Hakone Free Pass vs. Japan Rail Pass

I'm planning to head to Hakone in a few weeks, and will be purchasing a 7-day Japan rail pass. I see that public transportation in Hakone is quite good, and that one can buy a 2- or 3- day Hakone Free Passes, which include public transport costs. Are public transport costs included in a Japan rail pass? Or do I need to also purchase a Hakone Free pass?

Thanks!

Your railpass would get you as far as Odawara on the bullet train from Tokyo but you'd then need a Hakone FP for travel around the area.

If you don't need to activate your JRP for that journey, you may be better off buying HFP and travelling on Odakyu Line from Shinjuku instead of using JRP to get to Hakone.

You can get the pass that excludes the Tokyo-Odawara portion (utilising your JRP for that portion on the JR network) and the Y4,000 pass is not too bad value even for one day if you do the loop, and you don't have to mess about with money/change. Also gives you the opportunity to visit Odawara Castle.

Please note that JR Pass is not a "Japan" Rail Pass, but "Japan Rail" Pass. Japan Rail (JR for short) does not cover all public transport.

To go to and explore Hakone, you can use Japan Rail train (namely, JR Tokaido Shinkansen) from Tokyo to Odawara, but to explore "inside" Hakone area beyond Odawara, you need to take trains/cablecars and other means of transport operated by another railway company.