Romantic Japan: The (soon to be closed) Little Prince Museum

People's idea of what they'd constitute as "romantic" probably differs quite broadly, but I actually find museums (and often, their gardens!) lovely places to visit for a date day. One spot in particular that I loved when my husband and I visited was the Little Prince Museum in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture – and it's a good time to visit now, because the museum is set to close permanently on March 31st 2023. 

Although it's set to close at the end of the month, the Little Prince Museum in Hakone is a lovely place for a romantic date day.

A big part of why I loved the museum so much was that it really felt like a trip to Europe as soon as you entered the grounds. Our visit was in summer, and everything was lush and green – it was a bit of a drizzly day, but I think that only added to the charm. There are several different gardens on the grounds, including a European style garden and a rose garden.

There are lots of cute photo spots as well, including this little street area which has a variety of picturesque French-inspired buildings.

There are quite a few places for cute photo opportunities that feel like you've just hopped over to Europe!

They also have an on-site restaurant, which took us by surprise – we weren't expecting much, but the food was very good! The menu lineup is an interesting French-Japanese fusion, with offerings like roasted chicken in a red wine sauce or a Lyon-style white fish quenelle, through to omurice and hamburger steak. I thought I had pictures of the food we ate, but I can't find them right now – if you want to take a browse at the menu on their site, however, you can do that here.

They have both indoor and outdoor seating at the restaurant – we sat inside on our visit because of the drizzle, but I think if you had a nice spring day before the end of the month it would be really pleasant to sit outside on the terrace to enjoy your meal.

The scenic gardens make for a picturesque place to take a romantic stroll with your loved one.

I really hope that if you haven't visited here yet, you can squeeze in a trip before the museum shuts down for good. Unfortunately, it seems that they're another casualty from the pandemic, as lowered visitor numbers and the upkeep of the buildings were cited as reasons for the impending closure.

Practical info:

The Little Prince Museum is located around 20 minutes driving time from the Tomei Expressway's Gotemba IC. Plentiful on-site parking is available.

The museum opening hours are from 10 am until 6 pm daily (do note that last entry is at 5 pm), but bear in mind that they close every Wednesday if you're planning to visit.

Adult tickets on the day are priced at ¥ 1600, but you can buy advance tickets at a slight discount (¥ 1400) if you have a date in mind.