Hakone Freepass is valid for two or three
consecutive calendar days.
Once the first three days went by, you cannot use your 3-day Hakone Freepass.
> I understand that the 3 day Hakone free pass allows us to purchase the Romance Car ticket at 1200 yen instead of 2460 yen.
That's not the way.
To take a Romancecar train,
in addition to the basic fare,
you pay the Romancecar Limited Express surcharge.
Hakone Freepass does not cover the Romancecar surcharge.
Regardless of whether you use a Hakone Freepass or not,
the price of the Romancecar surcharge is the same.
(All the prices shown below are each for one adult passenger.)
For your ride from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto (or the reverse),
you pay 1200 yen as the surcharge and purchase your Romancecar ticket.
The price of the basic fare for this section
is 1260 yen when you use a regular paper ticket,
or 1251 yen when you use an IC transportation card.
Hakone Freepass can cover basic fares
for your one round-trip rides from Shinjuku to Odawara then back +
your unlimited rides inside the free area.
Only when the total amount of the basic fares covered by the pass is not less than its price,
your Hakone Freepass pays off.
When you start from Shinjuku,
the price of the 3-day Hakone Freepass is 6500 yen.
- Japan Guide: Hakone Free Pass
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2358_008.html
