WATCH: Japan to open hot-tub roller coasters in spa-themed park
Japan has been home to a lot of unconventional inventions through the years, and its latest attraction has padded up the list.
A spa resort located at the city of Beppu promises to boast the first ever hot-tub roller coaster inside the world’s only spa-themed amusement park.
The seemingly bizarre combination of adrenaline and sanitation was first suggested through a promotional video on YouTube. The city mayor, Yasuhiro Nagano, said they would build the “spamusement” park if the video receives a million views.
Screengrab from YouTube/温泉ハイスタンダード！ 極楽地獄別府
As seen in the two-and-a-half-minute clip filmed at Beppu Rakutenchi park, visitors clad in towels climb aboard typical rides like carousels, Ferris wheels and cable cars—with built-in bathtubs filled with hot-spring water, bathing pools and steam-room style gaming areas.
The video was such a hit among netizens that it exceeded the mayor’s quota, reaching over 2 million views as of this writing.
In a statement to the Japanese website Rocketnews24, the mayor thanked the public for its support and shared his intent to go through with the project.
He did not specify a projected time frame of completion, but promised that the “Yu-enchi” onsen (hot spring) would be a “setting that everyone from children to adults would enjoy.”
The Japanese politician also promised to open its doors for everyone and open an “exciting, thrilling tourist spot that could represent Beppu” and help “young residents to feel that Beppu is fun.”
Screengrab from YouTube/温泉ハイスタンダード！ 極楽地獄別府
The new park also aims to “verify the appeal of various hot springs and show the world new types of creative onsen in a city that boasts Japan’s largest number of source-fed onsen and largest yield of hot spring,” the statement continued.
It remains unclear if the city will build the plan as showcased in the video due to some safety concerns noticed by the city’s tourist department.
“It’s only an image. We are still discussing safety issues, for example, whether we could actually run hot water inside a roller coaster,” Michitaka Kubota, a spokesman for the department told the Japan Times.
“But the rides will be fun,” he added.
Beppu, which is located at the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, has been a growing tourist spot with 437,764 foreign visitors recorded last year. Khristian Ibarrola
Screengrab from YouTube/温泉ハイスタンダード！ 極楽地獄別府
