Hakone Checkpoint

Introduction

Established in 1619 beside Lake Ashi, the Hakone Checkpoint guarded the steep Hakone Eight Ri section of the Tokaido for the Edo shogunate and was abolished in 1869 along with the whole checkpoint system. What stands today is a reconstruction completed in April 2007, based on the 1983 discovery of an Edo-era repair manual for the checkpoint and on excavation of the site: the main guardhouse, senior guards' rest house, foot-soldier post, Kyoto-side gate, stone walls, steps and wooden fences were rebuilt with period carpentry, masonry and materials, while nearby cables were buried and the cedar avenue preserved. The phrase 'guns in, women out' captures the strictest checks, but weapons were mainly examined at Imagire on Lake Hamana; Hakone's real speciality was inspecting women leaving Edo. Officials called hitomime verified bodily features against travel permits, and a tableau with figures recreates the scene inside. The adjacent museum shows nearly 300 items including documents, permits, notice boards, seals and matchlock guns. Climb the stone steps to the lookout post for the whole compound, Lake Ashi and, on clear days, Mt Fuji. Admission is JPY 500 for adults and JPY 250 for children, with JPY 100 off on the Hakone Freepass; open 09:00-17:00, to 16:30 in winter, every day. It is five minutes from Hakone-machi pier and combines with Hakone Shrine, the old cedar-lined Tokaido and a lake cruise for a half day.

✨ Highlights

🛈 Practical Info