Hakone: Three-Day Itinerary for Relaxation and Nature
Three days of indulgent all-inclusive Luxury, Nature, and Spas. Looking for a weekend away from the hustle and bustle in Japan? Search no further. Discover how you can do it on a budget too.
Summary of Itinerary
Time of the year during this itinerary: Mid-October (Autumn).
Weather: Humid, Mild, Low Clouds, Drizzly rain. 20-24 degrees celsius during the day, 15 degrees at night.
Peak season? Not as busy as expected.
The overall itinerary cost: 77,000 Qantas Points and AUD 500 including transport from Haneda Airport.
Total Stay: 2 nights and 3 days.
Important things to pack: Suitable hiking shoes and ensure you have some spare cash in your wallet. Digital Suica card or physical for all public transport.
This itinerary may not be suitable for: Vegans or children (note that this is a relaxation itinerary; kids may get bored).
Accommodation: Hanaori Ashinoko Hakone
Where to stay and getting there?
There are plenty of places to stay around Hakone, however, I was looking for an all-inclusive spa resort. Why? It’s important to know there are not many restaurants or onsens in the area. If you want to make the most out of Hakone, you should book an all-inclusive resort and do day trips and trails when you aren’t in the resort.
The idea of relaxation is not having to think and having everything right in front of you. The rural area, delicious food, amenities, and spas, are all a stone's throw away. Since this isn’t particularly a tourist hub like Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto, there isn’t a strong metro system. However, there are buses and train stations near by.
I stayed at Hanaori Ashinoko Hakone.
It’s about 55,000 yen (550AUD) to get a taxi from the airport FYI unless you book a private transfer. But for this budget trip, I got the train and bus there and honestly, it was pretty straightforward, the hotel is across the road from Togendai Station where you can get dropped off by the bus. There is access to the train station directly underneath Haneda airport. I could provide information about what train and bus to get but honestly, it all depends on what time you are travelling. What I can recommend is using Google Maps and carefully following the details of the trip there such as what platform to get your train from. Please note, that you can book a shuttle bus directly to this hotel from Odawara station which is about a 55min journey however it only leaves roughly every three hours. You can book this directly with the hotel.
If you’re heading back to tokyo after this weekend I would suggest trying to to get the Shinjuku express train from Hakone Yumoto Station. Its direct and about 1.5 hours. Much easier than all the transfers with your bags and luggage.
When you arrive to the hotel, you can press the intercom button to have assistance with your luggage to the lobby* (very important to know if you have a lot of bags!) Google maps will direct you to the car park of the hotel however the entrance is actually directly across from Togendai Station (where the cable car begins).
View from the Lobby
Hanaori Ashinoko Hakone
I spent a day researching where to stay in Hakone and I came to the decision of staying at Hanaori Ashinoko Hakone based on the following reasons, all meals are included, including breakfast and dinner, alcohol and drinks! The spa is included and separated by gender. Hanaori Ashinoko Hakone is nested on Ashi Lake with direct views of the lake, breath taking views. Although its listed as a 2-Star hotel on google maps (I beg to differ it is more!), you get a lot of value for money! Additional to the baths on the property you can pay extra for massages and beauty treatments.
I booked a room with a private bath on the balcony which was absolute bliss. Ensure you know exactly what room you are booking as my room sadly didn’t have the lake view, but I was still happy.
Private spa bath on my balcony
Important things to note about this hotel:
Bottomless buffet breakfast is served 7:30-9:00am
Dinner is also buffet style and bottomless (including all you can drink premium Japanese Whiskeys and Sakes) during 5pm-9:30pm
There is no Lunch Service
The spa is open until midnight each day and gender separate. There is an outdoor bathing area and indoor.
The amenitys are second to none; Dyson blowdryers, high end body washes and face amenities including cleansing oil, toners, moisturisers, leave in hair conditioners, the full works!
The food in the buffet was incredible. There was a fantastic variety for adults and kids. The breakfast could have had a bit more variety such as pancakes and eggs made to order. However they did have different styles of eggs available. The menu for both are a balance of Japanese and Western Food.
Please note there is no room service available, food is only available in the above periods on Level 4. If you require lunch you will need to visit a restaurant in the surrounding towns. There are about 3-4 restaurants nearby however please check their lunch and dinner service times.
Coffee is always available for free during the morning in the lobby, as well as drinks to purchase but no snacks.
The resort provides pyjamas and kimonos with slippers. Guests are encouraged to wear them all the time around the property.
There is a private onsen available for groups or couples its about 3,000 yen for 40 minutes.
Luggage delivery service ex. the hotel is available and quite affordable (ie. to Shibuya from Hakone for a huge suitcase and small bag was only 4,000 yen / 40 AUD) *THIS SERVICE IS CASH ONLY (and the closest ATM nearby is a 20min bus ride.
Solid bar for all you can drink alcohol included in your dinner at the resort
Things to do in Hakone
My intention for the trip was to go offline, enter Zen mode and soak what nature has to offer. Around Ashi Lake National Park (the lake in front of the resort) are many small towns you can hire a bike to ride to or walk to. And in between are some forest trails which they call “forest therapy”.
If you want to engage in a forest trail look for the fluorescent pink ties around trees and follow. They are all ready created for the purpose to be explored. However be prepared for some inclines. If you want to follow a more mediocre concrete path amongst the trees around the lake you can do this too. There are many maps available in the lobby to follow, however, you can use Google Maps and the walk route to follow the main walking routes (non-forest trails).
See the pink fluro rope? Follow this :)
The main walking route if you choose not to explore the off-the-beaten-track forest
I walked from the lobby to another small town called Hakone-en, to the left of the resort when you are facing the lake. The town had a small petting zoo which was actually so cute and fun! Perfect for small kids. I saw massive tortises, meerkats, different types of monkeys and heaps of puppies. It was 800 yen for kids and 1,200 yen for adults.
Monkey @ Petting Zoo
In the same small town where the petting zoo is, you can also delve into arts and crafts and visit the pottery workshop store, paint your own pottery and take it home!
I then continued onto onto a boat ferry (1,000 yen) to motohakone where I walked around town and found a lawson to get myself an egg sando. From this town you can get on the pirate ferry ship directly to Togendai Station (in front of the hotel).
This exploring route was perfect for me for the day, I did about 1.5 hours hike and walk, caught ferrys across the lake and saw shrines, and ended up directly back at the hotel.
This took up almost most of my day. I spent the afternoon in the hotel spa bathing and relaxing followed by dinner and an early night. The next day I opted for a late check out at 12pm (for 2,000 yen extra) grabbed myself a complimentary coffee and took off back to Tokyo.
Wear a kimono from the resort while exploring the towns, as long as you return it :)
My itinerary may not be jam-packed with things to do, there are many other things you can do such as open-air museums and pottery classes. However, I enjoyed walking, exploring, eating, using the spa on the property and relaxing.