Hakone

Hakone is located west of Tokyo and is in the Mount Fuji National Park. You’ll find Shinto shrines, beautiful lake Ashi and many spas offering thermal baths. Depending on where you stay–there are women only baths, men only, and limited private pools. FYI- Japanese baths are a naked experience and a family tradition. The ancient royal highway passes through here and you can walk along the tree-lined path that once took nobles and warlords to the capital in Kyoto. It’s super fun to take the cable cars over the boiling sulphur springs of the Owakudani valley. It will make you feel like you’re on another planet. Don’t forget to purchase black eggs hardboiled in sulphur vents. It’s said that you’ll live 7 years longer.