Hakone
Hot springs, art and Mount Fuji, ninety minutes from Tokyo
Go because it packs the best of the Japanese mountains — hot springs, volcanic scenery, lake views and Mount Fuji — into one easy loop, barely ninety minutes from Tokyo.
Come for the famous Hakone Loop, where the transport is half the fun: a switchback mountain railway, a cable car, a ropeway soaring over a steaming volcanic valley, and a pirate ship across a crater lake. Add world-class open-air art, steaming onsen, and — on a clear day — Fuji framed above the lake. The classic overnight escape from the capital.
Hakone isn't a town so much as a mountain region — a volcanic caldera of hot-spring valleys, art museums and lakes gathered inside the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. For more than a century it has been where Tokyo goes to unwind: to soak in mineral waters, breathe mountain air, and catch the country's most beloved view. What makes it such a satisfying trip is how everything connects. The sights are strung along a circular route — the Hakone Loop — stitched together by an unlikely and delightful chain of mountain transport, so that getting from one place to the next is itself part of the pleasure.
A little background
Hakone has been a hot-spring retreat for centuries, and a strategic one too: it guarded the old Tōkaidō road between Edo (Tokyo) and Kyoto, and the reconstructed Edo-era checkpoint by Lake Ashi recalls the days when travellers were inspected here. In the modern era it became the archetypal weekend escape from Tokyo — close, scenic, and blessed with the geothermal waters that bubble up all across its valleys. Today it wears both identities at once: ancient onsen town and polished national park.
What to see — and the Hakone Loop
The classic way to see Hakone is the Loop: a circular route, usually ridden counter-clockwise, that links the region's sights by a sequence of scenic transport. A typical circuit runs like this:
The Hakone Tozan Railway. A charming switchback mountain train that zig-zags up the forested slopes from Hakone-Yumoto to Gora — glorious in hydrangea season.
The cable car and ropeway. From Gora a funicular climbs to Sōunzan, where you board the ropeway — a gondola that soars over Owakudani, a steaming, sulphurous volcanic valley. On a clear day, Mount Fuji rises ahead. Stop at Owakudani for the famous kuro-tamago — black eggs boiled in the geothermal springs, said to add years to your life.
Lake Ashi and the cruise. The ropeway descends to the crater lake of Ashinoko, where mock pirate ships cruise the water. From the lakeshore rises the vermilion torii of Hakone Shrine, standing in the water with Fuji behind it on a clear day — the postcard image of Hakone.
The Hakone Open-Air Museum. Japan's first open-air museum: over a thousand works, including a hall of Picassos, set among landscaped grounds with a hot-spring footbath. A genuine highlight, and unmissable.
The onsen. Above all, Hakone is for bathing. Its ryokan and day-baths range from grand to rustic; an overnight stay in a hot-spring inn, with a kaiseki dinner and a soak under the stars, is the quintessential Hakone experience.
How to get there
Hakone is about 80–90 minutes from Tokyo. The usual route is the Odakyu Line from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto, the gateway town (the faster "Romance Car" limited express costs a small surcharge). Most visitors buy the Hakone Free Pass — a 2-day pass covering the round trip from Shinjuku plus unlimited use of all the Loop transport (train, cable car, ropeway, cruise and buses), with discounts at many attractions. For the Hakone Loop it's excellent value and saves working out individual fares. If you hold a JR Pass, take the shinkansen to Odawara and buy the cheaper Odawara-departure version there.
When to go & practical notes
Hakone is a year-round destination. Spring brings blossom and hydrangeas along the railway; autumn (late October–November) brings spectacular foliage and is the peak, busiest season. Summer is cooler than sweltering Tokyo, though June's rains can hide Fuji. Winter is clear and quiet, with the best odds of a sharp Fuji.
Two practical notes. Fuji is shy — it's often veiled in cloud, most reliably clear in the early morning and colder months, so treat a sighting as a bonus, not a guarantee. And the ropeway occasionally closes when volcanic activity at Owakudani rises; replacement buses run when it does, and the Free Pass covers them. Hakone rewards an overnight stay — day-trippable, but far better savoured with a night in an onsen ryokan.