Yamashiro Onsen is the largest and oldest of Kaga's three hot spring towns, with a history reaching back some 1,300 years. According to legend, the springs were discovered by a wandering monk who noticed a crow bathing a wounded wing in the steaming water. The town clusters around a central bathhouse square — the Yunokuyu — restored in 2010 to match a Meiji-era design with cypress beams, stained glass, and a separate gallery wing dedicated to the potter and gourmet Rosanjin Kitaoji, who lived here for several years.
The streets around the square are walkable in an hour. You'll find sweet shops selling onsen tamago (eggs cooked in the spring water), pottery galleries, and the Hazuchio Shrine perched on a stone staircase. A second public bath, the Soyu, sits across the square and is preferred by locals for its less ornate, more workmanlike atmosphere. Most ryokan in town allow day visitors to use their baths for a small fee.