Here is how we spent a day in Hakone, before heading back to Tokyo.
After a wonderful night’s rest at Hakone Ashinoko Hanaori, I got up early because to use the open-air bath before breakfast. Relaxing in the warm bath while basking in the fresh morning air and enjoying the quiet and nature was the perfect way to start the morning.
After a quick shower, I chilled on the balcony staring at the lake before we headed to breakfast. Breakfast was also buffet style and was included in the room rate. For breakfast, you can go anytime during the open hours; no need to reserve a time.
Unfortunately, it was time for us to pack up and leave after breakfast. I liked wearing the yukata and samue around the ryokan, so I wanted to buy a set from the gift shop. However, after checking out, I completely forgot to walk over to the gift shop (although I was momentarily annoyed with myself, I got my samue and kimono robe later in Tokyo).
We knew what we wanted to see in Hakone, but was unsure of the best way to get to the Hakone Shrine without taking the sightseeing pirate ship. It was too far to walk from the ryokan, and a roundtrip cab ride would probably be pricey. So after getting advice from the receptionist at checkout, we decided to just go the pirate ship route.
Togendai station is about a two-minute or 10-minute walk from the ryokan, depending on which door you leave out. For example, if you leave from the front entrance by reception, it’s a 10-minute walk.
1. Hakone Pirate Ship
Cost: 2,220 yen roundtrip
After purchasing our pirate ship tickets, there was a short wait to board the ship, so I went back upstairs to purchase the ropeway tickets for later.
To get to the Hakone shrine and peace torii, we took the cruise from the Togendai port to Motohakone port, with a stop at the Hakone town port for people to get off and on. You can see the red torii from the ship as it approaches the Motohakone port. The total cruising time was about 40 minutes.
You can find information about the Hakone pirate ship here.
2. Hakone Shrine & Peace Torii
Cost: Free
Once the ship made it to the Motohakone port, we walked over to the Hakone shrine and peace torii (less than 10 minutes). The area was busy, and there was a queue to take pictures at the peace torii. Part of the crowd was due to a field studies group.
After taking pictures and walking around for a bit, we returned to the port to ride the ship back to Togendai port. It was a tranquil ride being on the water.
3. Hakone Ropeway
Cost: 1,550 yen (one way)
Once we returned to the port, since we already had our ropeway tickets, we just followed the signs to the ropeway. The gondola comes frequently, so we did not have to wait. We rode the Hakone Ropeway from Togendai station to Ubako station. People could get off at Ubako station, but we continued to Owakudini station.
At Owakudini station, you had to exit the gondola, and you could transfer over to Sounzan station or check out the Owakudini area like we did.
4. Owakudani
Cost: Free to enter
Owakudani was supposedly created around 3000 years ago during the last eruption of Mount Hakone. The area has a distinct smell, presumably due to the sulfur. It was pretty cool to look down at the volcanic activity happening.
After taking some photos, it was time to try the famous black eggs. The eggs are regular chicken eggs that are boiled in the local hot springs, and the sulfur in the water turns the eggshells black. Eating an egg is said to add 7 years to your life.
After purchasing a package of 5 eggs for 500 yen, we went outside and found an area to sit and eat. Not surprising, the eggs tasted like regular boiled eggs.
In the Owakudani area, aside from viewing the volcanic activity below, there is a walking trail, places to eat and do some light shopping.
After we finished in the area, we made our way back to the ropeway to head to Sounzan. On the way to Sounzan station, the view of the valley from the ropeway was incredible.
5. Hakone Open Air Museum
Cost: 1,600 yen
The last stop in Hakone was the Hakone Open Air Museum. The museum has art spread across the property with different exhibitions and a Picasso exhibition hall. You could easily spend a few hours at the museum.
I like that there is art inside and outside, so on a nice day you can enjoy the outdoors. Below are some of my favorite pieces.
After visiting the museum, it was time to head back to Tokyo. To get to Tokyo, we walked to a bus stop near the museum. Then, rode the bus to Odawara station. Google Maps estimated the bus ride to take about 40 minutes, but due to bad traffic, it was over an hour.
Once at the station, we went to the JR ticket office and got a Shinkansen ticket from Odawara to Shinagawa station. Then, we could use our JR pass from Shinagawa to go to Shibuya station.
Back in Shibuya, we decided to go to the Standing Sushi restaurant for dinner.
After dinner, we stopped by Shibuya 109 and then visited H&M and Zara (the two stayed open past 9:00 pm).
After shopping, we finally retired to the room to rest.
You can read about the rest of our time in Tokyo here or about our time in Mt. Fuji and Kanzawa.