Blogs from Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan, Asia - page 3

Waking up to a slight snowfall in Nikko, I was happy to move on to Hakone, hoping it would be slightly warmer there. From Nikko we took a taxi, a local train, two bullet trains, a local bus, a pirate ship and finally another local bus to get to our destination of Hakone. We were fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of Mt Fuji both on the train and on the Pirate ship. It was an almost clear day so most of Mt Fuji was in view. Due to the cold weather she looked stunning with just a nice sprinkle of sweet sugar on her. At our lovely Guesthouse we were greeted by the two friendly owners, who gave us the rules of the house then one sat down to show us how make a bird ... read more

We went to breakfast a bit earlier today and there was a different crowd. But we ate well and checked out and set out on the next leg of Bec’s journey. It was raining this morning but we didn’t care. We had had two great days experiencing Tokyo without getting wet. We had to negotiate our bags on the subway in peak hour to get to Shinagawa where the shinkansen (bullet train) left from. Happy to say we survived and had a few minutes to spare. We took the Shinkansen to Odawara and then transferred to Hakone Yumoto where we were spending the night. We booked the last row of the carriage we were in as there is storage behind the last row for suitcases. The trip took only ½ hour and was very smooth. Once ... read more

Hakone is a small, quaint town with lots of character. This is where we stayed in our second Ryokan (our first was in Koyasan) and despite how fancy the hotels were, the traditional was my preferred accomodations. Upon arriving and dropping off our bags, we headed into town for a quick meal before making our way to the ropeway that led up to Owakudani. Owakudani is the area around a crater created during the last eruption of Mt. Hakone some 3000 years ago. Today, much of the area is an active volcanic zone where sulfurous fumes, hot springs and hot rivers can be experienced. Owakudani has good views of Mt. Fuji on clear days. Luckily for us it was a semi-clear day. The clouds blocked our view momentarily, but we were able to see Mt. Fuji ... read more

The Hakone area which is about an hour by train from Tokyo (depending on which part of the area you're heading for) is one of the places where you may get to see Fuji-san in its grandeur. It all depends weather the clouds are hiding the mountain - and more often than not they are. Chances are before 9 a.m. you're more likely to have some view of the mountain. And if you expect to see Fuji-san with its snow-capped peak you can forget it at this time of the year as it has been summer and the autumn has been warm and there doesn't seem to be any snow as yet. And if you're wondering why I've referred to Mount Fuji as "Fuji-san" (no it's not Mr/Miss/Mrs/Ms Fuji), it's because that is the correct way ... read more

A must on Jill's itinerary was Hakone. This is located just a hour from Tokyo, via train in the Mt Fuji National Park area. Coming up from Hiroshima is was a bit of travel. Several hours on a train, then onto a bus up into the mountains. We made use of the Hakone Free Pass. Not an actual free pass, but it includes all transport in the area. It includes the buses, trains, cable cars and boats that take you all over the area. As mentioned we got in late afternoon to our destination - Fuji Guesthouse. This came highly recommended and we saw why!!. Firstly it is a private ryokan run by a family, secondly it has on onsen. The thing with onsens is that they are gender specific and you need to be naked. ... read more