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Voykit pocket guide · Japan
Odawara
小田原
Give Odawara one night: castle in the morning, then sleep here and ride the Hakone Tozan line up to Hakone-Yumoto the next day.
Odawara is a castle town and rail junction on Sagami Bay, about 80 km southwest of Tokyo and the gateway to Hakone. The castle, the plum and cherry blossom, kamaboko and himono are the reasons to stop; most travellers use it as a bed before or after Hakone rather than a destination in itself.
- Country
- Japan
- Local name
- 小田原
- Best months
- Mar–May, Oct–Nov
- Avoid
- Jun–Jul (rainy season), Aug (hot and humid), Golden Week
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- JPY
- Money
- Cities are increasingly cashless; temples, small restaurants and some lodging taxes still want cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget ¥7,000–11,000 excl. bed · Mid ¥11,000–18,000 excl. bed · High ¥18,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Data-only eSIMs are the easy route: buy before you fly; voice SIMs need a residence card.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Fire and ambulance 119 · Japan Visitor Hotline (24 h, English) 050-3816-2787
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 100 V · 50 Hz east (Tokyo), 60 Hz west (Osaka) · Most sockets are two flat pins without earth; European and UK plugs need an adapter. Phone and laptop chargers handle 100 V.
- Tipping
- Restaurants and bars: No tip; staff will chase you to return money left on the table.; Taxis: No tip; pay the meter.; Ryokan: Optional: ¥1,000–3,000 in an envelope for the room attendant; never loose cash.; Private guide: Not expected; a small gift or a thank-you meal is more usual.; Hotel porter: No tip.
- Water
- Safe from the tap everywhere; stations and parks have fountains.
- Toilets
- Free, clean public toilets in stations, parks and konbini; paper goes in the toilet. Rural and old stations may have squat toilets.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | ¥400–700 |
| Ramen (Odawara-kei or tantanmen) | ¥900–1,400 |
| Kamaboko or himono souvenir pack | ¥800–2,500 |
| Odawaradon rice bowl | ¥1,200–1,800 |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a konbini | ¥500–800 / ¥250–350 |
| 5 km taxi3.1 mi taxi | ¥2,000–2,500 |
| Castle entry | ¥300 adults, ¥100 children |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- HND · Haneda
- Keikyu to Yokohama, then JR Tokaido line; about 90 min, ¥1,420
- NRT · Narita
- Narita Express to Shinagawa, then Kodama Shinkansen; about 1 h 45 min
Typical fares
- Tokyo Station → Odawara, Kodama Shinkansen unreserved
- about ¥3,130, 35 min
- Shinjuku → Odawara, Odakyu commuter
- about ¥850, 90 min
- Odawara → Hakone-Yumoto, Hakone Tozan line
- about ¥310, 15 min
Get around
The centre is walkable: station to castle is about 10–15 min on foot. The Hakone Tozan line runs from Odawara up to Hakone-Yumoto and on to Gora; the Daiyuzan line branches to Iriuda for the natural history museum. Buses cover Soga and the coast.
See and do
Known for
- Odawara Castle
- Gateway to Hakone
- Kamaboko fish cake
- Umeboshi and himono
- Hojo Godai Festival
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Hakone | Hakone Tozan line from Odawara to Hakone-Yumoto, then the mountain railway, cable car and ropeway | About 15 min to Hakone-Yumoto; 1–1.5 h to Gora and the ropeway |
| Manazuru | JR Tokaido line to Manazuru, then a walk to the peninsula | About 20–30 min |
| Yokohama | JR Tokaido line, or Shinkansen to Shin-Yokohama plus a local train | About 50–70 min |
| Kamakura | JR Tokaido line to Ofuna or Yokohama, then the Yokosuka line | About 1 h |
| Enoshima | JR to Fujisawa, then the Enoden tram | About 1 h |
| Mount Fuji climbing season | JR to Mishima or Gotemba, then bus to the trailheads | 2–3 h |
Sleep
- Odawara Station east exit
- Business hotels and the bus terminal; best for one night with bags and early trains.
- Castle and Honcho area
- 10–15 min walk from the station; quieter, near the castle park and older restaurants.
- Hakone-Yumoto (up the line)
- Onsen inns 15 min by the Hakone Tozan line; pick this if the point of the stop is a hot-spring night.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Excuse me / Sorry | すみませんsumimasen |
| Thank you | ありがとうございますarigatō gozaimasu |
| This one, please | これをくださいkore o kudasai |
| How much is it? | いくらですか？ikura desu ka |
| Can I pay by card? | カードで払えますか？kādo de haraemasu ka |
| Where is the toilet? | トイレはどこですか？toire wa doko desu ka |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A small bow; a handshake if the other person offers; avoid: Hugs, back slaps, loud greetings
- Names: Family name plus -san; avoid: First names unless invited; adding -san to your own name
- Paying: Put money in the tray at the register; avoid: Tipping, or leaving loose cash for staff
- Trains: Queue at the floor marks, phone on silent, ask before reclining on the Shinkansen; avoid: Phone calls, eating on crowded commuter trains, blocking doors with bags
- Escalators: Stand on the side locals use — left in Tokyo, right in Osaka; stations now ask people to stand still on both; avoid: Stopping at the top or bottom
- Shoes: Off at the step-up entrance; toilet slippers only inside the toilet; avoid: Stepping on tatami in shoes or slippers
- Shrines: Rinse hands at the basin; bow twice, clap twice, bow once; avoid: Walking down the centre of the approach, which is for the deity
- Gifts: Offer and receive with both hands; bring a small omiyage for hosts; avoid: Sets of four; cash outside an envelope
Scams and watch-outs
- Ryokan dinner and curfew: a late arrival can mean a missed meal and a locked door, so sleep in Tokyo or Yokohama the first night if you land in the afternoon.
- The JR East regional pass does not cover the Tokaido Shinkansen; only the nationwide pass does.
- Castle keep hours and closures change: check the official site before you go.
- Summer is hot and humid; the rainy season runs through June into July.
Odawara is a low-crime small city; the real risks are summer heat, the crowded station concourse at rush hour and ryokan curfews that lock you out of dinner.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Odawara yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Odawara Castle
- Gateway to Hakone
- Kamaboko fish cake
- Umeboshi and himono
- Hojo Godai Festival
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Odawara City official tourism (multilingual): www.city.odawara.kanagawa.jp/kanko/language/
- Odawara-Guide (local tourism association, English): www.odawara-guide.com/
- Odakyu Railway — Odawara Station: www.odakyu.jp/station/odawara/
- Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Natural History: nh.kanagawa-museum.jp/
- Wikivoyage: Odawara, revision 5007535 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5007535
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Odawara小田原
ここまでお願いします
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police110
- Fire and ambulance119
- Japan Visitor Hotline (24 h, English)050-3816-2787
No embassies in Odawara; most are in Tokyo, with consulates in Yokohama (check).
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/odawara). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.