18 Life-Changing Vacations for Couples

Hakone, Japan

While not as romanticized for cherry-blossomed strolls as its nearby neighbor, Kyoto, Hakone is a day trip away from Tokyo that offers an intimate escape from city travel in the most relaxing way possible: hot spring resorts. Aside from relaxing in onsen (hot springs) at a traditional ryokan (Japanese inn), you can take advantage of the natural sites, like Lake Ashi and the volcano Mount Fuji, or tour the fire-engine red Hakone Shrine and the open-air sculpture museum. The many transportation options also seem more like mini adventures than a straightforward means of travel, from boats and cable cars to rolling train routes through the mountains.