Private day trip to Hakone only for your group, starting from Tokyo. Surrounded by great nature with Mt.Fuji view, lots of museums and hot springs, Hakone is one of the most popular destinations as a break from Tokyo. By using ”Odakyu Hakone Freepass”, we can enjoy various types of transportations such as Ropeway, Lake Ashi Boat Cruise, cable cars and Tozan Train(mountain tram) to get around.
Car Option is recommended for smooth travel. Ending could be your accommodation in Hakone.
This itinerary can be customized to meet your needs and preferences. Send me a message with your requests!
Meeting Point
At your hotel in Tokyo 23 wards or Shinjuku station
- I'll meet you at your hotel in Tokyo 23 wards. Or, Shinjuku station to take a train to Hakone. Following itinerary is【Basic Plan】by Romance Car with Hakone Freepass.
Take Hakone Romance Car (1h45m)
Take Romance Car train from Shinjuku station : 8:31 Shinjuku to 10:17 Hakone-yumoto.
*All reserved seats rapid train.
Hakone sightseeing
Hakone sightseeing is basically loop route. How to get around depends. You can rely on me to take either of clockwise or counterclockwise.
--- Basic itinerary to visit --- *Lunch flexible
- Hakone Tozan Train
- Cable car via Gora
- Ropeway via Owakudani
- Owakudani (Volcanic activity and eat black shelled eggs)
- Togendai (pier of boat cruise / ropeway station / restaurant)
- Pirate Boat Cruise on Ashi Lake
- Moto-Hakone (Lake shore area)
- Back to Hakone-yumoto
Important
Hakone is a very popular destination for both Japanese and overseas travelers. It gets crowded even on weekdays at peak season.
So, when we do counterclockwise, we want to take a taxi from Hakone-yumoto to Hakone Shrine (20-30min, approx. 6,000JPY/taxi up to 4 people) . Same with reverse (from Ashi Lake area to back to Hakone-yumoto station), as local buses are often awfully packed on this route.
Take Romance Car from Hakone-yumoto to Shinjuku (1h30m)
Flexible time: Take Romance Car from Hakone-yumoto to Shinjuku. Ex. 17:02 Hakone-yumoto - 18:28 Shinjuku
Back to Tokyo
I'll take you back to your hotel in Tokyo 23 wards, or we can end at Shinjuku Station for your dinner afterwards.
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*End could be your hotel in Hakone area. Or, Odawara station end would be convenient for travelers heading to Kyoto after Hakone. Tour price would be the same, as guide goes back to Tokyo anyways. Let me know in advance.
(Option) Hakone Open Air Museum (Sculptures, Picasso Gallery, Foot-bath)
Open air museum with its nature as back drop. The most unique, loved spot in Hakone. *open year round
Admission : Adult :1600 yen, University/High School Students: 1,200 yen, Jr. High/Elementary School Students: 800 yen
Free for Guide with a national license when accompanying you.
(Option) Hakone Art Museum + Gora Park
For art & garden lovers,
- Hakone Art Museum (Art with beautiful moss garden. Green Tea. )
- Gora Park(French-style garden and traditional Japanese Tea Garden)
*Closed on Thursdays
Admission :Hakone Art Museum : Adult 800 yen, High school/college students 400 yen, Children up to junior high school : Free of charge, Seniors aged over 65 :700yen
Gora Park is free of charge with Hakone Freepass holders
(Option) Hakone Checkpoint & Yosegi craftsman's shop
For history & culture enthusiasts,
Hakone Checkpoint
Admission : Hakone Checkpoint : Adult 400 yen, Child 150 yen with Hakone Freepass
Yosegi craftsman's shop - Yosegi is inlaid box, which is local special craft in Hakone.
(Option) Amasake Chaya tea house (Only when by Car Option)
One of my favorite places in Hakone, but access is limited due to its location and poor local public transportation. We visit only when we use hired car or my car option.
Amazake-chaya Tea House was founded 400 years ago. Their architecture of thatched roof still retains Samurai period atmosphere. Daimyo (feudal lords) took a rest at this type of rest house which served amazake to get re-charged when they traveled between Tokyo called Edo and their home town.
Amazake (sweet rice wine) is made with a recipe that has remained unchanged since opening. Also, their soft Mochi (rice cakes) is so nice to try.
Ending Point
At your hotel in Tokyo 23 wards or Shinjuku Station. Or, your accommodation in Hakone or Odawara Station for Shinaksen to Kyoto upon your request.
This tour can be customized to meet your needs and preferences. Click below to send me a message with your requests.
guide fee, hotel meet-up, send-off in Tokyo
transportation fee (you and guide), food and drink (you and guide), admission (you and guide) *showed on itinerary above
[ Major transportation fees on tour day ]
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【Basic Plan】By Romance Car total : Adult : 8,500 yen, Child : 2,700 yen
Details: Hakone Freepass from Shinjuku (Valid for 2 days・All inclusive ticket ) : Adult 6,100 yen, Child 1,500 yen
Romance Car Express charge : (Adult 1,200 yen, Child 600 yen) × round trip
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【Shinkansen Plan】
With JR-pass : Adult 5,000 yen, Child 1,000 yen. Without JR-pass : Adult 11,560 yen, Child 4,280 yen.
Details : With JR-pass, Shinkansen 0 yen +Hakone Freepass from Odawara
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Without JR-pass, Shinkansen (Tokyo - Odawara) Adult 3,280 yen × round trip = 6,560 yen, Child 1,640 yen × round trip=3,280 yen
+Hakone Freepass from Odawara (Valid for 2 days・All inclusive ticket ) : Adult 5,000 yen / Child 1,000 yen
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【 Private Car from/to Tokyo 】
- Hired Car : I'm happy to do this tour by a hired car you arranged at your end.
- My Family Car (Toyota Alphard 7 seater) : Only available with Photo Option with my husband, who is a professional photographer, as a driver. Can assure the best experience with the best flexibleness. Feel free to ask me for quotation. I'm happy to send you a proposal of Hakone by my car.
- Important【Volcanic gas warning for people with diseases.】
Owakudani is a popular tourist site with volcanic activities. But for those people who have Heart diseases, Asthma, Respiratory diseases and other health prpblems are not supposed to use ropeway between Ubako and Sounzan (including Owakudani) . If your group have someone with health problems, please let me know in advance. I'll make a plan without visiting gas area.
- In case of extremely bad weather such as heavy rain, strong winds, storm, foggy and snow, the ropeways and Ashi Lake Boat Cruise might either be suspended or unable to operate as scheduled. Please understand that we'll take alternative transportations instead in the emergency.
- We can enjoy the view of Mt.Fuji from many places in Hakone if the weather permits. Visibility is higher in winter time.
This tour is only available on Weekdays to escape from congestion in Hakone.
- Sorry, I'm BOOKED OUT on MARCH & APRIL this year.
- Please kindly make an inquiry only for my available days on my calendar on GoWithGuide.
- I do tours up to 4 people to maximize your experience.
- I'm Tokyo based. My tours basically start/end in Tokyo. If you like to start/end outside Tokyo 23 wards, kindly cover my transportation fee from/to there. Thank you for understanding.
Kon-ni-chi-wa. Hello! I'm Kaori, having lived in Tokyo for more than 20 years since I got married to a photographer who lives here. Originally from Shizuoka prefecture which has Mt.Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan. I took 2 working-holiday-visa stays in my younger days. One is in Toronto, Canada, and another is Australia touring by motorcycle. One year respectively.
I love travel both international and domestic. That's why I love helping individual travelers rather than group tours, because I myself love travel freely. Love nature, gardens, trekking, greenery, also anime. My favorite is taking you to the off-the-beaten tracks where I love.
As a national government licensed guide, I've got deep knowledge of Japanese culture and history. I really enjoy talking about the way of life with people from different cultures. We see what you like and talk what you are interested in. That's my style. If you don't know what to want, I can help you with that.
I'm happy to make tailor-made tours only for you (up to 4 people) upon your request.
・Half Day as you like (up to 4 hours) : 40,000 JPY
・Full Day as you like (up to 8 hours) : 64,000 JPY
・Extra hour over 8hours : 7,500 JPY/hour
I'm quite an outgoing person, ( but organized well! ), easy to get along with anybody, including small kids to teenagers. Can't wait to see you soon!
Fred F.
“A day in western Tokyo”
Amazing experience with Kaori. We started communication long before the trip began to get a feel for what our wishes were. She showed up as promised at our hotel and (even though the weather was unbelievable awful) we had a great time. She was knowledgeable and pointed out many things that we didn't know. World highly recommend her for anyone looking for an excellent guide.
Malavika N.
“Amazing experience! ”
We had the pleasure of having Kaori-san as our guide in Tokyo, and she was absolutely fantastic! She was incredibly knowledgeable, patient, and went above and beyond to assist us—even helping with a small medical issue. Her ability to engage everyone in our group, regardless of age, made the experience even more enjoyable. She shared fascinating insights about the city, ensuring that we learned a lot while having a great time. We hope to return to beautiful Tokyo in the future, and when we do, we will definitely want to see Kaori-san again. If you’re looking for a guide in Tokyo, we highly recommend her services!
Kaori S.
Thank you for your lovely heartwarming feedback. Truly appreciate your recommendation. I thank that every member of your family was so kind to me and took time to chat with me during time together even though it was short introductory tour this time. Actually, your daughter's words of telling "arigato" meant a lot to me. Knowing having been able to help someone is one of the greatest joys for a tour guide. How happy person I am! Cannot wait to welcome you and your family for another bigger adventure! Tokyo and surroundings have lots to offer! Will be waiting to hear from you!! Big hugs, Kaori
David Z.
“Good time with Kaori”
We had a group of 5 adults with 1 1/2 days to spend in Tokyo to see the highlights. Kaori put together a nice plan to see the key spots in the city. Very flexible and accommodating. We ate lunch at one of her favorite places…something we never would have found…and it was good. Had a good 1 1/2 days with her.
Kaori S.
Thank you for taking your precious time to give an excellent feedback for me when you are still beginning of your trip, David-san. We covered the best seaonal highlights of Tokyo in 1 1/2 days thank to a hired car you kindly arranged on GoWithGuide. Glad you enjoyed local lunch, cherry blossoms and some extra shopping for ladies! Wishing you all the best and safe travels ahead. Big hugs, Kaori
$508/ per group