Summer is Hakone is full of fun events and traditional festivals that you can enjoy. The mountains give you the chance to cool down from the hot summers in Japan. 

MOTO-HAKONE: The Kosuii Festival is a week long even held on the shores of Lake Ashi. Here is the schedule for this year. Long ago a nine headed dragon lived at the bottom of Lake Ashi and terrorized the lakeshore villages. A monk tamed the beast and it now serves as the protector of residents, travellers, and visitors to the area. The Kosuisai Festival and week of celebrations is a continuation of this long tradition and has become one of Hakone`s largest festivities. Held on the shores of Lake Ashi, in Moto-Hakone, there are foodstalls, music, traditional Japanese arts, and finishes with an impressive fire works display. This is just one day of a weeklong event held along the shores. There are fireworks everynight and culminates with the “Burning Shrine Gates” in front of Hakone Shrine.

In summer the Japanese celebrate Obon, a time when it is believed the spirits of dead ancestors come to visit. It is a time to celebrate life, visit the family grave, and enjoy the company of family and friends. On the mountainside of Daimonji Mountain hundreds of men light large towers of straw in the form of 大. This is meant to help guide the spirits back to the afterlife. The impressive and immense acitivity can be viewed from Gora, with live music acts, food stalls, and a well timed fireworks display. This is an impressive and memorable experience and highlight of the summer in Hakone.