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Tokyo to Hakone to Kyoto: a 7-Night Ryokan Route

Spend two nights in Tokyo, two in Hakone and three in Kyoto. Take the Odakyu Romancecar from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto, about 80 minutes for ¥2,470, and the Hikari Shinkansen from Odawara to Kyoto, about 1 hour 43 minutes to 2 hours 10 minutes for ¥11,770 unreserved. Skip the 7-day Japan Rail Pass: at ¥50,000 it costs more than three times the JR fares on this route. In Hakone, a 3-day Hakone Freepass from Shinjuku, ¥7,500, comes out ahead of single fares on the full loop. Send your big bags from Tokyo straight to Kyoto and carry one night bag to Hakone.

By · Updated

Mount Fuji above Lake Ashi in Hakone, with a sightseeing cruise ship and the red torii of Hakone Shrine on the shore
Mount Fuji from Lake Ashi, on the day 4 loop.

Photo: Quercus acuta / Wikimedia Commons, CC0, cropped and resized

Key facts

Length
7 nights: Tokyo 2, Hakone 2, Kyoto 3
Tokyo to Hakone
Romancecar from Shinjuku, about 80 min, ¥2,470
Hakone to Kyoto
Hikari from Odawara, 1 h 43 min to 2 h 10 min, ¥11,770 unreserved
Japan Rail Pass
Skip it: ¥50,000 for 7 days against about ¥14,500 in JR fares
Hakone Freepass
Buy the 3-day pass from Shinjuku, ¥7,500
Luggage
Send big bags Tokyo to Kyoto by takkyubin; carry one bag to Hakone

Where you sleep

Shinjuku, Tokyo: 2 nights · Gora, Hakone: 2 nights · Kyoto: 3 nights

Price tiers run from $ (Budget) to $$$$ (Luxury) and are our own classification. Each night below has our pick and, where the directory has one, an alternative at a different tier. Prices quoted are from each inn’s own booking engine when we checked and change with the date.

Day by day

  1. Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo

    Land at Haneda or Narita and head into the city. A Shinjuku base puts you at the Romancecar platform on the morning you leave for Hakone.

    Tonight: Shinjuku, Tokyo

    Our pick

    Onsen Ryokan Yuen Shinjuku$$$ · Premium

    Shinjuku, Tokyo

    In Shinjuku, where the Romancecar to Hakone starts. Tattoos are allowed in its baths, and its four ONSEN Suite rooms have hot spring water carried from Hakone from 16 November 2026. Source: Checked on the inn’s own website (Ryokan Finder inn facts), checked October 21, 2026.

    Alternative

    Sukeroku no Yado Sadachiyo$$ · Mid-range

    Asakusa, Tokyo

    A lower tier, in Asakusa rather than Shinjuku, so allow time to cross the city to Shinjuku on the morning of day 3.

    Search Tokyo on Agoda

  2. Day 2: Tokyo, and send your bags to Kyoto

    A full day in the city.

    Before you go out, hand your big suitcase to the front desk to be sent by takkyubin to your Kyoto inn. Yamato delivers in a day or two, so it waits for you in Kyoto on day 5. Pack one small bag for the two Hakone nights.

    Same inn as day 1.

  3. Day 3: Shinjuku to Hakone, and up to Gora

    Take the morning Romancecar to Hakone-Yumoto and change to the Hakone Tozan train for the switchback climb to Gora. Gora Hanaougi is a minute’s walk from Sounzan, at the top of the cable car from Gora.

    Inns serve dinner at a set time, so aim to check in from 15:00.

    Tonight: Gora, Hakone

    Our pick

    Gora Hanaougi$$$ · Premium

    Gora, Hakone

    All 20 rooms have an open-air bath of hot spring water. It is about 1 minute on foot from Sounzan, where the ropeway for day 4 starts. Kaiseki is served in a private dining room, from ¥43,000 per adult with dinner and breakfast on its booking engine. Source: Checked on the inn’s own website (Ryokan Finder inn facts), checked October 21, 2026.

    Alternative

    Hotel Senkei$$ · Mid-range

    Hakone-Yumoto, Hakone

    A lower tier, down in Hakone-Yumoto: 10 to 15 minutes on foot from the station, or a paid shuttle bus. All 15 rooms in the main building have the inn’s own hot spring, with kaiseki served in the room, from ¥24,692 per adult with dinner and breakfast on its booking engine. From here day 4 starts with the Tozan train to Gora. Source: Checked on the inn’s own website (Ryokan Finder inn facts), checked October 21, 2026.

    Search Hakone on Agoda

  4. Day 4: The Hakone loop: Owakudani and Lake Ashi

    From Sounzan, ride the ropeway over Owakudani to Togendai, then the sightseeing cruise across Lake Ashi to Moto-Hakone or Hakone-machi. A Hakone Tozan bus brings you back towards Gora, or reverse the loop.

    The ropeway runs 9:00 to 17:00 from February to November and 9:00 to 16:15 in December and January. From 7 to 24 December 2026, Owakudani to Sounzan runs as a replacement bus; from 12 January to 26 February 2027, Togendai to Owakudani does. The Freepass is valid on those buses.

    Same inn as day 3.

  5. Day 5: Hakone to Kyoto

    Ride the Tozan train down to Odawara and take a Hikari to Kyoto. The Nozomi does not stop at Odawara. Your suitcase should be waiting at the Kyoto inn.

    Tonight: Kyoto

    Our pick

    Nazuna Kyoto Tsubaki St.$$$$ · Luxury

    Shimogyo, Kyoto

    Five minutes on foot from Hankyu Omiya or Randen Shijo-Omiya, with check-in from 15:00 and check-out by 11:00. Children must be 6 or older. Source: Checked on the inn’s own website (Ryokan Finder inn facts), checked October 21, 2026.

    Alternative

    Nishiyama Ryokan$$ · Mid-range

    Nakagyo, Kyoto

    A lower tier, in Nakagyo in central Kyoto, and children are welcome. Source: Checked on the inn’s own website (Ryokan Finder inn facts), checked October 21, 2026.

    Search Kyoto on Agoda

  6. Day 6: Kyoto

    A full day in Kyoto. The temples of Higashiyama and Gion are the classic first day; go early in cherry blossom and autumn colour seasons, which with mid-July are Kyoto’s most crowded times.

    Same inn as day 5.

  7. Day 7: Kyoto, or a day in Nara

    Another Kyoto day, or Nara: the JR Miyakoji Rapid from Kyoto Station takes about 45 minutes, and the Kintetsu Limited Express about 35 minutes to Kintetsu-Nara, nearer the park.

    Same inn as day 5.

  8. Day 8: Leave from Kansai Airport, or back to Tokyo

    For a flight from Kansai Airport, the Haruka limited express takes about 80 minutes from Kyoto. Visitors from abroad can buy a discounted one-way Haruka ticket, ¥2,700 to or from Kyoto from 1 November 2026.

    For Tokyo, the Nozomi takes about 130 minutes to Tokyo Station.

The 5-night version

One night in Tokyo, one in Hakone and three in Kyoto. Leave for Hakone on day 2, ride the loop on the morning of day 3 and take the Hikari to Kyoto that afternoon. With two calendar days in Hakone, the 2-day Freepass from Shinjuku, ¥7,100, replaces the 3-day pass, and the bags still go ahead by takkyubin, sent on arrival day so they reach Kyoto by day 3.

Snow-capped Mount Fuji over Lake Ashi with a Hakone sightseeing ship below
Lake Ashi, Hakone

Photo: Quercus acuta / Wikimedia Commons, CC0, cropped and resized

The five-storey Yasaka Pagoda at the end of a stone-paved lane of wooden townhouses in Higashiyama, Kyoto, early morning
Yasaka Pagoda, Higashiyama, Kyoto

Photo: Basile Morin / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized

Rail passes: do they pay?

Japan Rail Pass, 7 days

Skip it

¥50,000 ordinary bought online (¥53,000 from an agency abroad); Green ¥70,000

  • The JR legs on this route are Odawara to Kyoto, ¥11,770 unreserved, and Kyoto to Kansai Airport on the Haruka, ¥2,700 with the visitor one-way ticket: about ¥14,500 in all.
  • Ending in Tokyo instead adds one more Shinkansen ride, Kyoto to Tokyo, and the fastest train on it, the Nozomi, needs a separate ticket on top of the pass. The two Shinkansen rides together still cost far less than ¥50,000.
  • The Romancecar and everything in Hakone are not JR, and no JR pass covers them.

Sources: Japan Rail Pass types and prices (JR Group), checked October 24, 2026; Ekitan: Odawara to Kyoto by Shinkansen (fares and times), checked October 24, 2026; JR West: HARUKA one-way ticket, checked October 24, 2026.

Hakone Freepass from Shinjuku, 3 days

Buy it

¥7,500 (2 days ¥7,100); from Odawara ¥6,400 (2 days ¥6,000)

  • It covers the Odakyu fare from Shinjuku and back once, the Tozan train, cable car, ropeway, cruise and Hakone Tozan buses. The Romancecar fee, ¥1,200 each way, is extra.
  • One full loop from Shinjuku, priced fare by fare, comes to ¥8,230, against ¥7,100 for the 2-day pass. This plan spends three calendar days in Hakone, so price the 3-day pass at ¥7,500: it is still ¥730 ahead before the second cable car ride on day 4 and the ride down to Odawara on day 5.

Sources: Hakone Navi: Hakone Freepass, checked October 20, 2026; Tokyo Trailhead: the Hakone loop priced fare by fare (2026), checked October 24, 2026; Odakyu: Romancecar fares, checked October 20, 2026.

Luggage: send it ahead

Send the big bags from Tokyo to Kyoto. Yamato’s TA-Q-BIN delivers in a day or two, for parcels up to 200 cm in length, width and height combined and 30 kg. Most major hotels arrange it at the front desk; send it on day 2 and it is in Kyoto before you are. Sources: Yamato Transport: how to send a parcel with TA-Q-BIN, checked October 24, 2026; JNTO: luggage and storage, checked October 24, 2026.

If you do bring a case to Hakone, the Hakone Luggage Transport Service takes bags left at its counter in Hakone-Yumoto Station between 8:30 and 12:00 to participating inns from 15:00: ¥1,500 a bag up to 140 cm and 15 kg, ¥2,500 up to 200 cm and 30 kg. For the trip back, hand bags to the inn by 10:00 and collect them at the station between 13:30 and 18:30. It suits an inn near Yumoto; ask your inn whether it takes part. Source: Hakone Navi: Hakone Luggage Transport Service, checked October 24, 2026.

Arriving in Kyoto with bags anyway: Yamato’s counter at Kyoto Station delivers within Kyoto city on the same day, ¥3,470 for a 160-size case. Source: Yamato Transport: same-day delivery (Kyoto Station counter), checked October 24, 2026.

When to go

Autumn colour starts in the Hakone mountains around mid-October, is best in Gora in early to mid-November and in Hakone-Yumoto in mid to late November. Source: Hakone Navi: autumn colour, checked October 21, 2026.

In Kyoto, cherry blossom is from late March to early April, and autumn colour starts at the end of October and peaks around mid-November. Those two seasons and mid-July are Kyoto’s most crowded times, so book the Kyoto inn first. Source: Kyoto City Tourism: seasons FAQ, checked October 21, 2026.

Winter: the Hakone Ropeway runs part of its route by replacement bus from 7 to 24 December 2026 and from 12 January to 26 February 2027. Source: Odakyu Hakone notice, September 2026: ropeway maintenance and replacement buses, checked October 24, 2026.

Questions

Is the Japan Rail Pass worth it for Tokyo, Hakone and Kyoto?

No. The 7-day pass costs ¥50,000, and the JR legs on this route, Odawara to Kyoto and the Haruka to Kansai Airport, come to about ¥14,500. The Romancecar and the Hakone transport are not JR.

How do I get from Hakone to Kyoto?

By the Hakone Tozan train down to Odawara, then a Hikari on the Tokaido Shinkansen, 1 hour 43 minutes to 2 hours 10 minutes, ¥11,770 unreserved or ¥12,100 reserved. The Nozomi does not stop at Odawara.

What do I do with my luggage in Hakone?

Send the big bags from Tokyo straight to your Kyoto inn by takkyubin, which arrives in a day or two, and take one small bag to Hakone. The Hakone Luggage Transport Service also takes bags from Hakone-Yumoto Station to participating inns for ¥1,500 a bag.

Which Hakone Freepass should I buy for two nights?

Arriving on day 3 and leaving on day 5 spans three calendar days, so buy the 3-day pass from Shinjuku, ¥7,500. It covers the Odakyu fare from Shinjuku but not the ¥1,200 Romancecar fee.

Does the Hakone Ropeway close in winter?

Sections close for maintenance with replacement buses: Owakudani to Sounzan from 7 to 24 December 2026, and Togendai to Owakudani from 12 January to 26 February 2027. The Freepass is valid on the buses.

More routes and guides

Kyoto, Kinosaki and Arima: 6 nights, or 5 in the shorter versionShikoku circuit: 7 nights, or 5 in the shorter versionGetting to Hakone from TokyoRyokans in HakoneRyokans in KyotoThe Japan Rail Pass and ryokan trips

Sources

Times and fares are adult, one way, in the normal season, as each source gave them on the date shown. Where no source we could check gives a fare, we leave it out rather than estimate it. Check timetables before you travel.