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Hakone Checkpoint (Sekisho) Tickets: ¥500 Entry, ¥400 with the Freepass, Hours and the Walk from the Pirate Ship (2026)

Updated 2026-10-14

The pirate ship drops you at Hakone-machi-ko, and the Hakone Checkpoint is a 5-minute walk from that pier. Entry costs ¥500 for adults and ¥250 for elementary school children. With a Hakone Freepass you pay ¥400 and ¥150, so the pass takes only ¥100 off here. It opens 9:00–17:00 from March to November and 9:00–16:30 from December to February, last entry 30 minutes before closing, and it has no closed days. The checkpoint says a visit takes about 45 minutes. One thing to know before you plan a weekend with kids: the rule that let elementary and junior high students in free on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays ended on 1 July 2019. Older posts still repeat it. Fees, hours and access are from the checkpoint's official site and Hakone town, checked 2026-10-14.

Diagram of the south shore of Lake Ashi: Hakone-machi-ko pirate ship pier, a 5-minute walk to Hakone Checkpoint; Hakone Sekisho-ato-ko cruise pier and the Izuhakone bus stop Hakone Sekisho-ato, 2 minutes on foot; the old Tokaido cedar avenue on to Moto-Hakone-ko and Hakone Shrine. Hakone Tozan Bus H from Hakone-Yumoto about 40 minutes, Freepass OK. Entrance fee: adult 500 yen, elementary school 250 yen, with the Hakone Freepass 400 and 150 yen. Hours 9:00 to 17:00 from 1 March to 30 November, 9:00 to 16:30 from 1 December to the end of February, last entry 30 minutes before closing, open every day, about 45 minutes for a visit. Pirate ship from Togendai 1,700 yen, free with the Freepass. Checked 2026-10-14.
The checkpoint sits between the two pirate ship piers. Get off at Hakone-machi-ko, not Moto-Hakone-ko, if the checkpoint is your first stop.

Entrance fee

Ticket Adult Elementary school
At the window ¥500 ¥250
Hakone Freepass and similar passes, shown at the window ¥400 ¥150
Groups of 20 or more ¥350 ¥100 (junior high ¥120, high school ¥150)
Disability certificate holder free, and one companion free

Is the Freepass worth it for this? Not on its own: ¥100 off is the whole discount. The pass earns its price on the ropeway and the pirate ship, which the Hakone Freepass calculator adds up for your route.

Opening hours

Dates Open Last entry
1 March – 30 November 9:00–17:00 16:30
1 December – end of February 9:00–16:30 16:00

How to get there

The checkpoint stands on the south shore of Lake Ashi, on the old Tokaido road between Hakone-machi and Moto-Hakone. Three ways in:

From How Time Adult fare
Togendai (end of the ropeway) Hakone Sightseeing Cruise (pirate ship) to Hakone-machi-ko, then walk 5 min 25–40 min on the boat ¥1,700 one way, free with the Freepass
Hakone-Yumoto Station Hakone Tozan Bus H, bound for Hakone-machi-ko about 40 min ¥1,210 to Moto-Hakone-ko on the official fare example; the checkpoint stop is a little further, so expect slightly more. Freepass OK
Odawara Station Hakone Tozan Bus H, or Izuhakone Bus bound for Hakone Sekisho-ato about 55 min Izuhakone buses do not take the Freepass

What the ¥500 buys

The Tokugawa shogunate set 53 checkpoints on the roads into Edo, and the official site calls Hakone one of the largest. It was placed here in 1619 and worked for about 260 years until 1868. Its job is summed up as "incoming guns and outgoing women": stop weapons coming into Edo, and stop the wives and children of feudal lords from leaving Edo. The site says Hakone checked the women strictly and didn't check guns at all.

The buildings you walk through today were rebuilt on the original site with Edo-period tools and methods, down to the furnishings, after the whole site was excavated. The official phrase is that the checkpoint "came back after about 150 years". Inside:

Our take: it's a reconstruction, so don't expect patina, but it's the only place on the loop where you stand in the actual gates the road passed through. 45 minutes is enough. Do it between the boat and the walk to Moto-Hakone rather than as a separate trip.

Fitting it into the Hakone loop

  1. Romancecar or Odakyu train to Hakone-Yumoto, Tozan Train to Gora, cable car and ropeway to Togendai via Owakudani. Ride times and last departures are in our Hakone day trip itinerary.
  2. Pirate ship to Hakone-machi-ko. Walk 5 minutes to the checkpoint. Last entry 16:30 (16:00 in winter), so be on a boat from Togendai by about 15:30.
  3. Checkpoint, about 45 minutes.
  4. Walk the cedar avenue to Moto-Hakone, then 10 more minutes to Hakone Shrine and the Peace Torii.
  5. Tozan Bus H from Moto-Hakone-ko back to Hakone-Yumoto, about 40 minutes, Freepass OK.

If you'd rather see the checkpoint first thing, take the bus straight from Hakone-Yumoto to Hakone-machi-ko and run the loop backwards: boat from Hakone-machi-ko to Togendai, ropeway up, train down. The checkpoint opens at 9:00.

Passes and tours

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Frequently asked questions

Is there parking at Hakone Checkpoint?

No. The checkpoint has no car park of its own and asks drivers to use nearby lots. There is a drop-off space for vehicles carrying elderly or disabled visitors, open 8:30–17:00 and locked at 17:00.

Can I bring a dog into Hakone Checkpoint?

Only in a carrier or cage, except guide and assistance dogs. Eating and smoking inside are not allowed, drones are banned over the site, and you take your rubbish with you.

Can groups and schools get a lower price?

Yes. Groups of 20 or more pay ¥350 per adult, ¥150 per high school student, ¥120 per junior high student and ¥100 per elementary school child. Disabled visitors can also apply in advance by fax for a reduced or waived group fee.

Official sources (checked 2026-10-14)

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