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View all Hakone toursKamakura and Hakone in One Day: Private Tour from Tokyo with a Driver-Guide
A private, door-to-door day pairing the temple town of Kamakura with the volcanic caldera of Hakone, driven by an English-speaking driver-guide from your Tokyo hotel.
Highlights
- Stand before the 1252 bronze Great Buddha at Kotoku-in in Kamakura
- Walk the hillside terraces and Kannon hall of Hase-dera above Sagami Bay
- Browse the food and craft stalls of Komachi-dori
- See Hakone Shrine and its torii gate standing in Lake Ashi
- Cruise the caldera lake and ride the ropeway to the sulphur vents at Owakudani
- Travel door to door from your Tokyo hotel with a private English-speaking driver-guide
Kamakura and Hakone in One Day: Private Tour from Tokyo with a Driver-Guide: Key Facts
| Price | From $392.12 per person |
|---|---|
| Duration | 10 hours |
| Group size | Up to 7 people |
| Languages | English |
| Tour type | Guided Tour |
| Booking | Direct with the local operator — no OTA markup |
Full description
Kamakura and Hakone lie in the same direction from Tokyo but belong to different centuries, and putting them in one day makes a kind of sense that a rail itinerary rarely allows. With a private driver-guide there are no connections to make and no bags to shuffle; you leave your hotel in the morning and the car does the linking work. The trade-off is a long day and a fair amount of time on the road, which is worth knowing before you book.
Kamakura was the seat of Japan's first shogunate from 1185, and for roughly a century and a half it was the effective capital while Kyoto kept the emperor and the ceremony. The city that remains is small, wooded and thick with temples. The Great Buddha at Kotoku-in is the emblem: a bronze Amida cast in 1252, a little over eleven metres high, which once sat inside a hall until a tsunami in the late fifteenth century took the building away and left the figure in the open, where it has weathered ever since.
A short distance downhill, Hase-dera climbs a hillside in terraces. Its main hall holds a tall gilded Kannon of eleven heads, and the gardens step down towards a view over Sagami Bay. The temple is also known for the ranks of small Jizo statues placed there in memory of children. Afterwards, Komachi-dori runs from the station towards the great Hachimangu shrine, a narrow lane of sweet shops, craft stalls and street food that is where most of Kamakura's daily life happens.
The car then heads west to Hakone, into the caldera left by a collapsed volcano. Hakone Shrine sits in a cedar grove beside Lake Ashi, with its vermilion torii planted in the shallows of the lake. A sightseeing cruise crosses the water, and the ropeway lifts you over the rim to Owakudani, where steam still pours out of the hillside and the local speciality is an egg boiled black in the springs. On a clear day Mount Fuji stands beyond the northern rim, the view that made this pass famous long before it was a resort.
Because the tour is private, the balance between the two halves can shift on the day. Linger longer in Kamakura's temples, or push on to give Hakone more room. Your driver-guide speaks English, drives, and stays with you throughout, which also means the timings above are a working plan rather than a fixed contract.
Tour Itinerary
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
Pickup in Tokyo
Your driver-guide collects you from your hotel and drives south to Kamakura.
Kamakura temples
The Great Buddha at Kotoku-in and the hillside terraces of Hase-dera.
Komachi-dori Street
Free time on Kamakura's main shopping lane, with lunch at your own expense.
Drive to Hakone
West into the caldera by private vehicle.
Hakone Shrine and Lake Ashi
The shrine in its cedar grove, the lakeside torii, and a sightseeing cruise across the water.
Ropeway and Owakudani
Over the crater rim to the active vent field.
Return to Tokyo
Drop-off back at your hotel.
Detailed Itinerary
[{"time": "08:00", "title": "Hotel pickup in Tokyo", "description": "Meet your driver-guide and set off south. Around an hour to Kamakura depending on traffic."}, {"time": "09:15", "title": "Kotoku-in (45 min)", "description": "The Great Buddha, cast in bronze in 1252 and open to the sky since a tsunami destroyed its hall in the 1490s."}, {"time": "10:15", "title": "Hase-dera (45 min)", "description": "Terraced gardens, the eleven-headed Kannon in the main hall, and the view out over Sagami Bay."}, {"time": "11:15", "title": "Komachi-dori Street (45 min)", "description": "Free time on the shopping lane running towards Tsurugaoka Hachimangu. Lunch here at your own expense."}, {"time": "12:15", "title": "Drive to Hakone", "description": "West along the coast and up into the caldera, roughly ninety minutes to two hours."}, {"time": "14:15", "title": "Hakone Shrine (20 min)", "description": "The eighth-century shrine under old cedars beside the lake."}, {"time": "14:45", "title": "Lake Ashi (20 min)", "description": "Time on the shore, including the vermilion torii standing in the shallows."}, {"time": "15:15", "title": "Hakone Sightseeing Cruise (30 min)", "description": "Across the crater lake by boat, with the caldera rim on both sides."}, {"time": "16:00", "title": "Hakone Ropeway (30 min)", "description": "Cable car over the ridge, the ground below turning bare and grey on the approach."}, {"time": "16:35", "title": "Owakudani Valley (30 min)", "description": "The steaming vent field, with the black eggs boiled in the spring water."}, {"time": "17:15", "title": "Return drive to Tokyo", "description": "Back to your hotel in the evening, arrival time depending on traffic."}]
Includes
- Private English-speaking driver-guide, Private vehicle for the day, Hotel pickup and drop-off in Tokyo, Fuel, tolls and parking
Excludes
- Temple and attraction entrance fees, Lake Ashi cruise and ropeway tickets, Meals and drinks, Gratuities, Travel insurance
Important information
Meeting point
Your driver-guide collects you from your Tokyo hotel or another central address agreed at booking.
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
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Traveler Reviews
Kuzi was an amazing guide. Best one we had all trip. We had it customized to fit the two teenage boys traveling with us and had a great day!
The trip was exactly what we were looking for. We adjusted our day to include time to hang by the beach and visit the Enoshima shrine, which I highly recommend. Our driver, Aabu, was knowledgeable, friendly, and highly communicative, making the day a breeze.