JJapan Trips

Day trip to Hakone from Tokyo

  • April 7, 2026

Hi, I've already purchased a Hakone Freepass for 7,100 yen and also paid 1,150 yen ontop for the Limited Express Romancecar. Leaving from Shinjuku.

Now, does my Hakone Freepass include my return journey back to Tokyo (Shinjuku)? If so, is this just a "normal" train back? If I wanted to catch the faster Romancecar express, I'd need to purchase another 1,150 yen (separately) to take this?

Where can I get the most reliable timetable for the return journey, as I want to leave enough time for me to return to Hakone-Yumoto station after visiting the area and also having time for Onsen.

I've purchased all the tickets so far using the Emot-tickets website – I can see in the my account the tickets purchased (however, with Freepass is not activated yet – I think this activates on the day of the journey, so the QR code will be generated by then?). The Romancecar booking is also there but there's no actual "ticket" or QR code for that – how will I know that I have this validated to travel on the express train?

by geoyakult

1 comment

  1. For your first question, yes the Hakone Freepass (purchased with Shinjuku as starting point) does include round trip on just the regular non limited express Odakyu (Not JR) trains. So if you want to take the RomanceCar back to Shinjuku from Hakone-Yumoto too, you’ll just have to pay the surcharge like how you did for the outbound leg.

    To see RomanceCar times, use this version of the online ticket reservations https://www.web-odakyu.com/e-romancecar/?language=en, I’ve never used the Emot so I can’t help you with that stuff. FWIW, I’ve always found no problem with seat availability for the return trip RomanceCar and just book it when I get to Hakone-Yumoto Station. That way you don’t lock yourself into a certain time for the return trip, and can relax more if you want to do more sightseeing or shopping along the way back. *edit if you’re worried about seat availability for the return trip, you can also use that same website to check seats.

    If you arent sure about the Emot stuff, I suggest just going to the Odakyu Sightseeing Center at Shinjuku station and asking in person, they’re super helpful!

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