Hakone Budget Travel Guide provides useful travel tips to help you prepare for a visit to this town in Japan. You can find here information on going to Hakone and getting around it when you are there. The places of interest in Hakone are also listed.
About Hakone
Hakone is a hot-spring town in Ashigarashimo district, Kanagawa prefecture. It has established itself as a resort among the Japanese going back to the 9th century. Today, it is a major tourist destination with both cultural as well as natural sights.
At the start of the Edo period, Hakone was a checkpoint marking the start of the Kanto Region on the Tokaido road to Kyoto. During the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate, all travellers entering and leaving Edo on the Tokaido road had to stop here to have their goods and travel letters examined by officials.
Today Hakone is noted for its many onsen hot spring bath resorts. Due to its proximity to Tokyo and to Mount Fuji, it is easily reached and attract many visitors, making the town extremely crowded at times.
Let's look at both the budget and non-budget options for getting to Hakone. The most affordable is to take the Odakyu Odawara Line from Shinjuku station. The Odakyu Express train takes two hours to reach Hakone, and costs ¥1150. Slightly faster than that is the Hakone Limited Express train, which takes 85 minutes to reach Hakone and costs ¥2020.
The fastest and most expensive option is to take the Tokaido Shinkansen Kodama train from Tokyo to Odawara, and then transfer to the Hakone-Tozan Line on the Odakyu Railway, to reach the Hakone-Yumoto station. This option can be completed in one hour, and costs ¥3430 one way. If you hold a Japan Rail Pass, you only need to pay ¥300 for the Hakone-Tozan Line.
Budget Travel within Hakone
Within Hakone, there is a variety of transport options. The Hakone-Tozan mountain railway goes from Odawara to Gora via Hakone-Yumoto. The Hakone-Tozan Cablecar goes from Gora to Sounzan. The Hakone Ropeway goes from Souzan to Togendai. And most flamboyant of all, there are the Hakone Sightseeing Ships, all decked out like pirate ships or galleons.
Places of Interest in Hakone
Hakone Art Museum Museum displaying an excellent collection of Japanese ceramics.
Hakone Jinja Shrine Shinto shrine on the southern shore of Lake Ashi, with a torii gate in the water.
Hakone Open Air Museum Museum set in a beautiful parkland with sculptures and artwork.
Lake Ashi Lake where you can get stupendous views of Mount Fuji - if you come on a clear day.
Narukawa Art Museum Museum showcasing 1,500 artworks by Japanese masters.
Owaku-dani "The Great Boiling Valley" is a volcanic terrain with sulfurous steam spewing out from vents.
Seki-sho Barrier Gate Reconstructed checkpoint as used in the Edo period.
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