Finding a quality hot spring in the USA for day use is complicated. Faywood had day use when we first found this one by accident during a trip back to the USA a few years ago. Now that we are living here full time, we tried going back. First, we found that next to the baths, there is the unique City of Rocks, New Mexico State Park. It is a miniature version of Joshua Tree National Park with many rocks to climb up and explore around. The well-maintained campground offers great places hidden between the stones for setting up a tent. There is also a park store, museum, and bathrooms with simple showers. Faywood also offers camping for tents and RVs, but it's much more crowded and less pretty. On the other hand, Faywood has some natural mineral water flowing into many beautiful baths.

For day use, you can only rent a single outdoor bath for an hour. The bath we had was well-appointed with chairs and tables. It was also enclosed enough that you had a good sense of privacy. The water quality is above average, with a noticeable smell and skin feel. It is also hot enough to get you really relaxed. I wish we could have explored the other casual-use baths, indoor and outdoor, in their clothing-required and optional clothing areas, but that is only for overnight guests. Be aware there is no sex-based separation here, and the nude areas are geared towards nudist lifestyle enthusiasts, which is different than mixed-gender baths in Japan.

Given the cost, it is cheaper to camp overnight here rather than use the day-use option. So that is what we will try on our next trip.