12) Hakone

ASSALAMUALAIKUM DAN SALAM SEJAHTERA...

Hakone (箱根町 Hakone-machi) is a town in Ashigarashimo District in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. 

As of 2010, the town had an estimated population of 13,339 and a density of 144 persons per km².

Hakone is a lovely, mountainous national park that lies south of Mount Fuji. It is dotted with lakes and hot springs, shrines and art museums, and its easy access from Tokyo makes it a perfect place to visit if you want some time out relaxing away from city life. 

It is possible to visit in a day, but it is much more fun to spend at least one night in a traditional, wooden Japanese ryokan (inn) or a smart hotel, and enjoy unwinding in one of the many hot-spring baths. 

Railways, funiculars, cable cars and buses enable you to get about the area. There are even brightly coloured 'pirate ships' on which you can travel the length of Lake Ashi, to the west of the park. 

The lake, with its view of Mount Fuji in the background, was formed 3000 years ago, in the caldera of Mt Hakone. People have been coming for centuries to take restorative baths in the hot springs, the best-known of which is the spring at Yumoto, at the entrance to the park.

WHAT IS IT

A national park south of Mt Fuji.

WHAT IS THERE TO SEE

The Hakone Motomiya shrine, the Tokkaido Barrier and highway, Hakone Tozan Railway.

DO NOT MISS

Take a restorative bath in one of the hot springs.