Ichiba's konbini pickup works only for items its shops offer it on, and not for parcels over 100 cm (three sides combined) or 10 kg, frozen or chilled goods, or date- or time-specified delivery; the pickup window is two or three days from arrival at the store, depending on the chain and carrier, after which the parcel normally goes back to the shop. To have a parcel sent to the inn itself, ask the ryokan first, and allow extra days for a remote inn in snow — our guide to delivery to your ryokan has the details, including Amazon.co.jp's pickup options.

Check the inn's winter calendar before you buy for it. Tsuta Onsen Ryokan in Aomori closes for the winter. At Notoya Ryokan the hilltop viewing bath closes from about December to April for snow, and at Tsurunoyu the private riverside bath is closed in winter. For which inns to choose in the snow, see our guide to snow-country ryokan.