Japan - my itinerary in Hakone

Oct 28 - Day 8 - Hakone

Got the train from Tokyo Shinjuku Station to Hakone Odawara station. From Odawara took a local train to Hakone Yumoto and then another train to Gora and it was almost 1 pm when I arrived. I had previously purchased the 2 day Hakone Pass from Shinjuki station for 4670 Yen (good value!)

As soon as you exit Gora station there is an information counter. I stayed at Hakone Tent which is right behind the station (go through the underground passway). Hakone Tent has 2 private Onsens which is really nice. Highly recommend it for the location and value.

Took the cable car from Gora station to go to the Lake. As the Hakone ropeway wasn't working had to use a bus (covered by the pass) to arrive at the Lake Ashinoko. Once reached Togendai station I took the pirate ship across the Lake Ashi (all this covered by the pass).

Sadly there was no view of mount Fuji-san due to the cloudy weather. Got off at Hakonemachi and walked through the Hakone checkpoint to then reach the Cedar trees. Walking trough this gigantic trees really is a lovely feeling.

Enjoyed the lake view and walked to the Shrine (FREE entrance) which is in Motohakone-ko. Unfortunately I missed the last ship back and had to take the bus changing at Kowakidani station and then taking the train to Gora station.
Gora is a small town. At night there isn't much around the station but found a great Okonomiyaki restaurant just a cross the railway tracks. I loved the Okonomiyaki!

Oct 29 - Day 9 - Hakone

Started out around 8 am and again reached Hakonemachi station and took bus no 2 (red line) to see Stone Buddahs and a waterfall.

Stone Buddahs and history hall - get off at bus stop Rokudo-jizo and walk in to the wooden building. After that exit to your left on a pathway around the water pond. Follow the pathway to see more statues which includes also a big stone Buddha statue. The path ends at Sogakyodai-no-haka bus stop. Cross the road and take again bus number 2 to see some waterfalls.Took the S line (purple colour) up to Senkyoro-mae and then change to the T line (blue colour) for 2 stops at Sengoku-kogen to see the Susuki fields.

Hiryu waterfall - get off at Yusakamichi-iriguchi and cross the road. Yoy need to walk almost 1 km downhill in the woods to reach this place. The view of the waterfall isn't breathtaking.

Chizui waterfall - on the same bus route get off at Kowakidani and cross the road. Walk up the hill about 15-20 mins and you reach this waterfall. Here again it was a very small waterfall!

Returned back to Ninotaira-iriguchi bus stop and had lunch at a 7Eleven shop. This was my first time eating in a convenience store. I've always seen it in the Japanese TV series, it felt very exciting!

Susuki (Pampas) fields - Walk up stone hill the path through the Susuki fields. Once you reach the top, you can get a nice view of the fields and near by mountains.

Gora park - Got back on the S line and arrived at the Gora park to see beautiful Rose flowers and Marple trees. The park also has a Tropical garden and a Bougainvillea house. The flowers depends on the season. This is also covered by the pass.

By train from Gora to Hakone Yumoto it takes about 30-40 mins. Because it always stops when two trains have to exchange tracks. From Hakone Yumoto to Odawara it takes about 15-20 mins 

Something I loved about Hakone: The bus drivers are extremely friendly despite the fact that all tourists ask them the same question over and over. But they are always ready to help you out. 
A bit disappointed about the weather as it was cloudy and like I said before and didn't get to see Fuji san. 

TIP:
Get a Hakone Tozan map. This will help you very much.
In front of the Gora station there are a few souvenir shops for very reasonable prices.

Konichiwa Japan

In less than two months I will be going to Japan and so far planning the trip has been fantastic. With the help of several guide books, free brochures and browsing through websites I have put together my 3 week itinerary and I can't wait to set my feet on that land.

When I start planning a trip on a limited budget I prefer to divide it in to 3 main parts. Travelling, Sleeping and Fun aka TSF (not "That's So Funny" in my case ^^’). The most expensive part of the trip is purchasing the airplane ticket and how much you spend on this can determine the rest of your vacation. My advice: buy it months before your departure. Once you have decided on which season you want to travel and you got the dates set in your head do some online researching, compare the prices with different airlines and yes, buy it.

Once the main item of “Travelling” is checked, let’s move on to the “Sleeping” part.

Since you’ll be spending most of your time on the road and heading back just to sleep try not to spend too much on hotels, if you want to travel with a low budget that is. Japan offers many hostels, guesthouses and there is always airbnb and homestay. Or a really unique place like a capsule hotel or a Japanese Onsen. You could reduce the budget even more if you pick to stay in dormitories. So again with some online researching you should be able to find a good place to stay.

According to what you want to see, decide how many days you want to stay in each city, try creating 1-3 main bases and from each base add a few side trips if necessary. I created 2 main bases, Tokyo and Kyoto. From Tokyo I will do a day trip to Kamakura and then go to Nikko and Hakone and spend 2 days each. And once settled in Kyoto I will do a day trip to Nara and another to Osaka. I wanted to add a day trip to Hiroshima/Miyajima but it seemed too packed up and I didn't want to spend too many hours on trains.

Speaking of trains, public transport is the best way to travel in Japan. Buying a Japan Rail Pass, city/region day pass and/or a rechargeable transport card can really save you money and time.

In the next weeks I’ll update the “Fun” part with the schedule and the estimated cost of the trip ^^

Ja matane!