Anest Iwata Turnpike Hakone · Japan

Hakone Turnpike

Local name: 箱根ターンパイク

A private toll road that climbs from Odawara on the coast to the Daikanzan viewpoint above Lake Ashi, with Mount Fuji beyond. Wide, smooth and fast, it is the road Japanese car magazines and car makers use for photo shoots and launches.

Where is the Hakone Turnpike?

The Hakone Turnpike is in Japan. Also known as 箱根ターンパイク, Anest Iwata Turnpike Hakone, Mazda Turnpike or Toyo Tires Turnpike. The route on this page: Odawara to Daikanzan, the whole toll road, 13.7 km.

Why the Hakone Turnpike is famous

It is a toll road built for driving, with long sweeping bends and a steady climb from near sea level to about 1,000 m, and it has carried sponsors' names over the years, including Mazda and Toyo Tires. Car makers use it for press drives and adverts, and on weekends the car parks fill with sports cars and motorcycles.

Hakone Turnpike corners

Over 13.7 km Turini calls 1 hairpins and 39 corners graded 1 to 6, plus 5 crests. That is 48 calls in all, one every 286 metres on average. Grade 1 is the tightest, 6 is nearly straight (how to read pace notes). On Turini’s ranking of the twistiest famous roads it comes 49th of 61.

Hakone Turnpike elevation profile

From 26 m at the start to 988 m at the finish, with a highest point of about 1,000 m. Red marks are the hairpins.

Hakone Turnpike pace notes, first few km

The first 25 calls, exactly as Turini reads them, with the distance from the start.

That takes you to 7.54 km. 23 more calls follow over the remaining 6.2 km.

Before you drive the Hakone Turnpike

Open all year, but it can close for snow, ice or heavy rain, and fog is common near the top.

It is a toll road, paid at the toll booth. At the top it joins the roads around Lake Ashi, so it pairs well with the other Hakone roads. Weekend mornings are the busiest.

How to drive the Hakone Turnpike with Turini

Set the route before you leave and Turini saves its notes on the phone, so it works with the screen off and no signal. On the road it reads each call about 4.5 seconds before the corner, timed to your speed, and you never touch the phone. It plays through the phone or the car speakers. If pace notes are new to you, start in Simple mode (Easy, Medium, Hard) and switch to the 1–6 scale once it feels natural.

Always drive within the law, the conditions and what you can see. Turini tells you what the map says; the road is what counts.

The Hakone Turnpike: questions

More roads like the Hakone Turnpike

Touge roads in Japan · The twistiest famous roads, ranked · All famous roads · How to read pace notes · How to find twisty roads near you

Sources: Wikipedia: Hakone Turnpike, Wikipedia (ja): 箱根ターンパイク.