Japanese mountain onsen transplanted to the New Mexico high desert. Cedar, stone, and silence.
Carved into the hillside above Santa Fe at 7,000 feet elevation, Ten Thousand Waves is a Japanese-style mountain onsen transplanted to the American Southwest. The design draws on traditional ryokan aesthetics — rough-hewn cedar, stone, lanterns, and raked gravel — while the landscape is pure New Mexico: juniper and piñon pine, adobe walls, desert light. Opened in 1981, it predates the American spa boom by a decade.
- $$$
- Restaurant named Izanami
Pools & saunas
Waters & pools
- Cold plunge
- Outdoor soaking pool
- Giant outdoor tile pool
- 3 pools
- 12.78–40°C
- Open-air
Saunas & steam
- Wet/dry sauna
- Hot hot hot sauna
Worth knowing
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First Japanese-style mountain spa in the United States (1981)
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Sits at 7,000 feet elevation in the Sangre de Cristo foothills above Santa Fe
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Private tubs range from intimate two-person pools to large communal soaking tubs
An insider's tip
Reserve a private tub for sunset. The New Mexico light at 5-6pm over the Sangre de Cristo Mountains is extraordinary, and the mountain air drops fast after dark.
Don't leave without
Book the cold plunge-to-hot tub sequence in a private tub overlooking the mountains. The contrast between cold desert air and hot cedar-scented water is the experience.
Good to know
- Hours
- lunch 12:00 pm - 2:45 pm Wednesday - Monday ; dinner 5:00 pm - 8:45 pm every day ; happy hour 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm, every day except Tuesday ; late night happy hour 9
- Phone
- 505 982 9304
- Dress code
- Optional swimwear in public pools; clothing-free in private tubs
- Timezone
- America/Denver
Climate — Warmest around Jul (~29.2°C high), coolest around Jan (~-0.6°C).
On the map
35.7240°N · 105.8706°W
