Old Tokaido and Hakone Checkpoint

The Old Tokaido Highway is one of the five oldest roads in Japan. It is a road that travels along the sea coast from Kyoto to Edo (modern day Tokyo). During the Edo Period (1603-1867), the Tokaido Highway was used by so many travels and made Hakone an important checkpoint. After the modernization of the roads in Japan the highway was neglected and left to ruin with only a few places preserved. In 2007, the reconstruction of the Hakone Checkpoint was completed. The structure is located between Moto Hakone and Hakone Machi by the shore of Lake Ashi. Along the short passage are cedar trees lined up to the checkpoint. Nearby to the area is the Hakone Sekisho Shiryokan, a small museum featuring displays about the checkpoint. Some of the original stone pavement can be seen from Moto-Hakone to Hatajuku, which can be reached from the Amazake Chaya, a tea house that serves hot sweet rice wine and Japanese snacks.