Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
place to alight is the village onsen resort of
MIYANOSHITA
. Interesting antique and craft
shops are dotted along its main road, and there are several hiking routes up
Mount Sengen
(804m) on the eastern flank of the railway - one path begins just beside the station. At the
top (an hour's walk or so) you'll get a great view of the gorge below. Afterwards you can
relax in the
rotemburo
at the attractive day-onsen
Tenoyu
(
ͯͷΏ
; Mon-Fri 11am-7pm,
Sat & Sun 11am-8pm; ¥1600 Mon-Fri, ¥2100 Sat & Sun), a short walk out of the village
along the main road to Gōra. But Miyanoshita's real draw is its handful of splendid
hotels
,
the most historic of which is the
Fujiya
(see p.225), which opened for business in 1878. It's
well worth a look even if you're not staying; its
Orchid Lounge
is great for afternoon tea.
Hakone Open-Air Museum
ூࠁͷඒज़ؗ
, Chōkoku no Mori Bijutsukan • 1121 Ninotaira • Daily 9am-5pm • ¥1600 •
W
hakone-oam.or.jp
Travelling two more stops on the Hakone-Tozan railway brings you to
CHŌKOKU-NO-
MORI
(
ூࠁͷ
), where you should alight if you want to visit the nearby
Hakone
Open-Air Museum
. This worthwhile museum is packed with sculptures, ranging from
works by Rodin and Giacometti to Michelangelo reproductions and bizarre modern
formations scattered across the landscaped grounds, which have lovely views across the
mountains to the sea. There's an enclave of 26 pieces by Henry Moore; a “Picasso
Pavilion”, which houses over three hundred paintings, lithographs, ceramics and
sculptures by the Spanish artist; and four galleries featuring works by Chagall, Miró
and Renoir, plus works by modern Japanese artists such as Umehara Ryūzaburō and
Hayashi Takeshi. You can rest between galleries at several restaurants or cafés, and
there's also a traditional Japanese teahouse.
20
Gōra to Ashino-ko
Funicular tram
Every 10-15min • ¥410 one way
Cable car
Every 1-2min • ¥1330 one-way
he
Hakone-Tozan railway terminates at
GŌRA
(
ڧཏ
), where you can stop for lunch,
or overnight. Continuing west on the day-trip route, you'll transfer to a
funicular tram
,
which takes ten minutes to cover the short but steep distance to
Sōunzan
, the start of
the cable-car ride. From here, the
cable car
floats like a balloon on its thirty-minute
journey high above the mountain to the Tōgendai terminal beside Ashino-ko, stopping
at a couple of points along the way.
Hakone Museum of Art
ശࠜඒज़ؗ
, Hakone Bijutsukan • 1300 Gōra • Daily except Thurs 9am-4pm • ¥900 •
W
moaart.or.jp
En route to Sōunzan, you might want to stop off at
KŌEN-KAMI
(
ެԂ্
), a couple of stops
from Gōra on the funicular tram. Here, the
Hakone Museum of Art
and its collection of
ancient ceramics is likely to appeal to experts only, but the delicate moss gardens and the
view from the traditional teahouse across the verdant hills are captivating.
Ōwakudani
େ༚୩
If the weather is playing ball, you should get a good glimpse of Mount Fuji in the
distance as you pop over the hill at the first cable-car stop,
ŌWAKUDANI
. This is the site
of a constantly bubbling and steaming valley formed by a volcanic eruption three
thousand years ago. You can hike up the valley through the lava formations to the
bubbling pools where eggs are boiled until they are black and scoffed religiously by
every tourist, for no better reason than it's the done thing when visiting Ōwakudani.
North from Gōra
If volcanic activity and cable cars aren't your thing, you might prefer the couple of
worthy museums north of Gōra: the splendid
Pola Museum of Art
, and the quirky
Lalique Museum Hakone
, both accessible by bus. The latter is in the pleasant village of
SENGOKUHARA
(
ઋੴݪ
), another good place to stay the night.
