If you are traveling to the suburbs of Tokyo, we recommend staying at Hakone Hotel Kowakien, where you can eat all-you-can-eat breakfast, lunch and evening with a mix of Japanese, Western, and Chinese cuisines. During your stay, you can also enjoy unlimited free access to "YUNESSUN Water Park", children can go to the water play area to discharge, and adults can also experience the healing brought by coffee hot springs and red wine hot springs, which is a great accommodation facility for parent-child travel and couples!
Hakone Hotel Kowakien will reopen in July 2023
▋Inheriting the history of Ichikoshi, the "Hakone Hotel Kowakien"
As an important live broadcast station for the "Hakone Marathon" broadcast on national television during the New Year, the Hakone Hotel Kowakien is a well-known and well-known long-established hotel in Japan, and it is a landmark in Hakone. Back in 1948, it was a small inn with only 15 employees and 25 guests, but it has been transformed into a large resort hotel with 150 rooms, a water park Yunessun, and a hot spring inn in the hinterland. In the more than 60 years since its founding, it has hosted many foreign dignitaries and important political and business celebrities in Japan.
Hotel lobby
Large glass windows open onto the historic garden, allowing you to see the scenery in all seasons
In order to make Hakone's stay more comfortable and have better travel memories, the Hakone Hotel Kowakien was temporarily closed in 2018 and underwent a complete renovation, and reopened in July 2023 with a new look. The high, bright lobby offers a view of the large garden and the Hakone mountains, and the building materials are made of a large amount of wood from Kanagawa Prefecture in the image of the "old town of Hakone", and the carving of Mt. Fuji above the bar "Bar 1959" next to the entrance simulates the view of Mt. Fuji from the Hakone-Daikan Observatory.
Carving of Mt. Fuji above "Bar 1959".
The inn at the time of its inception is still located in the hinterland, and it is now registered as a national tangible cultural property
Although the hotel was renovated, the exterior of the building has been rebuilt in its old style, and the Japanese garden, which has existed since 1914, has been retained. The special ramen and chicken curries that were popular with customers in the old days can now be reproduced in the restaurant. The prototype of the inn that was founded in that year has been registered as a tangible cultural property registered by the state and is still intact in the resort. If you are planning to visit the suburbs of Tokyo on your own, why not visit Hakone Hotel Kowakien and experience the "new hotel with a long history"?
▋ 6 reasons to recommend staying at "Hakone Hotel Kowakien".
Reason for recommendation (1): UNLIMITED ACCESS TO WATER PARK YUNESSUN
YUNESSUN is located in the Hakone Hotel Kowakien Resort, which is one of Japan's most famous large water parks, with more than 10 large and small theme hot springs, spas, and paddling pools both outdoors and indoors, as well as the Hakone area's largest outdoor hot spring "Mori no Yu", which is usually 3,500 yen for adults and 1,800 yen for children, but as long as you stay at Hakone Hotel Kowakien, you can enjoy free and unlimited admission during your stay, which is super cost-effective!
Red wine hot spring pool
Japan Sake Onsen Pond
YUNESSUN's hot spring pools have many special themes, such as coffee and wine pools, and the staff will pour real coffee and wine into the pool at different times, and at the same time splash and interact with the guests. In addition, there are children-friendly designs such as outdoor slides and pools, and limited-time events are held to coincide with special festivals or with cartoon characters, such as Halloween, where a large amount of pumpkins are thrown into the outdoor hot springs, so that guests can enjoy the beautiful scenery of Hakone hot springs while feeling the Halloween atmosphere, which is quite fun.
Outdoor splash area
A private bathhouse that can accommodate multiple people
In 2023, YUNESSUN will set up a new independent soup house area (additional fee required), which can accommodate about 6 people, and the bath and rest area are very spacious, suitable for large families, couples or friends who want to be disturbed by other people. After soaking in the hot springs, you can enjoy a full day of drinking at restaurants such as yakiniku, sushi, and soba noodles in the park, as well as shops selling Hakone souvenirs!
Reason for recommendation (2): The open-air hot spring has a great view, and you can see the fireworks and Hakone Gora Omonja
The open-air bath has a stunning view
The hot spring resort of Hakone is home to a number of hot springs, the most famous of which are 17 well-known springs called Hakone Jujuyu, and the hot springs at Hakone Hotel Kowakien are one of them. In its early years, Kowakidani Onsen was called "Little Hell" until 1873, when Emperor Meiji Yukiko came to visit, and the development of hot springs in the area accelerated, and the quality and temperature of the hot springs gushing out of the area varied depending on the location of the hot spring boreholes. The hot spring in the hotel is a monosexual hot spring of about 40 degrees Celsius, and the temperature is just right for people to relax completely.
The sauna made of cypress wood is full of aroma
You can enjoy a private bathhouse without being disturbed
Located on the top floor, the large communal bath is located on the top floor, and the open-air bath is full of openness, facing the green Mt. Waitin, and you can see the "big" character printed on the mountain of Mt. Hoshidake, the most important event of Hakone in the summer, "Hakone Gora Damonjaki", and if you stay at the festival, you can soak in the hot springs and watch the fireworks! There is a sauna made of Kanagawa cypress wood in the bathhouse, and surrounded by the scent of steam and cypress wood, the body and mind are refreshed by sweating and discharging old waste materials from the body, mind, and spirit. There are also 7 private baths in the cypress and stone styles for rent, so if you have tattoos or are shy about bathing in the large communal bath with strangers, we recommend checking it out.
Reason (3): All-you-can-eat brunch with a mix of food and alcohol from all over the world
Enjoy a hearty breakfast in the outdoor garden of the all-you-can-eat restaurant
Since Hakone has been developing its tourism business for a long time, it has a high standard of Japanese, Western, and Chinese cuisine in order to entertain guests from all over the world, and its excellent location near the mountains and the sea has made it advantageous to obtain fresh and abundant mountain and seafood products. Fontainebleau on the 1st floor of Hakone Hotel Kowakien combines the best of two worlds: "being able to taste international cuisine" and "tasting locally produced ingredients". There are 50 to 60 options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as well as free drinks of red and white wine, Japanese sake, and draft beer.
Choose from 50 to 60 different cuisines
Food is constantly being served out of the semi-open kitchen
Master is now making nigiri sushi
For lunch, you can also enjoy nigiri sushi, seafood bowls, Kowakien ramen, curry rice, and more
In the semi-open kitchen, there are many chefs who prepare dishes on the spot, such as rice balls for breakfast, nigiri sushi for lunch and dinner, and pork shabu and steak for dinner, as well as ramen and chicken curry that replicate the traditional flavor of Kowakien Restaurant, seafood bowls that you can fill with your favorite ingredients, Chinese porridge with scallops, and eel rice bowls with soft ingredients. All-you-can-eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner have their own highlights, but they are only open to the public during lunch hours, so even if you don't want to stay, we recommend coming to the Kowakien area for sightseeing!
Reason for recommendation (4): Choose from 6 types of rooms and can accommodate up to 6 people
Deluxe Room for 6 people
Japanese-style rooms have tatami flooring
Hakone Hotel Kowakien has 6 different types of rooms, including Leisure Twin Room, Standard Room A, Standard Room B, Japanese-style room, Universal Design Room, and Deluxe Room, which can meet the diverse needs of traveling from one person to three generations of families. The rooms are designed in a simple style, with a warm and comfortable wood tone, and a very healing effect on the scenery through the window when you get up during the day. Many traditional Japanese hot spring restaurants do not have bathrooms in their rooms, but each room here has a shower and a separate sink, so you can take care of your washing needs. The Deluxe Room is even more spacious, with 2 double beds and 2 sofa beds, so it can accommodate up to 6 people at a time without being crowded.
Reason for recommendation (5): Infants and toddlers are well equipped, so you can live with children with peace of mind
A smart game area that uses an electronic graphics tablet to interact with the TV
The large communal bath has a special bath for babies and bath products
How to live safely and securely when taking infants and young children abroad is always the most worrying topic for parents. "Hakone Hotel Kowakien" is a "baby-friendly hotel" certified accommodation facility, and the well-known Japanese company "Miki House" focuses on the planning and development of children and families, and their original standard "Hakone Hotel Kowakien" has passed 100 standards. In addition to bed guardrails, children's toilet seats, diaper trash cans, special steps, nursing rooms, computer milk mixers, and baby baths, there is also an indoor play area, an outdoor garden, and a water park YUNESSUN, where parents can take their children to discharge.
Mini-sized buffet area for children
Baby porridge and scissor cutlery are readily available
The restaurant has a special area for children, and there are cute and delicious mini versions of Inari sushi, curry rice, hamburger steak, and Napleli pasta with octopus sausage, as well as a variety of flavors of baby porridge for babies entering the non-staple food period. In terms of utensils, food scissors, and small tableware are also readily available, so that everyone can sit together and enjoy food and have a happy vacation.
Reason for recommendation (6): Intelligent system, comprehensive cashless payment
Automatic check-in and check-out system
Laundry can also be paid cashless, and there is no need to buy additional detergent
The newly opened Hakone Hotel Kowakien has been upgraded to a smart hotel, and a self-service check-in and check-out and cashless payment system has been introduced, and everything from check-in to check-out, vending machine purchases, self-service laundry payment, room rate settlement, and luggage storage after check-out has been automated. If you want to know the current crowd flow of the large communal bath and restaurant, you can check out the latest information from the TV in the room, so that you can avoid rush hour and enjoy the facilities. Even the historic Japanese garden is very intelligent, and if you scan the QR code on the tree sign board, you can see the explanation of the plants and trees, and it is a hot spring inn that fully demonstrates the "fusion of old and new".
"Hakone Hotel Kowakien" is located in the stronghold of Hakone tourism, whether you want to go to the Gora area to take the cable car to Owakudan, or to the art museum tour is very convenient, the price of one hotel and two meals is very approachable, and you can also play the water park YUNESSUN for free, it can be said that the CP value is bursting, and you can enjoy high-quality accommodation at a small price, which is highly recommended for parents and families.
Recommended accommodation in the suburbs of Tokyo: "Hakone Hotel Kowakien" unlimited access to the water park, all-you-can-eat breakfast, lunch and evening super sumptuous | Tesco! Japan