Hakone
About two years ago, I wrote a short blog post about our weekend trip to Hakone, a very popular local and tourist attraction in Kanagawa Prefecture, well known for its onsen (public hot bath) hot springs and views of Mt. Fuji. This is a full (much longer) post of our trip.
We bought the Odakyu Freepass, which included a round-trip ticket from Shinjuku and Hakone-Yumoto stations, along with unlimited boarding for several types of transportation in the Hakone area. From Shinjuku station, we took the Odakyu Romance car train to Hakone-Yumoto station.
From Hakone-Yumoto, we took the Hakone Tozan train to Gora.
Gora is a very small and quiet town.
From Gora, we took the Hakone cable car to Sounzan.
From Sounzan, we took the Hakone cable ropeway to Owakudani.
You had a good view of the area from the cable car.
Upon arriving at Owakudani, we had a hot soba meal at the station.
We visited the Great Boiling Valley, where you can find many active hot springs and sulfur vents …
… where you will find kuro-tamago, a local specialty of eggs hard-boiled in the hot springs.
From Owakudani, we took another Hakone cable ropeway to Togendai. From Togendai, we took the Hakone sightseeing Pirate cruise ship to the town of Motohakone-ko – aye matey!
Motohakone-ko is a small seaside town with a large red torii gate.
Overnight, we stayed at Prince Ryuguden Hotel, a traditional Japanese style hotel called a ryokan in Hakone near Lake Ashi.
It was a very nice hotel – we had a large room with a great view.
In the evening, futons were setup on the tatami floor for sleeping.
While at the ryokan, we wore yukata which was supplied by the hotel. The onsen was private, clean and empty (sorry, no pictures allowed inside the onsen).
We received excellent personal service.
In our room, a very traditional Japanese dinner …
… and breakfast were served. It was certainly a very unique experience for us.
From our hotel room, we had a great view of Mt. Fuji and Lake Ashi.
The next day, we took the Komagatake Ropeway cable car ride to the top of the mountain, providing great views of Mt Fuji the surrounding area.
There was a small Shinto shrine at the top.
We had lunch in a soba restaurant near the Komagatake Ropeway cable car station. Soba is a speciality of the Hakone area.
You will find the Hakone-en Aquarium in the same area.
As well as a few gift shops to buy some souvenirs.
Before taking the train home, we walked around Hakone-Yumoto near the station.
Some of the loot we bought from the trip.
It was definitely a memorable trip, our first time staying at a ryokan. We were also lucky to see a good view of Fuji-san.
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Looks like a great side trip to take from Tokyo! I will include this in our plan for the Tokyo trip.
Thanks for visiting my blog and commenting. Have a great trip to Tokyo.
i plan to visit hakone in march, thanks for sharing. really appreciate it.
You’re welcome. I look forward to reading about your visit to Japan in your blog.
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