Hakone Open Air Museum

When we started planning our Japan trip, my pinterest feed slowly filled with picturesque photos of stained glass and scening statues against changing autumn leaves. After some digging, it became clear that most of these photos were all from one location - the Hakone Open Air Museum. 

Logistics

The easiest way to access the museum is on the Hakone Tozan Railway. Take the Chokoku No Mori Station and the museum is steps away. Standard admission is 1600 yen, and they're open 9am-5pm, but final admission is at 4:30. During our trip in November, the sun set early so the best time to enjoy the museum was well before the 4:30pm cutoff. Here's the official website, which is available in English.

Food

After our amazing, and chilly, time at the museum, we dined at Itoh Dining by Nobu, a delicious Japanese steakhouse we found on TripAdvisor. The food was great and the atmosphere was quiet and peaceful. We didn't have a reservation, but like most places in Japan, if you showed up and didn't mind a wait, you could be seated.