Hakone — Nature and Art
Discover Hakone’s Nature, Art, and Exquisite Kaiseki in an Intimate Setting
FIRE & WATER
Fire and Water — Hakone, Drawn by a Single Eruption
Around 3,000 years ago, a massive collapse occurred on Mount Kamiyama, part of the Hakone volcanic complex. The fallen rock and earth blocked a river, eventually giving rise to Lake Ashi. Traces of the same volcanic activity remain visible in Owakudani, where white plumes of steam continue to rise from the ground.
The still waters of the lake and a valley where hot steam escapes from deep within the earth seem, at first glance, to belong to entirely different landscapes. Yet both were shaped by the same volcanic history.
Over the centuries, people made their lives among these mountains. A Shinto shrine was established by the lakeshore, hot spring settlements grew in the mountain valleys, and, much later, sculptures found their place on the green hillsides.
Within this landscape shaped by nature, layers of spiritual tradition, everyday life and art have gradually come together. Travelling through Hakone, one begins to see how places of such different character are connected by the history of the land itself.
Optional Experiences
- Overnight stay at a Hakone onsen ryokan (room with private open-air bath, seasonal kaiseki)
- Enoura Observatory (cultural complex conceived by Hiroshi Sugimoto; advance reservation required)
- Okada Museum of Art (Japanese and East Asian painting and ceramics)
- Pola Museum of Art (from Impressionism to contemporary art, in a forest setting)
- Lalique Museum Hakone (René Lalique's glass and an Orient Express carriage)
- Guided walk on the Owakudani Nature Research Trail (advance reservation required)
*Meals and optional add-ons are not included in the tour price.
*Access to Owakudani may be restricted depending on volcanic activity. The Lake Ashi cruise may be changed due to weather.