Opening hours and admission for this place have not been checked yet, so none are shown. Check the official site
Our guide
Goshiki-numa, the “Five Colored Lakes”, is a cluster of volcanic lakes at the foot of Mount Bandai, in the middle of the lake district of the Bandai Highland in Kitashiobara, Fukushima. They were made by disaster: on 15 July 1888 Mount Bandai erupted, destroying dozens of villages and killing about 500 people. The eruption rearranged the landscape, created the Bandai-kōgen plateau and dammed the rivers, leaving hundreds of lakes and ponds.
Minerals from the eruption give each lake its own colour, from reddish green to cobalt blue, and the colours shift through the year with the weather. The lakes have been a popular destination ever since.
We have not checked a public-transport route or the walking paths, so plan the journey on the map and look for local information before you go.
Written by japan-spots.com (2026-09-22) from the sources credited on this page. Distances are straight lines between map positions.
Photos
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence — see credits
- Goshikinuma01 — Aiko99ann · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized
- Goshikinuma — Jordy Meow · CC BY 3.0 · source · resized
- Autumn colours at Goshikinuma (37146437564) — Raita Futo from Tokyo, Japan · CC BY 2.0 · source · resized
- Autumn colours at Goshikinuma (37807805976) — Raita Futo from Tokyo, Japan · CC BY 2.0 · source · resized
- Bishamon Pond With Mount Bandai — Brian Adler ( BrianAdler ) · Public domain · source · resized
- 赤沼 (2008) — Gogo Lawrence · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized
What this place is
Goshiki-numa (五色沼), is a cluster of five volcanic lakes situated at the foot of Mount Bandai in the center of the lake district of the Bandai Highland (磐梯高原, Bandai-kōgen), Kitashiobara, Fukushima, Japan. Goshiki-numa formed when Mount Bandai erupted on July 15, 1888, destroying dozens of villages and killing approximately 500 people while creating hundreds of lakes and tarns. The eruption completely rearranged the landscape, creating the Bandai-kōgen plateau and damming local rivers. The eruption imparted mineral deposits to the Five Colored Lakes giving each of them its own distinct color, ranging from reddish green to cobalt blue. The colors of each lake mysteriously fluctuate throughout the year with the weather. Since the eruption, Goshiki-numa has become a popular tourist destination.
Background text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
What to expect at this type of place: Lakes & falls
Getting there
We do not have step-by-step transit directions for this spot yet. Open the location on Google Maps for routes from where you are staying.
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