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Hakone is close enough to Tokyo to visit for the day, but is that long enough? Here’s how long we think you need to spend in Hakone.
Many people who visit Hakone arrive in the morning and depart by about 6.00 pm. Most of them also spend their day following a circuit of attractions known as The Loop.
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The Loop includes visiting the bright red torii gate of the Hakone shrine and sees you sail across the lake on a Pirate Ship. You’ll float above an active volcano on a ropeway (similar to a cable car) and ride the famous switchback railway to the charming town of Hakone Yumoto.
The Loop can take the best part of a day to complete, especially if you’re also travelling into Hakone that morning, and, after doing it – and hopefully catching a glimpse of the elusive Mount Fuji somewhere in the middle – people head back to Tokyo.
If that sounds exactly how you want to spend your time in Hakone, then one day will be all you need there (don’t forget to buy your Hakone Free Pass, as it will make your day much easier); however, some people might want to spend a little longer. Like these…
Do You Want to Explore Outside the Loop?
While The Loop might be the most popular thing to do in Hakone, there’s a lot more to do here than that. The region is full of museums, onsens, interesting shrines – small and large, plus, if you’re into hiking, there are walking paths all over.
I spent two nights in Hakone – but because I’d come in from Kyoto and was leaving early the last morning to travel to Mount Fuji, that was only 1.5 days. That was a little bit too short to do everything I wanted.
I therefore think if you’re going to explore the main sights outside of The Loop like the Open Air Museum with it’s huge sculptures, the quirky Choan ji temple, small fun sights like the money-washing shrine (see more about those and some other sights here) – you need two nights, and the equivalent of two whole days in Hakone.
Do You Want to Spend Time in an Onsen on Your Trip?
Hakone is a volcanic region, which means it has hot water springs running under the town. Many hotels offer public and/or private onsens on their premises, and there are also public onsens available for day visits.
If you want to spend time enjoying this element of Hakone, you’ll probably want to spend more than a day here.
I managed to soak in both the public and private onsens at my hotel, the Mount View Hakone, during the time I had available – but what I didn’t have time to do was visit the onsen theme park, Yunessen.
I’ve wanted to go here for years as it has fun themed baths like green tea, coffee and wine – but, I just couldn’t make it work with my schedule and the location of my hotel. If you want to enjoy all that Yunessen has to offer, you’ll need a couple of extra hours on top of the time you’ve already decided on.
Are You Hoping to See Mount Fuji?
Mount Fuji is only visible for about 100 days of the year, mainly during the cold winter months. If you’re visiting Hakone and hoping also to see Mount Fuji, staying for a day or two will increase your chances of doing so. I spent three days around Hakone and Lake Kawaguchiko, and it was only clear enough to see the mountain for about two hours of that!
If you only have one day to visit, use the Mount Fuji visibility predictor to try to pick a clear day to maximise your chances.
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Do You Dislike Crowds?
Then you do not want to come to Hakone for the day, especially during the weekend. You will literally spend the day shuffling from one queue to the next, seeing the same people over and over again. It’s a bit like being a well-traveled sheep.
However, if you arrive in Hakone the day before, you can see some of the other interesting sights here, stay the night at a relaxing onsen hotel with a delicious Kaiseki dinner.
Then get up early in the morning and head straight to the famous Hakone Shrine around 8.30 am. From here, do the Loop in reverse, aiming to be on the first Pirate Ship departure at 9:40 am, and then work the Loop backwards. Most day trippers do the Loop the other way, and don’t arrive in Hakone until 10 amish – meaning you’ll be ahead of most of the crowds on all of it.
Saying that, though, that was the queue for photos at the shrine by about 9.30 on a Saturday – hence my suggestion you arrive in the week, and before 9 am!
This explains how to do the backwards loop in more detail.
Do You Like Art?
Then you’ll want to stay longer here – there are seven art museums in Hakone, plus a list of art and craft classes in Hakone Gora Park that you might want to participate in. If you want to see them all, do the Loop, and maybe relax in an onsen, you’ll need two days – maybe three.
A good plan would be to arrive in Hakone and spend your first day visiting the Lalique Museum, then jump on the bus back down towards the Venetian Glass Museum (I was surprised how much I enjoyed this) and the Pola Museum of Art. Depending on the time, you might also fit in a visit to the Hakone Open Air Museum before it closes at 5 pm.
If not, wake up early the next day and follow the crowd-busting version of the Loop I mentioned above. You’ll arrive back in Gora in time to visit the Hakone Art Museum – and then head to the Open Air Museum by around 3 pm, or, if you’ve already been there, you could book yourself into one of the classes at the Hakone Craft House.
The next day, you can visit the Okada Museum of Art (closed until July 30, 2025, to change exhibits) and then finish your visit at the Narukawa Art Museum. Hopefully, Mount Fuji will appear at this point, as the view from the museum’s cafe is quite spectacular.
As you can see, there are many reasons to stay in Hakone at the very least overnight, and potentially for two nights, after all. You’re on vacation, so you might want a little time to relax.