I am visiting Hakone in January and am considering walking from Togendai Station to Motohakone Port, stopping along the way at Hakone-en to take the Hakone Gomakatake Ropeway to Mototsumiya Shrine and at Hakone Shrine.
A few things I would really appreciate advice on:
* Is the view / walking path along the lake worth it or would it be better to shorten travel time by taking a taxi or bus from Togendai to Hakone-en, or from Hakone-en to Motohakone Port?
* Is it worth it to take Hakone Gomakatake Ropeway if I plan to take the Hakone Ropeway from Gora to Togendai or are the views rather similar?
* Is it reasonable to do this all in one morning? I am planning to arrive at Hakone Yumoto Station \~10am, check-in at ryokan in Gora, and then start the ropeway journey to Lake Ashi. I hope to be back to Gora by 2-3PM to spend most of the afternoon at the ryokan.
* Should I allocate some time to exploring Gora?
Thank you!!
2 comments
The 2 ropeways are completely different in experience. Hakone ropeway brings you through Owakudani where you can experience the sulfurous hot springs. Its quite an interesting experience if you’ve not seen it before.
Komagatake ropeway brings you up to a small area with a shrine. In my exprience last December you get quite a good view of Mt Fuji from here and the view is quite scenic. May be a bit of snow too if you’re lucky.
> Is the view / walking path along the lake worth it
This is entirely subjective of course, but to me the view remains basically the same and you’re just walking along a forested path. If you’re looking to have a nice relaxing hike then thats fine, but I was more interested in visiting other spots.
If you’re just going Gora – Ropeway – Lake Ashi – then reopway back to Gora, I think those timings look fine.
Gora area is quite quiet, not really packed with many things to explore. I would recommend the Outdoor Museum if thats your kind of thing though.
Would walking there require any additional equipment if it snows?