A Timeless Love Witness Site: The "Private Hot Spring Rooms" of Sichongxi Preserve Historical Traces

Reported and photographed by You T-Ru / Kenting

"There’s a love hot spring room that bridges past and present here!" This is the first thing you’ll hear when visiting the Sichongxi Hot Springs in Pingtung. Hiding within an over 80-year-old Japanese-style hot spring inn is a private hot spring room called "Crown Prince’s Bath," said to be a historical love witness site where traces of the past and present converge.


▲ The weathered walls and pool water seem to still hold memories of the past.

The Qingquan Hot Spring Hotel, which has stood for over 80 years, was once the honeymoon hot spring spot of Japan’s Prince Takamatsu (Nobuhito, Prince Takamatsu) in 1930 (Showa 5). The hot spring hotel was expanded due to his visit and still retains its original Japanese garden and layout to this day. Despite the passage of time, it preserves the remnants of the old hot spring rooms, hence earning the name "private hot spring room that witnesses love."


 
▲ The simple and rustic spring pool and the more traditionally styled vanity area.


▲ The old building inscribed with "Qingquan Inn" remains well-preserved, standing behind the hot spring pool.

Step into the Qingquan Japanese-style hot spring inn, marked by a "Spring’s Exit" sign at its bubbling water source. Passing the reception desk at the entrance, you’ll see a Japanese-style garden and hot spring area. Two extremely simple outdoor hot spring pools serve as the main public bathing spaces, surrounded by two-story buildings that still retain Japanese architectural elements. Upon closer inspection, one building behind the hot spring area bears the inscription "Qingquan Inn" — plain and undecorated, it nestles closely against the wall.


▲ The fully preserved corridor leads directly to the "private hot spring room" once used by the Japanese prince.

"This is a love witness site that bridges past and present," the guide says as they lead you into the back building, the "Qingquan Inn." The well-preserved long staircase and wooden doors of the original structure remain, concealing the small hot spring hut once used by the Japanese prince. Decades-old washbasins, weathered floors, and bathtubs have been left in a very natural state. A small pool of water in the bathtub still ripples slightly when approached, as if this "private hot spring room" that has traversed history has never lost its charm over time, having witnessed the love of the prince and his consort during their special honeymoon visit here.

[Qingquan Japanese-style Hot Spring Inn]
Address: No. 5, Wenhua Road, Wenquan Village, Checheng Township, Pingtung County
Phone: (08)882-4120
(Kending Caesar also offers half-day tour packages to Sichongxi Hot Springs, available by advance reservation)