Just outside of Tokyo, there is a resort town that is well known for it’s onsens. After our time in Tokyo, we went over to Hakone for a few days and stayed in a ryokan that had a private onsen in our room and public ones around the building. It was genuinely one of the most relaxing places I’ve ever been and my skin had never felt better.

Our Ryokan

We stayed at Yama no Chaya and had an incredible room. The private bath in our room was so relaxing and you could look out and see beautiful nature while you lounged around. There was also a deck to sit out and watch the birds. It was truly very peaceful.

Each day we also were served breakfast and dinner in our rooms. The food was incredible and there was a lot of variety to choose from. Hot pot was a common breakfast, but there were lots of fish, pickled things and vegetables to eat as well. The tofu they made in house was divine (bottom right photo; bottom left plate). I still think about it.

One thing that really became clear to me is why these old Japanese houses were easy to make into horror films, because holy shit. When it was dark, it was VERY DARK. Below is an example of what it looked like with no lights/at night on vs. with lights on:

Walking Around Hakone

When we weren’t lounging around the baths at our ryokan, we took some nice long walks around Hakone to take in the sights. It was a very pretty town. We first took a walk to GORA Brewery and had some pretty tasty beer and some snacks. On our way to the brewery, we were introduced to a gigantic spider (Joro Spider) that was everywhere around Japan.

Overall, Hakone is very much a resort town, so if you’re looking to do nothing but sit in a bath, eat and relax, it’s the spot for you. I highly recommend the ryokan we stayed at. Everyone who worked there was super nice, the beds were really comfortable, the baths were amazing and the food was really delicious.

Next up, we head over to Osaka! Stay tuned for more about that leg of our trip.