Hakone Shissei Garden — A low-key but unmissable place

Hakone Wonderland🌿 Step into the wetland fantasy world from Hayao Miyazaki’s imagination!

🌟 Reasons to visit
The Kingdom of Moss! A wetland maze that changes with the seasons🍃

The Shissei Garden mainly cultivates wetland plants and is divided into areas such as the Deciduous Broadleaf Forest Zone, Silver Grass Plain Zone, Understory Wetland Zone, Japanese Marsh Grassland Zone, Alpine Flower Field, Upper Wetland Zone, Sengokuhara Wetland, and more.
My favorite is the Japanese Marsh Grassland Zone, where a vast expanse of golden marsh grass sways with the breeze like waves of gold. The area is quiet and peaceful with few visitors.
Here, standing between heaven and earth, you truly feel as small as a mayfly. The distant mountains are decorated with red, yellow, and green vegetation, which at a glance even resemble a giant Christmas tree.

📍 Address
817 Sengokuhara, Hakone-machi, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture
🚌 Travel tip: Take the mountain bus from Hakone-Yumoto Station for about 30 minutes and get off at the "Shissei Garden-mae" stop to arrive

🌸 Suggested itinerary
1️⃣ Deciduous Broadleaf Forest Zone
Walk on a thick moss carpet! The light filtering through the layers of leaves creates stunning shadows📸 It’s recommended to crouch down and shoot close-ups of the backlit moss

2️⃣ Silver Grass Plain Zone
Golden waves in autumn only! When the silver grass blooms in November, wear a light-colored long dress for wallpaper-worthy photos

3️⃣ Understory Wetland Zone
A hidden gem for photos❗️If you wait before 10:00 AM when the morning mist hasn’t lifted, the wooden boardwalk creates a magical "forest on water" effect

💡 Tips to avoid trouble
• Mosquitoes are fierce in September and October! Be sure to bring mosquito repellent spray
• Some wooden boardwalks close on rainy days, so it’s best to visit on sunny days