Been doing a bunch of research for a Hakone day trip but I could really use a quick sanity check. It’s been a really long time since I was last there! The family wants to just do a quick day trip to Yunessun and Chisuji Falls while enjoying the sights along the way. May I please have some guidance?
Starting off in Shibuya and have a party of about 14 people.
1. **(To Shinjuku)** Shibuya -> Shinjuku (8:30AM)
2. **(To Hakone-Yumoto)** Shinjuku -> Hakone-Yumoto (Romance Car) (9:30AM)
1. Picking up Breakfast from the Station/Aboard Romance Car?
2. Looking to purchase the Romance Car tickets online. I believe they supply mobile vouchers that are checked in with a station attendant in Shinjuku?
3. Going with 2 other families (14 people), so I’m assuming we won’t all get the same car, but I am able to make purchases where at the very least the seats are together per family. The site does ask which car I prefer though. Any recommendations? I am going during a weekday so hoping to just get lucky having most of us together.
3. **(To Chisuji Falls)** Hakone-Yumoto Station Bus -> Horaien Bus Stop
1. How does one pay for the bus? I assume it’s the same as a train ticket and we can use Suica/Cash to buy a ticket at the station? Or do we pay on the bus itself?
4. **(To Yunessun)** Walk
5. **(To Hakone-Yumoto)** Yunessun Bus Stop -> Hakone-Yumoto
6. **(To Shibuya)** Hakone-Yumoto -> Shinjuku Station -> Shibuya Station (6:30PM)
1. While I’m not dying to take the Romance Car again, it seems to be the least effort for a large party. Fewer opportunities to get lost/separated during the end of a work day the better? I assume we book the tickets for the return the same way we booked them coming.
2. Should we pick up food from a conbini prior to making our way back? Are there any recommended options at the Hakone-Yumoto station?
I think that about does it. Is there anything I’m missing? Maybe some tips and tricks I should keep in mind regarding the busses/train? Thank you so much!
2 comments
Yes, you can use Passmo/Suica on the bus. It’s a good thing you are going during the week, as on a weekend you would have difficulty getting all 14 on the same bus. And not good combini options around Hakone-Yumoto station. The Lawson closed during the pandemic. The 7-11 is up the street a bit. Other shops close a bit early.
You can buy the tickets for the romance car online. You can even select the exact seats. I’m not sure if you can buy all 14 at once, but you can see which cars are empty-ish and buy one set of tickets, then buy another set of tickets with another order for seats that are together with the first set.
Buses in Hakone are not like Tokyo that have a fixed price. Nor are they long-distance buses that you have to buy a ticket for in advance. You can pay with either cash or a Suica card. Note if you use Suica, everyone must have their individual card, no sharing of cards.
To pay with Suica, you tap the card when you get on the bus, therefore registering where you got on, then you tap the card again when you get off and the money is taken off. The important thing is to make sure you have enough money on the card to pay for the ride . Also as I said above, one card per person.
To pay with cash, there is a little ticket you take when you get on the bus that has a number which indicates which stop you got on at. When you get off the bus you show the number to the bus driver and they will tell you how much to pay . You can see on the screen at the front of the bus how much the fair is for your number. Obviously the longer you travel, the more expensive it is, so the screen will show different prices depending on when people got on the bus. Then pay with cash, you can combine multiple people’s fare together.
Coming back, I recommend not using the romance car. The problem is the romance car has a fixed time, and the bus is not necessarily going to be on time depending on traffic. I live in Tokyo and go to Hakone very often. I recommend taking the regular odakyu line back to Shinjuku. There are trains every 15 to 20 minutes, and as long as you catch an express train, you don’t get back to Shinjuku much slower than by romance car.
This will save you money, and you don’t have to worry about leaving at a certain time from Yunessun. You don’t have to worry about getting a seat, because you’ll be getting on the train at the terminal station, so you can sit all the way to Shinjuku. Just no eating or drinking on this train. You can eat and drink on the romance car however
There are restaurants at Yunessan so you can eat there if you want, or grab some food after you get down to Hakone Yumoto. If you take the regular train, you don’t have to worry about the time. Just eat some thing and then get on the next odakyu line train to Shinjuku.
Personally I take the bus all the way to Odawara, then catch the train. Some trains at Hakone Yumoto have to change at Odawara anyway