Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し, Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi), directed by Hayao Miyazaki and released in 2001, won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and remains the highest-grossing Japanese film of all time. The film’s spirit world — centred on Yubaba’s bathhouse — draws on multiple real Japanese locations, creating one of anime’s most rewarding pilgrimage experiences.
Jiufen, Taiwan
The hillside gold-mining town of Jiufen in Taiwan — with its lantern-lit staircases, red-railed teahouse buildings cascading down a hillside, and narrow alleys — is the most commonly cited visual inspiration for the bathhouse district. While Miyazaki himself has not confirmed Jiufen specifically, the visual parallel is extraordinary, and visiting Jiufen creates a powerful sense of the film’s spirit town atmosphere.
Dogo Onsen, Ehime
Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture — Japan’s oldest hot spring, with a wooden bathhouse building from 1894 — is considered a primary architectural inspiration for Yubaba’s bathhouse. The three-storey wooden structure, its ceremonial tower, and the traditional bathing culture create the most direct Japanese parallel to the film’s setting.
Edo Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum
The Edo Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum in Koganei, Tokyo, is documented as a direct inspiration — Miyazaki visited the preserved historic street lined with relocated Taisho and early Showa buildings while developing the film. The old pharmacy building here closely matches the food stall street where Chihiro’s parents transform.
Access
Dogo Onsen: Matsuyama Airport (flights from Tokyo, Osaka) then tram from Matsuyama station (about 30 minutes). Edo Tokyo Museum: Musashi-Koganei station on the JR Chuo Line (about 30 minutes from Shinjuku).
