Eat, stay, and play in Hakone! Part I

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🤗 Travel around Hakone

💛 Owakudani

When you visit Hakone, you can't miss Owakudani. It is Hakone's most famous business card, the eyes of Hakone as well as the soul of Hakone. Owakudani is an active volcano, and is surrounded by sulphurous steam throughout the year, which is accompanied by a deafening sound that makes you feel the movement of the earth's life, making it a spectacular sight. On a good day, you can see the majestic Mount Fuji in the distance.

Before leaving Owakudani, don't forget to buy a local specialty: black eggs, 5 for 500 yen. It is rumored that eating one black egg can prolong your life by 7 years.

Address: 1251-1 Sengokuhara, Hakone-cho, Ashigarashita-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture

💛 Lake Ashinoko

Lake Ashinoko is a must-see destination in Hakone. It has a backdrop of Mt. Fuji and a circumference of about 21 kilometers. The lake and mountains reflect each other, and there are different views and interests in different seasons. When you arrive at Lake Ashinoko, it might be a good experience to take a ride on a pirate ship. It has three ports to choose from: Momoyendai Port, Hakone-machi Port, and Moto-Hakone Port. The route to Lake Ashinoko determines which port you take.

Admission: Lake Ashinoko is free, but there is a fee for a ride on a pirate ship.

Hakone Machi Port ~ Motohakone Port (Adult 370 yen, Child 190 yen)

Hakone Machinato - Motohakone Port -> Momoyendai Port (Adults 1,050 yen, Children 520 yen)

Momoyuendai Port → Hakone Machi Port - Motohakone Port (Adults 1,050 yen, Children 520 yen)

💛 Waterfall of a Thousand Pieces

Just like its name "Chijo Waterfall", a few thin streams of water pour down the mossy rocks, glistening like green velvet. The width of the waterfall is about 25 meters and the height is about 3 meters. This is a great place to visit in Hakone even in the fall. Within a 10-minute walk, there are also the Okada Museum of Art, Kowakudani Onsen, and Hourai Garden.

Address: 507 Kowakudani, Hakone-cho, Hakone-cho, Kanagawa

💛 Komagatake Mountain

On a clear day, you can see everything from Suruga Bay to the Southern Alps and Mt. Fuji, as well as Izu, Shonan, Sagami Bay, Lake Ashi, Moto-Hakone, and Hakone-cho. Address: 139 Hakone, Hakone-cho, Hakone-cho, Hakone-cho, Kanagawa

💛 Sculpture Forest Art Museum

It's an open air museum, so don't worry about being loud. After walking through the tunnel that ends in a mountain forest, you can see the museum's super expansive forest. I remember that the Miyama Museum of Art in Japan is also designed in this way. With the four seasons, the light at the end of the tunnel is different; in spring, it is the pink of cherry blossoms, and in fall, it is a golden light of red leaves.

And the Forest of Sculptures, that's where a lot of sculptures are scattered throughout this forest, and why is this place fun? Because many of its installations are extremely beautiful to look at on the outside, and inside are playgrounds to play in. Like this:

This one, for example, is actually a maze where adults watch from a high point and children can go in and walk:

Then there's this large wooden installation:

Who would have thought it? Walking inside was such a rope climbing net:

And then there's this one, which climbs to the top to be a lookout overlooking the Forest of Carvings, which is already stunning when you walk in!

Anyway, you have to stay at least half a day to have enough fun at this Forest of Carvings, and its location is surrounded by mountains on three sides, so it's quite comfortable to walk around. If you're staying in Qiangluo, it's basically a short walk to this gallery, and there are a couple of small restaurants nearby where you can eat.

💛 Pola Art Museum

The building itself is a big work of art, completely integrated with the forest, with super large floor-to-ceiling windows that absorb the beauty of the entire forest, so when you visit inside, you can look in front of you at the exhibits of Monet, Picasso, and so on, and look out at the big, super-beautiful forest.

Inside are exhibits from the private collection of the founder of the Pola brand, with many of everyone's works:

The most important thing you can't miss in this museum is the forest trail, which follows the veins of the forest. 2 kilometers in length, it takes about 40 minutes to walk around, and children will be very interested in walking on the wooden trestle in the forest, and there are all kinds of sculptures on the side roads waiting to be discovered.

💛 The Glass Forest

I've seen the glass museum in Shanghai, and in terms of size, this one in Hakone is too small. But it is very exquisite, itself is a small Venetian-style garden, walk in and see the glass hanging from the bridge, the sun shines the whole bridge glittering, is the beauty of the photo can not be taken.

What attracts kids to this Glass Forest is that there is a glasswork workshop where they can make a glass or something like that. Can you tell that the little fruits on the 👇 jam jar are made of glass?