8 Hours in Hakone - Tokyo Day Trip

Hakone is the perfect destination for a day trip out of Tokyo. Here's what you can accomplish in just 8 hours in Hakone.

Itinerary:
8:31 a.m. - Depart from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto
11 a.m. - 1 hour hot spring reservation at Hakone Yuryo
12 p.m. - Lunch at Hakone Yuryo
1 p.m. - Take the Hakone Tozan Train to Gora Station (400 yen).
Transfer to Hakone Tozan Cable Car. Ride to Sounzan Station (420 yen).
Transfer to Hakone Ropeway. Ride to Owakudani Station (1,600 yen round trip).
3-3:30 p.m. - Start the return trip back to Hakone-Yumoto Station
5 p.m. - Free hour for shopping and snacking at Hakone-Yumoto aka Tokyo-3
6:09 p.m. Depart Hakone-Yumoto

I departed at 8:31 from Shinjuku on the Romancecar to Hakone-Yumoto. Tickets can be purchased outside the Odakyu Department Store. Since I was planning to return to Tokyo the same day, I declined to purchase the Hakone Freepass, which allows unlimited rides within the designated area in Hakone. Ultimately, I went as far as Owakudani Station. If you're planning to go any farther than that, then you will end up saving money using the Freepass because it also includes discounts to local businesses.

Romancecar from Shinjuku

Snacks on a train - yummy dorayaki

Spring Romancecar menu

I made a reservation by email for a private open-air bath (type 3 room) at Hakone Yuryo a month ahead of time. They asked me to pay at arrival and allowed cash, VISA, or Master Card, in yen or USD. The reservation included rental towels and yukata. Basic toiletries are provided in the room including soap for scrubbing down before getting in the bath and select Shiseido products. You can call to extend the reservation time, order food, and arrange for other spa services. The hot spring reached 42C degrees during my stay.

Free shuttle to Hakone Yuryo outside the station

I did research on how to tie the yukata - many apologies if it's incorrect

Hot soba

After the bath, I ate lunch at the on-site irori restaurant Hachiri. According to their website, irori cuisine offers you food cooked carefully over a charcoal fire on a grill or on skewers. In traditional Japanese houses a part of the floor was used to create a sunken hearth in which coal and wood were packed in to make a fire. I tried the hot soba (1,500) and soshu beef skewer (1,800 for one). Ice cream is also available outside the restaurant.

I hadn't planned on where to go after the bath but decided to take the train, cable car, and ropeway to Owakudani Station, home of an active volcanic zone and the famous kuro tamago black eggs. According to an umami measurement, the black egg yolks are 1.2 times more umami than in a regular white egg. If you continue further along the Ropeway, you can eventually transfer to the Hakone Sightseeing Cruise and Lake Ashi.

Station stamp collecting - Sounzan Station transfer to Ropeway

Hello Kitty in Hakone

500 yen for 5 eggs

After the return trip, I had an hour to shop around the Hakone-Yumoto Station before my 6:09 departure time (7:46 p.m. arrival in Shinjuku). This is when I discovered that Hakone is also the site of Tokyo-3 in Evangelion. For Evangelion fans, check out the shop outside the station with lots of hot spring and Hakone-themed merch. The characters appear in yukata on food, file folders, clothes, and other home goods and accessories. I love seeing Sachiel the Third Angel on the Ropeway and in the bath - so kawaii! Inside the station is lots of food to sample and buy, including the KitKat flavor Onsen Manju Taste.

Sachiel - Third Angel exploring Hakone  

KitKat Onsen Manju Taste (972 yen)

Evangelion shop