Departing for a New Future with Hakone Tozan Railway Series 100! "Odakyu Hakone Group Entrance Ceremony 2026" Held

Odakyu Hakone Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Odawara City, Kanagawa Prefecture; President: Hidehiro Mizukami) and Hakone Tozan Bus Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Odawara City, Kanagawa Prefecture; President: Naohiro Nomura), both part of the Odakyu Hakone Group, held their first entrance ceremony aboard the Hakone Tozan Railway Series 100 train (Moha 1 and Moha 2) on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, welcoming seven new employees. This train, which has been in active service for over 100 years since the opening of Hakone Tozan Railway in 1919, undergoing repeated modifications, is Japan's oldest regularly operating train (according to the company) and is scheduled to retire in January 2028. This year's entrance ceremony was a surprise event, embodying the Odakyu Hakone Group's management philosophy of "cherishing all people involved in Hakone, creating 'heart-pounding moments,' and connecting them to the future," with the desire to "pass on the spirit of hospitality inherited to the next generation." The entrance ceremony was held inside the historic Series 100 train, which retains the charm of the Showa era. The new employees, though somewhat nervous, felt the spring of Hakone flowing past the train windows and engraved their determination as new members of society in their hearts. At Hakone-Yumoto Station, they were warmly seen off by station staff, and at Gora Station, they received a welcome, including commemorative gifts, from "Goran," the mascot character of the Hakone Gora Tourist Association, and members of the association, celebrating the new generation's departure into the future.