Hakone. Two days in Kusatsu will feel long unless you're really into rotating between different onsen baths all day. The town's tiny, there's not much to explore beyond the hot springs and a couple walks around Yubatake. It's great for a pure onsen reset, but you said you want small town sightseeing too, and Kusatsu doesn't have much of that.

Hakone gives you way more variety for the same time investment. You've got the ryokan experience locked in, but you can also do the ropeway, Lake Ashi, Open Air Museum if weather's bad, and Gora itself is a nice little area to wander. The loop isn't mandatory, you can just pick the parts that sound good and skip the rest. Two days won't feel slow because there's actually stuff to do between onsen soaks.

Plus Hakone's way easier to reach from Tokyo, so you're not burning half a day each way on trains like you would getting to Kusatsu. If you're hoping for Fuji views from the lake or ropeway, check isfujivisible.com a day or two before so you know if it's worth timing those activities around clear weather.

2 points ellyse99

Hakone


0 points Snoo_50705

Arguments as to why?

parent root

1 points ellyse99

Hakone has more in terms of number and variety to do for 2 days

parent root
1 points orkhanfarmanli

Hakone. Two days in Kusatsu will feel long unless you're really into rotating between different onsen baths all day. The town's tiny, there's not much to explore beyond the hot springs and a couple walks around Yubatake. It's great for a pure onsen reset, but you said you want small town sightseeing too, and Kusatsu doesn't have much of that.

Hakone gives you way more variety for the same time investment. You've got the ryokan experience locked in, but you can also do the ropeway, Lake Ashi, Open Air Museum if weather's bad, and Gora itself is a nice little area to wander. The loop isn't mandatory, you can just pick the parts that sound good and skip the rest. Two days won't feel slow because there's actually stuff to do between onsen soaks.

Plus Hakone's way easier to reach from Tokyo, so you're not burning half a day each way on trains like you would getting to Kusatsu. If you're hoping for Fuji views from the lake or ropeway, check isfujivisible.com a day or two before so you know if it's worth timing those activities around clear weather.