Hyakuzawa Onsen, which had been closed, reopened for business on April 27th as Happy Hyakuzawa Onsen (Hyakuzawa, Hirosaki City, TEL 0172-88-9321 ).

Hyakuzawa Onsen, a public bathhouse with accommodation facilities that tourists also visit, located near Iwakisan Shrine, had been closed since September last year. The reasons for the closure were the aging of the facilities and a lack of manpower, but Abe Koji, a comedian affiliated with Yoshimoto Kogyo, acquired the property in December and announced that it would reopen, attracting a lot of attention.

Abe, who lives in Tokyo, has been the MC of the Aomori Asahi Broadcasting information program "Dreams Come From Here Live Happy" for 11 years and visits Aomori every week. Regarding the acquisition of Hyakuzawa Onsen, Abe said, "I thought about what I could do for Aomori, and thought about creating a place where people could gather."

The manager, OGA, is a comedian from Ehime who moved to Aomori in 2021. He was chosen for the job due to his experience working part-time at a public bathhouse. OGA started living at Hyakuzawa Onsen in January this year, and helped with the renovation work, working with the volunteers who gathered. The renovation was streamed on video. OGA said, "We were able to open thanks to the cooperation of many people. We are grateful that there are local residents who have been coming almost every day since the pre-opening."

Currently, only day bathing is available. The bathing fee is 480 yen for adults (junior high school students and above), 170 yen for elementary school students, and free for infants and younger. A 10-ticket pass costs 4,000 yen. According to Abe, he is considering using the facility as a lodging facility or a working space in the future.

On the same day that the facility reopened, an opening ceremony was held, and Abe's wife, Takahashi Ai, rushed to attend. "The water warms you from the inside out. I want to use it as a lotion," said Takahashi. Abe expressed her enthusiasm, saying, "It's like we haven't even started yet. I hope we can use this facility as a theme park to liven up the area."

Business hours are from 10:00 to 22:00.