- Our First Hakone Trip with Our 3-Month-Old Baby by Train
- What We Packed for Our Hakone Trip with a Baby
- A Thermos Was Very Handy for Making Formula While Traveling
- Our Room at Hidamari Ichinoyu: Tatami and Futons Were Great with a Baby
- Having the Futons Already Set Up Was a Nice Bonus
- Things We Found a Little Difficult
- Meals: A Relaxing Course-Style Dinner for Adults
- Baby Food Options
- Baby-Friendly Features We Appreciated
- Traveling to Hakone with a Baby: Don’t Overpack Your Schedule
- Conclusion: We Enjoyed Our First Hakone Trip with Our 3-Month-Old
- 🔗 More Hakone Travel Guides
Our First Hakone Trip with Our 3-Month-Old Baby by Train
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In June 2022, my husband, our three-month-old son, and I took our first family trip to Hakone.
It was our son’s first trip, and instead of driving, we decided to travel to Hakone by train.
Traveling with a three-month-old meant we had quite a few things to think about before leaving, especially when it came to packing, preparing formula, and figuring out how to spend our time at the hotel.
We stayed at Hakone Ichinoyu Shinkan, which is now called Hidamari Ichinoyu.
In this post, I’ll share our experience traveling to Hakone with a three-month-old baby, including:
- What we were glad we brought
- What the room was like
- Our experience with meals and baby food
- Things that made traveling with a baby easier
- What we learned about taking the train to Hakone
If you’re thinking about visiting Hakone with a baby, I hope our experience helps you plan your trip.
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Our First Hakone Trip with a 3-Month-Old Baby
Our son was just three months old when we took this trip.
At that age, babies still need to be fed frequently, so I was a little nervous about making formula, changing diapers, and taking care of him in a completely different environment.
The two things I was most concerned about were traveling by train and carrying all the extra luggage.
When traveling with a baby, it’s easy to think:
“Maybe we’ll need this, too.”
or
“We’d better bring it just in case.”
Before you know it, your luggage has doubled!
For this trip, I tried to keep everything as compact as possible while still bringing the essentials.
What We Packed for Our Hakone Trip with a Baby
Since our son was only three months old, we brought quite a few baby supplies.
Here’s what we packed:
- A change of clothes
- Diapers
- Baby wipes
- Gauze cloths
- Baby bottles
- Formula
- A thermos filled with hot water
- Sterilizing tablets
- A pacifier
- Baby skincare products
- A stroller
- Maternal and Child Health Handbook
- Baby medical certificate
- Health insurance card
I was especially glad that we brought extra diapers and clothes.
Babies have a way of making a bigger mess than usual when you’re traveling, and diaper changes can sometimes happen more frequently than expected.
Since we were traveling by train, I also used compression bags to organize the clothes and diapers.
It made a surprisingly big difference when it came to keeping our bags organized.
A Thermos Was Very Handy for Making Formula While Traveling
One thing I didn’t expect to find so challenging when traveling with a baby was figuring out when and where to make formula.
When your baby suddenly decides, “I’m hungry now!”, finding hot water while you’re out can be surprisingly difficult.
I carried a small thermos filled with hot water and used water to adjust the temperature when making formula.
This made it much easier to prepare a bottle while we were out, including during our train journey.
Knowing in advance where and how you are going to prepare formula can make traveling with a baby much less stressful.
When preparing infant formula, always follow the instructions on the formula packaging and the manufacturer’s recommendations.
Our Room at Hidamari Ichinoyu: Tatami and Futons Were Great with a Baby
At the time of our stay, Hakone Ichinoyu Shinkan offered rooms with tatami flooring and futons.
For us, this was one of the best things about staying there with a baby.
With a hotel room that has a bed, you may need to think about where to safely put your baby down.
With a futon on the floor, however, there is less distance between the baby and the floor, which gave me a little more peace of mind.
Our son was able to relax and spend time comfortably on the futon.
Our room also had a private open-air bath.
Taking a baby to a large communal bath can be a little challenging, so having a bath right in our room was a huge plus.
We could keep an eye on our baby while taking turns enjoying a relaxing bath.
Having the Futons Already Set Up Was a Nice Bonus
Something else that turned out to be surprisingly helpful was that the futons were already laid out when we checked in.
When you’re traveling with a baby, parents are often already tired by the time they arrive at the hotel.
Being able to put our baby down and take a break right away was wonderful.
It was also convenient when our son needed a nap or when we simply wanted to rest for a while.
Things We Found a Little Difficult
There was one thing about the room that was slightly inconvenient: carrying our luggage upstairs.
Our room was on the second floor, and because we had traveled by train, we had quite a bit of luggage.
When traveling with a baby, you naturally end up carrying things like:
- A stroller
- A diaper bag
- Baby supplies
- Clothes for the adults
So the amount of luggage can quickly add up.
If you’re bringing a stroller, it may be worth asking the hotel in advance whether they can store it at the front desk.
Also, the hotel has since been renovated, so the rooms, facilities, and layout may be different from what we experienced in 2022.
I recommend checking the latest information before your stay.
Meals: A Relaxing Course-Style Dinner for Adults
One of the best parts of traveling is, of course, the food.
During our stay, the meals were mainly Japanese-style dishes served one course at a time.
Before the trip, I wondered:
“Will we actually be able to enjoy a meal with a baby?”
Since the dishes were brought out one at a time, we were able to enjoy our meal at a relatively relaxed pace.
Of course, we still had to keep an eye on our baby, but having some time to sit down and enjoy a meal as adults was one of the nicest parts of the trip.
Baby Food Options
At the time of our stay, the hotel offered baby food for 7-month-old and 12-month-old babies.
We could order the appropriate option for the baby’s age, and the staff could warm it up for us.
However, our son was only three months old, so he wasn’t old enough for baby food yet.
We relied mainly on formula during our stay.
If you’re traveling with a baby, I recommend checking with the hotel in advance to make sure the available services are suitable for your baby’s age.
Baby food options and age ranges may change over time, so it’s best to confirm the latest information before booking.
Baby-Friendly Features We Appreciated
One of the things that made our stay easier was having facilities that were convenient for families traveling with a baby.
At the time, we found the following particularly helpful:
- The stroller was relatively easy to use around the hotel
- Our room had tatami flooring where we could safely lay our baby down
- The futons were already prepared
- We could borrow children’s tableware
Having a comfortable place to put our baby down was especially helpful.
When you’re traveling, everything is different from your normal routine. Just knowing that your baby has a comfortable place to relax once you return to the hotel can make a big difference.
Traveling to Hakone with a Baby: Don’t Overpack Your Schedule
The biggest thing I learned from this trip was that traveling with a baby is less about seeing as many places as possible and more about giving yourself plenty of time.
When you’re traveling without children, you can easily make a packed itinerary:
“Let’s go here next!”
But with a baby, things don’t always go according to plan.
Feeding, diaper changes, naps, and your baby’s mood can all affect your schedule.
Especially at three months old, our son’s mood and sleeping patterns could be different from one day to the next.
For us, it worked best to choose just a few places we really wanted to visit and leave plenty of room in the schedule for everything else.
You don’t have to see everything.
Conclusion: We Enjoyed Our First Hakone Trip with Our 3-Month-Old
Hakone was our first family trip with our three-month-old son.
Since we were also traveling by train, I was a little worried before we left.
But once we prepared everything we needed for feeding and diaper changes and avoided packing our itinerary too tightly, we were able to enjoy our Hakone trip with our baby.
At the hotel, what I remember most is the tatami-and-futon room and the private open-air bath.
Having a comfortable place to lay our baby down made things much easier, and we were also able to enjoy some relaxing time as adults.
The hotel we stayed at, Hakone Ichinoyu Shinkan, is now called Hidamari Ichinoyu and has since been renovated.
Because of this, some of the information in this post is based on our experience in 2022.
The rooms, meals, and baby-friendly services may have changed, so please check the latest information with the hotel before your stay.
Traveling with a baby can be more tiring than a regular trip, and you’ll probably end up carrying much more luggage than usual.
But looking back at the photos now, I think:
“We really traveled with such a tiny baby!”
It has become a very special family memory.
If you’re planning a trip to Hakone with a baby, I hope our experience encourages you to go at your own pace and enjoy the journey together.
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