Hakone Free Pass Day Trip: Japanese Riders' Route Tricks — Board at Odawara, Walk Gora Park Downhill, and Trust the Station Soba

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What locals said (excerpted from 283)

• @MaCotsuntsun👍 272

  I used to work at Hakone Soba, so I recognized it instantly lol. I think it's the best station soba there is — honestly better than some overpriced soba restaurant. A little trick: the kakiage fritter is genuinely great, but it loses half its magic if it's not freshly fried. So when you order kakiage soba, try asking, "Could I get one fried fresh?" It takes a few extra minutes, but it's so good.

  バイトしてたからすぐ箱そばって分かったw 数ある駅そばで1番美味しいと思います。下手に高い蕎麦屋さん行くよりよっぽど美味しいです。 裏技？ですが、箱そばのかき揚げはマジで美味いのですが、揚げたてじゃないと美味しさ半減なので、かき揚げそばを頼んだら「揚げたて頂いてもいいですか？」と伝えてみてください。 少し時間はかかりますが、めっちゃ美味しいです！

• @dekakinmania👍 9

  I went at night and they fried it fresh for me — made my day.

  夜に行ったら揚げたてにしてくれたからうれしかった

• @kenken-yk9ri👍 10

  Hakone Soba's chilled kakiage soba is better than Fuji Soba's. The batter is crisp and the grated daikon is on point.

  富士そばの冷やしかき揚げより箱根そばの冷やしかき揚げの方が美味い。衣サクサクで大根おろしも良き。

• @naoko381K👍 60

  Driving has its comforts, but touring Hakone by train, bus, ropeway and your own two feet gives you overwhelmingly more. This channel doesn't do shallow — it digs into what's actually worth seeing.

  車の観光は楽な面も多いですが電車やバスやロープウェイと自分の足で観光した方が得られるものが圧倒的に多いと思いました。スーツ旅行チャンネルは40年流行に遅れていると仰っていましたけど薄っぺらでなく深掘りして見るべきものを教えてもらえて嬉しいです。

• @風ひまわり👍 6

  From Hakone-Yumoto the buses mean queuing and standing, so I board at Odawara as a matter of course. A little knowledge buys you comfort.

  箱根湯本からだとバスは並ぶ、座れない、だから当たり前に小田原からにした。ちょっとした知恵で快適をてに入れられる。

• @しっとりやわらか-k2z👍 25

  Gora Park sits on a steep slope, same as the cable car. The easy route is: get off at Koen-Kami station, stroll down through the park, and walk out at Koen-Shimo or Gora station. Climbing it the other way, like he did — respect.

  強羅公園は、ケーブルカーと同様急斜面にあるので、 「公園上駅下車、公園内を散策しながら下る、公園下駅または強羅駅まで歩いて下る。」 が楽なルートです。 登ったスーツ君、お疲れ様です。

• @sanndaba👍 37

  The weird thing about the Hakone Free Pass is that a child's pass isn't half the adult price of ¥3,050 — it's ¥1,100.

  箱根フリーパスのおかしいところは子どもが大人料金の半額の3050円ではなく1100円というところ

• @しっとりやわらか-k2z👍 11

  The Owakudani nature trail closed after the 2015 eruption, and since March 2022 you can only enter on a reserved guided tour. The explanations are genuinely worth it — pyroclastic flow traces, the boulder that shielded the Kuro-tamago hall from rockfall. The town's Hakone Geo Museum is also great: ¥100 admission to learn the volcano and the terrain.

  大涌谷自然研究路は、2015年の噴火以降閉じていましたが、2022年3月より予約制ガイドツアーでのみ入ることができます。 火砕流の跡、落石から”くろたまご館”を防いでくれた大岩など、説明はとても参考になります。 箱根町立ジオミュージアムもおすすめ。入館料100円で火山や地形の勉強ができます。

• @ohsawakai2015👍 11

  Every single time I go to Hakone, the ropeway is in fog. I want to go on a clear day for once.

  箱根は何回行っても、霧の中のロープウェイになってしまうので、晴れてる時に行きたい。

• @yuyuun4714👍 37

  I went alone last summer and the ropeway stopped mid-air — spent 30 minutes shut inside. A fine memory now.

  去年の夏一人旅で行ってロープウェイが途中で止まり中に30分閉じ込められたのはいい思い出です。

Where locals go instead

• @たけなかまみ👍 17

  Thank you for featuring Chisuji Falls. It really is little-known — when we went, even in autumn, there was nobody else there. Just quiet, and lovely.

  千条の滝の紹介、ありがとうございます！ 知名度が低いとのことで、私たちが行った時も、秋だというのに、他にだれもいませんでした。とにかく静かで素敵なところでした。 一緒に行ったお友だちの一人が、その翌年亡くなったこともあって、その時のことを懐かしく思い出しながら動画を視ています。

• @あられ-z1n👍 10

  I went to Hakone recently after watching the earlier video — stayed at Yutowa and walked to Chisuji Falls. It made for a really good trip, so I recommend both.

  前の箱根の動画をみてこの間箱根に行きました ゆとわに泊まり、千条の滝にも行きましたがとても良い旅行になりましたのでおススメです

• @東海道の甘木某👍 70

  For a change, ride the Seibu-affiliated Izuhakone Bus with Atami Station as your start and end point instead of the Odakyu network, and tour Hakone while feeling the old 'Hakone mountain war' between the two rail groups. That's its own kind of fun.

  あえて、小田急系ではなく西武系の伊豆箱根バスで熱海駅を起終点にして箱根をめぐり、「箱根山戦争」を感じるのもまた一興。

FAQ

Is the Hakone Free Pass worth it for a day trip?

Commenters treat the pass loop — train, cable car, ropeway, boat — as the right way to do Hakone: one 60-like comment says you get "overwhelmingly more" out of it than driving. One quirk they flag: as of the comments, a child's pass is ¥1,100, far below half the adult ¥3,050.

Where should I board the bus to get a seat in Hakone?

Start at Odawara rather than Hakone-Yumoto. As one commenter puts it, from Hakone-Yumoto "the buses mean queuing and standing" — boarding one stop earlier at Odawara is the small trick locals use to ride seated.

Can you walk around Owakudani?

Not freely. Per a detailed local comment, the nature trail closed after the 2015 eruption and reopened in March 2022 as reserved guided tours only (as of the comments). The same commenter recommends the ¥100 Hakone Geo Museum next to the crater area.

What is Hakone Soba?

Hakone Soba — "Hakosoba" to regulars — is the Odakyu group's station soba chain, found at Odawara and along the line. A former staffer's 272-like comment calls it the best station soba in the business and says to ask for the kakiage fritter fried fresh — it takes minutes and transforms the bowl.