While traveling through Tokyo’s concrete jungle, a not a few visitors misses the greenery. One of the most popular tourist destination to escape from Tokyo for a few days is the mountain resort of Hakone, located just outside the metropolis. Hakone is primarily famous for its many hot springs and fantastic views of Mount Fuji. Hakone is a great choice for a weekend or day trip. It’s easy to get to and the sights to see are breathtaking.
You will definitely not be bored during your trip to Hakone. Half jokingly, we can say that during the trip you will try practically all means of transport except the plane. There is a train ride to Odawara station, then a special mountain train ride up the mountain, then a gondola ride up to Devil’s Valley, a pirate ship ride on Lake Ashino, and finally a bus ride back.
When planning a trip to Hakone, the cheapest and most convenient way to travel would be to purchase a two-day Hakone Free Pass ticket, with which you can practically travel by all possible means of transport. The ticket costs 5000 JPY (about 38 EUR) and is valid for two days. The ticket can be purchased at Odawara Train Station. When planning a trip to Hakone, you should decide whether you intend to travel for two days, i.e. stay overnight at Hakone, Gora or Hakone Yumoto onsen hot spring resorts or return to Tokyo on the same day. The thing is, there are a lot of travelers on weekends, so finding a traditional hotel with an onsen and dinner at a reasonable price can be a very difficult. The prices change a lot depending on the tourist flows, but you have to be prepared that you won’t find anything decent for less than 100 EUR per night. Another important aspect. Do not forget that you are traveling in a Japanese province, in a sense a village. Therefore, in the evening, all catering establishments close very quickly. So don’t even have the heretical thoughts of booking a hotel or a traditional hotel without dinner. Because it is very likely that in the evening you will have to suck your finger instead of a delicious bite. You won’t find something like a convenience store in the middle of the mountains in the evening, either, unless you return for the night at least until the Hakone Yumoto central.
If you do decide that you intend to return to Tokyo on the same day, it is very important to leave Tokyo no later than 8 am, otherwise you may miss certain vehicles that are waiting for you on your way. Here it is especially important to pay attention to the working hours of the Ashino Lake pirate ship, which I will talk about later.
If you travel for two days, still, my advice is to leave Tokyo at least before 9 am. First, you will take a train from Shinjuku Station to Odawara Station. The journey will not take long, as there is an express train between these stations. As I mentioned, at Odawara Station you can buy a Hakone Free Pass for various types of transportation during your trip. Then you need to transfer to the local Odakyu train and take about half an hour to Hakone Yumoto Station. When you stop at Hakone Yumoto, don’t be surprised that only when the doors of the train open will the Japanese get out and run forward on the platform. The bottom line is that everyone is in a hurry to get the best seats in the waiting attraction.
If you don’t hurry, you will probably have to wait for the next Hakone Tozan Railway. Hakone Tozan Railway (箱根登山鉄道, Hakone Tozan Tetsudo) is a private Japanese railway company owned by the Odakyu Railway Corporation. So now you will have a journey – a train ride to the top of the mountain. This part of the journey is always very exciting. There is an upbeat mood on the train. All the travelers will enjoy the wonderful views and also marvel at the fun-filled train ride. The Hakone Tozan Railway is the first mountain railway in Japan. It is one of Japan’s most authentic mountain railways, opened back in 1919. Running 8.9km between Hakone-Yumoto and Gora, this historic train climbs an 80% gradient, the steepest gradient in Japan. The journey, which can be called an attraction, lasts about 40 minutes. It is also important to mention that if you travel in the middle of June, you will probably be able to admire the wonderful hydrangeas planted on the railway slopes. From mid-June to mid-July, special trains run between Hakone-Yumoto and Gora stations for evening hydrangea viewing. They depart in the evening, twice each way, and require reservations.
Upon arrival at the Gora station, there is a lift with which visitors can travel to Lake Ashino. On the way up the lift before reaching Owakudani stop, for a moment, Mt.Fuji emerges from behind the mountain. This would be a promising image. You just have to pray for a clear day. Otherwise, you will only see Mount Fuji on postcards. The majesty of Mount Fuji is astonishing. So have your cameras ready, because the lift quickly parks at the Owakudani stop, where you must get off for a look.
Owakudani (大涌谷, lit. “Great Boiling Valley”) is also called Devil’s Valley, is a valley of volcanic origin with active sulfur springs. It was formed about 3,000 years ago by the eruption of the Hakone volcano. It is a very popular tourist destination. Imagine the splash of simmering boiling water, the billowing smoke and the lingering smell of sulphur. You feel as if you are near the gates of hell. It’s a pity, but since 2015 May, the tourist area of Owakudani was closed due to volcanic activity. It reopened on 2016 April 27, but not completely. Due to the danger, one should not walk near fuming sulfur vents. People with asthma, bronchitis, heart disease, pacemakers and pregnant women are advised not to go to the valley due to high volcanic activity. Most of the visitors used to walk about 1 kilometer along the path to the place where the eggs are boiled to participate in the ritual eating of the eggs. I myself had to participate in such a ritual at least five times. I remember walking along the path, everything around is boiling and steaming. You reach a small pond. A large group of tourists gathers around the pond and as a rule, everyone eats a local delicacy, an egg boiled in hot springs.
Kuro-tamago (黒卵, lit. “black egg”) is a local dish, an egg hard-boiled in hot springs, which turns black and smells slightly of sulfur. If you haven’t eaten this egg, let’s say the trip failed. How can you miss such an attraction. Especially; eating one egg is said to increase life expectancy by seven years. I have always been amazed by the entrepreneurship of such areas. When you start thinking about how many thousands of eggs are eaten per day, you get quite a fun entrepreneur. Egg consumption levels must be impressive, I’m guessing the highest concentration of egg eaters on the planet.
The current activity around the sulfur springs is the result of massive landslides in the past. The construction of concrete barriers and stabilization of the area has been going on for several decades. I really hope that someday tourists will be allowed to enjoy the black sulphur-smelling eggs again.
Once you’re done with the eggs, and in this case, since the tourist trail is closed, after looking around the Owakudani Valley, you need to go back to the gondola stop. We continue to have fun with the gondola to the stop at Lake Ashino. You may not survive, you will definitely not go wrong choosing the stop to get off, because Togendai is the last stop to which the gondola arrives.
This stop, as you may have already understood, is located next to Lake Ashino. The name means “reed lake” in Japanese: 芦 (ashi) – “reed” and 湖 (ko) – “lake”. Its abundance of nature makes it popular with hikers. There are many walking trails of varying difficulty.
Lake Ashino (芦ノ湖, Ashi-no-ko), also called Lake Hakone or Lake Ashinoko, is a scenic lake in the Hakone district. It is a crater lake located along Mount Hakone, a complex volcano that last erupted in 1170 at the owakudani valley, the caldera’s southwestern border. If you have a powerful sonar, you can find poles displayed on the sonar screen in certain sections. To be more precise, these are giant trees standing in the lake, several tens of meters high. The thing is that during the eruption of the volcano, a part of the mountain slope with all the forests slipped into the lake. The lake is famous for its views of Mt.Fuji, its many hot springs, historical sites, and an abundance of Ryokans, traditional Japanese inns. The lake is located on the Tokaido road, which is the main link between Kyoto and Tokyo in Edo era. Numerous pleasure boats and ferries ply across the lake, offering scenic views to tourists and passengers. Several ships are inspired by the design of sailing warships, looking like pirate ships.
One of the most important tips when visiting this stop is not to rush to get on the ship, but to go to the second floor of the building where the canteen is located. Delicious, inexpensive food, a glass of beer, a view of the lake, what more could you want on vacation.
After getting stronger, you can take a look at the proposed ship routes. With the pirate ship, you can sail from Togendai to Moto-Hakone Port and Hakone-Machi Port, which are located at opposite ends of the lake. You need to sail to Moto Hakone Port. As I mentioned at the beginning of the article, it is very important to pay attention to the time when the last ships leave. On weekdays and holidays, the last ship from Togendai to Moto Hakone departs at 15.50. Do not be late, otherwise further travel plans may be ruined. The boat trip will take about half an hour.
Upon arrival at the port, I suggest that the first thing you do is go to the reconstructed Hakone Sekisho, in other words, the restored Edo period checkpoint with all the buildings. To protect Edo (now Tokyo), the Tokugawa shogun military ruler set up 53 sekisho (checkpoints, we understand something like customs) along the main roads of the country. Here officials would stop and their travel permits and luggage would be checked to comply with Tokugawa laws. restricting the travel of women and weapons.
The Hakone sekisho was one of the largest and most important. The Hakone sekisho was built on its current site in 1619, during the early Edo period.
During the Sengoku period, the area came under the control of the later Odawara clan, Hojo. At the beginning of the Edo period, Hakone-juku was a post station on the Tokai Road connecting Edo with Kyoto.
One of the main functions of the sekisho was to control “incoming guns and outgoing women” to prevent arms from being brought into Edo and the wives and children of feudal lords to escape from Edo. During this period, the shogunate held the wives or other important women and children of feudal lords as hostages in order to control possible rebellions in the Japanese provinces. For this reason, many things were strictly regulated. Construction of castles, construction of bridges and crossings, etc.
Sekisho, which operated for about 260 years in the Edo era, was abolished in 1868 when the government changed. A few years ago, Hakone Sekisho was completely rebuilt based on the drawings of the time, so I highly recommend visiting it for history lovers and those who want to get to know Japan better. A small museum with interesting exhibits is also located a little further behind the track.
A fragment of the old Tokaido road has been preserved with giant cedars and cypresses growing on both sides. Stop by and you will be pleasantly surprised by the magnificence of nature.
So after visiting all the objects there are two possible choices. If you don’t plan to stay overnight, then from Hakone-machi you should take a bus to Hakone Yumoto or even Odawara. It would take you about one hour to get to Odawara by bus. Buses depart from the first or second stop. The buses at the second stop are less frequent, so you will get to Hakone Yumoto or Odawara station much faster. If you decide to stay overnight in a local Japanese-style hotel, then you need to check in advance whether there is a bus stop nearby. If not, then how much would such a trip cost with a taxi. For this reason, if you don’t want to worry about the vicissitudes of transportation, but still want to treat yourself to the pleasures of the hot springs, I suggest booking a hotel in Hakone Yumoto.
There are dozens of Onsen (hot springs) in the Hakone region. This is one of the most famous onsen areas in all of Japan. It is believed that the first hot spring in this area was found in 738. Opened by a wandering Buddhist priest during the Nara period, it is still in use today. Hakone Onsen became famous after the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi conquered Odawara. He gathered samurai from many parts of the country to attack Odawara Castle, and after the battle he rested in the hot spring here.
During the Tokugawa shogunate, Hakone’s hot water was regularly delivered to the shogun from Hakone to Edo (Tokyo), a distance of about 90 km.
Gradually, over the centuries, the number of hot springs around Hakone expanded. 19th century at the end of the 20th century At the beginning of the 20th century, Hakone developed as a resort and tourist area. in 1919 the Hakone Tozan Railway line was built to Hakone-Yumoto Station, making many of Hakone’s hot springs easily accessible to residents of Tokyo and Yokohama. 1930 the further construction of this railway line began, making the number of hot springs even greater. Shortly after World War II, the Odakyu Electric Railway was built to Hakone-Yumoto Station, making it very convenient for people from the Tokyo Central to visit this resort.
Hakone’s hot springs are considered to be the oldest thermal spas in the area.
Hakone Yumoto Onsen is now a group of hot spring resorts located near the Hakone-Yumoto Station of the Hakone Tozan Railway. The water in these springs is generally clear, with a pH of 8.8, and the spring temperature averages 52 °C but ranges from 18.5 to 82.7 °C. I think it’s a great choice for an overnight stay, because in the morning you can take a walk and look around the town itself. Well, in the evening, don’t spare another euro and book a hotel with overnight stay.
As I mentioned, you can spend the morning of the next day exploring the town of Hakone. Another option would be to stop by Odawara Castle on your way back to Tokyo. You may have already forgotten, but it is from Odawara station that you take the express train to Tokyo. Odawara Castle is quite close to the station, so if you have time, I suggest you visit it. However, it is not an architecturally very impressive castle, so it is not among the five most important castles in Japan that I recommend to visit.
