Ōwakudani
A volcanic valley of active sulphur vents and hot springs, formed about 3,000 years ago when the Hakone volcano erupted. Steam rises from the yellowed ground, and eggs boiled black in the springs are sold as kuro-tamago, said to add years to your life.
- Where
- Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan
- Grade
- Well known
- Worth
- 10 points collected on site, plus 1 for its grade
- Coordinates
- 35.2419, 139.0207
Get the Ōwakudani stamp
Open LOQAH when you are at Ōwakudani. It checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp is yours: confirmed on site in gold and struck with the date. It goes into your Kanagawa volume with your photos and a note.
Near Ōwakudani
Hakone Open-Air Museum 2.8 km
Japan's first open-air museum, opened in 1969 on a hillside in Hakone. About 120 sculptures stand across its lawns, by artists such as Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and Constantin Brâncuși, and a pavilion holds a large Picasso collection.
Lake Ashi 3.7 km
A crater lake along the south-western wall of the Hakone caldera, beside the old Tōkaidō road between Kyoto and Tokyo. Pleasure boats styled as sailing warships cross it, and on clear days Mount Fuji appears beyond the hills.
Hakone Shrine 4.3 km
A Shinto shrine on the shore of Lake Ashi, reached up stone steps through tall cedars. Its red torii gate stands in the lake itself, the picture most people carry home from Hakone.
Mount Fuji 30 km
An active stratovolcano and Japan's highest mountain, rising to 3,776 metres on the island of Honshu. Its near-perfect cone has been painted and climbed for centuries, and in summer trails lead to the crater rim, where climbers wait for the sunrise.
Arakurayama Sengen Park 35 km
A hillside park on Mount Arakura above Fujiyoshida, opened in 1959. A long stair climbs past its red five-storey Chūreitō pagoda to a lookout where pagoda and Mount Fuji line up in a single frame, most famously in cherry blossom season.
Lake Kawaguchi 39 km
The second largest of the Fuji Five Lakes and the lowest, at about 800 metres, with the longest shoreline of the five. Its northern shore gives some of the classic views of Mount Fuji reflected across the water.
Enoshima 42 km
A small island, about 4 kilometres round, in Sagami Bay, joined to the mainland at Fujisawa by a 389 metre bridge. Shrines, a lighthouse tower and sea caves sit on its hill, and some of the closest sandy beaches to Tokyo line the shore opposite.
Mount Takao 47 km
A wooded mountain in Hachiōji on the western edge of Tokyo, protected within Meiji no Mori Takao Quasi-National Park. A cable car and well-kept trails lead up past the temple of Yakuōin to a summit that looks toward Mount Fuji.
More famous places to visit in Kanagawa
Questions
Where is Ōwakudani?
Ōwakudani is in Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan. The nearest other LOQAH stamps are Hakone Open-Air Museum (2.8 km), Lake Ashi (3.7 km), Hakone Shrine (4.3 km).
How do I get the Ōwakudani stamp?
Open LOQAH when you are at Ōwakudani and get its stamp. The app checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp goes into your Kanagawa volume, confirmed on site, with the date.
I have been to Ōwakudani before. Can I still have the stamp?
Yes. Add it from Earlier trips in your Kanagawa volume, with the date if you know it, or import your Google Timeline and LOQAH matches the places you were.
Collect your first stamp.
LOQAH is free on iPhone and Android, in India and 20 more countries, with more countries on the way. Stand at a place, collect its stamp, and keep every trip in a passport that grows.