Evangelion Pilgrimage Guide: Lake Ashi in Hakone, Village-3's Railway & Ube-Shinkawa Station

The volcanic mountains of Hakone and the waters of Lake Ashi, a timber railway roundhouse and revolving turntable in Hamamatsu, and the quiet platform of Ube-Shinkawa Station in Yamaguchi—'Evangelion' follows 14-year-old Shinji Ikari and his fellow pilots as they board giant bio-machines called Evangelions, weaving real Japanese landscapes and working railway infrastructure into its world.

Hakone grounds the fictional fortress city of Tokyo-3, the rail yard at Tenryu-Futamata Station served as one of the key real-world models for Village-3 in the 2021 concluding film 'Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time,' and Ube-Shinkawa Station frames the film's final scene—complemented today by locally cast sculptures of the Spear of Longinus and Evangelion Unit-01.

Model Locations and Exhibitions Across Hakone, Tenryu-Futamata, and Ube

1Hakone-Yumoto Station | The Gateway to Hakone Linked to the Scenery of Tokyo-3

Hakone Town in Kanagawa Prefecture is closely tied to 'Tokyo-3,' the fictional fortress city of 'Evangelion' centered around the Sengokuhara plateau, and scenery reminiscent of Hakone-Yumoto Station at the foot of the mountains also appears in the theatrical films.

In 2009, with official permission from the production studio, Hakone published the 'Hakone Instrumentality Map' (Hakone Hokan Map) comparing 19 real locations around the town with frames from the anime. Hakone-Yumoto Station on the Odakyu Hakone Tozan Line serves as the rail gateway when entering the mountains to trace those spots.

The Official Specialty Shop ‘Hakone-Yumoto Evaya’

Directly on the first floor of Hakone-Yumoto Station (707-1 Shiraiwa-shita, Yumoto, Hakone-machi) is the official specialty store 'Hakone-Yumoto Evaya,' which celebrated its 14th anniversary in July 2026 with newly illustrated Hakone-exclusive merchandise. The shop is open daily from 9:00 to 18:00 (irregular holidays).

Designed like a traditional Japanese hot-spring souvenir shop, Evaya carries location-exclusive goods alongside takeout treats such as 'Eva Soft' soft-serve ice cream and 'L.C.L. Drink' that travelers can enjoy right at the station.

Sources: Hakone Town — Tokyo-3 Setting & 19-Spot Map / Production Blog — Scenery of Hakone / Evaya 14th Anniversary / Official Shop Address & Hours / Evaya Goods & Takeout Menu

2Lake Ashi & Hakone Shrine | Mountain-Ringed Lakeshore and Cedar-Lined Approach

Scenery evoking Hakone Shrine along the forested shores of Lake Ashi also appears in the films. When operations chief Misato Katsuragi drives protagonist Shinji Ikari toward NERV headquarters, she takes him up toward Mt. Kintoki, which overlooks Togendai and Lake Ashi—pairing close-up lakeshore views with sweeping mountain vistas.

In the 2007 theatrical film 'Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone,' the landscape around Lake Ashi forms the staging ground for 'Operation Yashima,' where Evangelion Unit-01 snipes the Sixth Angel from the Futago-yama Fortress.

The view looking toward the twin peaks of Mt. Futago from aboard a sightseeing boat on Lake Ashi was also highlighted in the production staff's own Hakone visit report. Visibility of the surrounding peaks across the water varies with the day's clouds and lake mist.

Sources: Official Site — Lake Ashi & Operation Yashima in '1.0' / Production Staff Report — Viewing Mt. Futago from Lake Ashi

On site in Motohakone, visitors can stroll both the Lake Ashi shoreline and the cedar-lined stone approach to Hakone Shrine, while sightseeing boats across Lake Ashi operate according to daily weather and ticket schedules.

Sources: Hakone Town — Lake Ashi & the Series / Topography of Hakone Introduced by the Creators / Hakone Town Tourist Association — Shrine & Lakeshore

3Ashinoko Skyline | Hearing ‘A Cruel Angel’s Thesis’ Through the Road Surface

Along the Ashinoko Skyline mountain toll road is a 'Melody Pave' musical road section where driving an automobile over precisely spaced transverse grooves cut into the asphalt produces the melody of the television theme song 'A Cruel Angel's Thesis'—located on the lane heading from the Kojiri Tollgate toward the Hakone Pass Tollgate.

Because the Ashinoko Skyline is a motor-vehicle-only mountain toll road with a 40 km/h speed limit along this stretch (closed nightly from 19:00 to 7:00, with pedestrians and bicycles strictly prohibited), the musical road can only be experienced from inside a car driving at the posted speed.

Source: Road Operator — Melody Pave Location & Driving Conditions

4Tenryu-Futamata Station | The Roundhouse and Turntable That Modeled Village-3

Tenryu-Futamata Station on the Tenryu Hamanako Railroad in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, is one of the primary real-world models for 'Village-3' (Dai-3-Mura) in 'Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time,' and visitors can see its historic timber rail yard and revolving turntable on an official guided tour.

Within the film, the fan-shaped timber roundhouse corresponds to the medical clinic where Toji Suzuhara works as a village doctor, while the railway building to the rear right of the turntable inspired the home shared by Toji and his wife Hikari—where Ayanami Rei (tentative name) gently rocks their baby Tsubame.

The guided tour shows visitors the spatial relationship between the timber roundhouse and working turntable as well as the Railway History Museum housed inside part of the roundhouse, while the building that inspired the Suzuhara family residence remains closed inside.

Sources: Official Site — Building Correspondences & Tour Scope at Tenryu-Futamata / Official Character Name Listing

Guided Tour of the Turntable and Railway History Museum

Access to the rail yard is exclusively through the 40-minute railway guided tour, departing at 13:50 on weekdays and at 10:50 and 13:50 on weekends and holidays (no advance reservation required; reception at the station window capped at the first 120 guests; adult fee 600 yen).

Near the turntable stands a 3.6-meter-tall Spear of Longinus installed in 2023, which guided tour participants can view up close alongside the historic railway maintenance machinery.

The ‘Village-3’ Station Nameboard

From July 18, 2026 through February 28, 2027, the station platform also displays a special 'Village-3' (Dai-3-Mura) station nameboard; the station souvenir shop operates from 9:00 to 16:00, and platform entry follows standard railway ticketing.

Sources: Hamamatsu City — Model Location for Village-3 / Tenryu Hamanako Railroad — Station Sign & Current Guided Tours / Installation of the Spear

5Ube-Shinkawa Station | The Model for the Final Scene and the ‘Hand of Eva’ Sculpture

JR Ube-Shinkawa Station in Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture—the hometown of creator and chief director Hideaki Anno—served as the model for the final scene of 'Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time.'

Outside the station building stands the 'Hand of Eva' sculpture crafted by young artisans at local manufacturer Ube Steel, illuminated in Evangelion Unit-01 colors until 22:00 each night and featured in an official 2026 franchise illustration.

Titled 'Final Episode: The Beast That Sat Down in the Heart of Ube,' the sculpture brings to life the grand-prize winner of a citizen design contest, cast in metal and heat-treated inside Ube Steel's industrial furnaces before being installed in the station rotary plaza.

Source: Ube City — Citizen Design Contest & Manufacturing Process

The sculpture in front of the station stands in an open public plaza accessible free of charge, while entering the station platforms to see the overpass and tracks requires a valid JR train ticket or platform admission ticket. A gallery exhibition inside the station building is also scheduled to open on October 29, 2026.

Sources: Ube City — Station Appearance & Sculpture Production / Ube City — Station & Regional Collaboration / Official Site — Station Sculpture & 2026 Campaign

6Tokiwa Park | The Over 7-Meter Spear Standing Beside Tokiwabashi Bridge

In Ube City's Tokiwa Park stands a monumental Spear of Longinus measuring over 7 meters in length, cast by local manufacturer Ube Steel and currently installed beside Tokiwabashi Bridge overlooking the lake.

Translating the iconic double-helical spear from the anime into an outdoor metal sculpture through Ube's industrial casting technology, the piece is lit in glowing red illumination after dark until 21:30, presenting a striking nighttime silhouette distinct from its daytime metallic sheen.

Cast from iron scrap collected within Ube City, the engineering team carefully balanced the twisted bident geometry with the structural strength required to stand securely in the ground, designing the elevated prongs so visitors can walk underneath the sculpture.

Source: Ube City — Scrap Iron Materials & Structural Design of the Spear

Originally exhibited on Sculpture Hill inside Tokiwa Park, the Spear was relocated near Tokiwabashi Bridge after the initial 2024 campaign concluded, where visitors can view it freely today.

Sources: Ube City — Relocation Near Tokiwabashi Bridge / Casting & Night Illumination of the Spear

7Yamaguchi Ube Airport | The Evangelion Unit-01 Statue in the Domestic Lobby

In the second-floor domestic departure lobby of Yamaguchi Ube Airport stands a statue of Evangelion Unit-01—relocated from the 30th-anniversary exhibition at Yokohama Arena and displayed from September 18, 2026 through March 14, 2027.

An official merchandise shop inside the airport terminal operates from 10:00 to 18:00 on weekdays and from 10:00 to 19:00 on weekends and holidays.

Source: Evangelion Official — Airport Statue Display Period & Shop Hours

Deeper into the Work | Characters and Films of the Evangelion Series

Here we organize how the real landscapes of Hakone, Village-3 in Hamamatsu, and Ube-Shinkawa Station in Yamaguchi fit into the story across the 1995 television series and the four Rebuild theatrical films, before looking at how the concluding film was produced.

Tokyo-3, the City Where Shinji Ikari Is Summoned

Premiering on television in October 1995, 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' is set in the fortified city of Tokyo-3, where 14-year-old boys and girls pilot giant humanoids called Evangelions to battle mysterious beings known as Angels.

Protagonist Shinji Ikari is summoned to Tokyo-3 by his estranged father Gendo Ikari, commander of the special agency NERV. Guided to headquarters and taken into the household of operations chief Misato Katsuragi, Shinji pilots Evangelion Unit-01 alongside fellow pilot Rei Ayanami.

In Episode 6's 'Operation Yashima,' Misato requisitions all of Japan's electrical power to fire a long-range positron rifle at an Angel from outside its attack radius—a night battle later reimagined in 'Evangelion: 1.0' across the terrain of Lake Ashi and Mt. Futago.

When visiting Hakone's volcanic mountains and crater lake, Tokyo-3 forms the bridge between story and real-world topography, mapped across 19 location comparison spots in the town's 2009 Hakone Instrumentality Map.

Sources: Official Site — Introduction to the TV Series & Rebuild Films / Hakone Town — Tokyo-3 & Real Locations

The Four Rebuild of Evangelion Films: ‘1.0,’ ‘2.0,’ ‘3.0,’ and ‘3.0+1.0’

Launched in 2007, the 'Rebuild of Evangelion' theatrical tetralogy comprises '1.0 You Are (Not) Alone' (2007), '2.0 You Can (Not) Advance' (2009), '3.0 You Can (Not) Redo' (2012), and the concluding film '3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time' (2021).

In '2.0,' Shikinami Asuka Langley pilots Unit-02 and new pilot Makinami Mari Illustrious enters the story, tracing Asuka's shifting bonds with Shinji and Rei through joint combat; in '3.0,' Shinji awakens from a fourteen-year sleep to a transformed world where he meets Kaworu Nagisa.

Opening with an aerial operation in Paris by the anti-NERV organization WILLE led by Misato and spearheaded by Mari in Unit-08γ, the 2021 concluding film '3.0+1.0' follows Shinji, Asuka, and Ayanami Rei (tentative name) as they walk across red-stained land in Japan toward Village-3 and ultimately Ube-Shinkawa Station.

Sources: Official Site — Synopses of Each Film / Distributor — Opening Story of '3.0+1.0' / '3.0+1.0' Main Trailer

Village-3: Repurposing Railway Cars as Bathhouses and Libraries

Village-3 in '3.0+1.0' is built around historic railway infrastructure including a timber roundhouse and revolving turntable modeled in part on Tenryu-Futamata Station on the Tenryu Hamanako Railroad in Hamamatsu.

In the film, retired train cars are repurposed as public bathhouses, libraries, and dwellings—blending railway maintenance yards with daily community life, which visitors can compare firsthand on the Tenryu-Futamata turntable and Railway History Museum guided tour.

Sources: Official Site — 'Shin Evangelion and Railways' / Tenryu Hamanako Line — Connection to Village-3 / Turntable & Railway History Museum Tour

Rei Learning Farm Work and Kensuke Taking Shinji Outdoors

In Village-3, Ayanami Rei (tentative name) learns human life and work alongside the villagers, trading her black plugsuit for farm work clothes and rice-planting gear. Voice actress Megumi Hayashibara recalled her surprise at seeing Rei standing in a rice paddy in a black plugsuit and the warmth she felt while recording dialogue alongside the three village women who look after Rei.

Shinji's former classmates Toji and Hikari are now married parents raising their baby daughter Tsubame in the village, while Kensuke Aida drives Shinji out to his countryside base so they can spend a day outdoors—a sequence voice actor Tetsuya Iwanaga cited alongside Kensuke's scenes facing Asuka as deeply memorable. Beyond battle headquarters, the village depicts the homes and daily labor of reunited friends.

Sources: Official Site — Rei Working in the Fields / 2021 Stage Greeting — Megumi Hayashibara on Recording / Official Glossary — Plugsuits / Tetsuya Iwanaga on Kensuke's Scenes

The Concluding Feature Film Created by Hideaki Anno and Studio Khara

Building the Screen Through Multiple Directors, Background Art, and 3DCGI

On 'Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time,' Hideaki Anno served as creator, screenwriter, and chief director, joined by directors Kazuya Tsurumaki, Katsuichi Nakayama, and Mahiro Maeda at animation studio Studio Khara.

Atsushi Nishigori served as chief animation director, Tatsuya Kushida as art director, Hiroyasu Kobayashi as CGI art director, and Daisuke Onizuka as CGI director, with orchestral score by Shiro Sagisu and theme song 'One Last Kiss' written and performed by Hikaru Utada.

Written specifically for the concluding film, 'One Last Kiss' debuted in the main theatrical trailer released in December 2020 alongside the seaside theatrical poster illustrated by Atsushi Nishigori.

Sources: Concluding Film Staff Credits / Theme Song & Theatrical Poster Announcement

Searching for Camera Angles of Village-3 with a 9m × 4m Miniature Set

Previsualization (previz) allowed the directors to test camera movement and staging before final animation, using a physical three-dimensional scale model of the village to discover where and how to frame the buildings and railway cars.

Arranged with the train library, Toji's clinic, ration station, and Kensuke's and Toji's homes, the miniature synthesized the directors' location scouting at Tenryu-Futamata with elements from other towns; camera angle studies using the model ran from autumn 2017 through spring 2018.

Exhibited to the public for a limited period in 2021 after the film's theatrical release, the miniature offered a tangible production counterpart to visiting the real timber roundhouse and turntable yard at Tenryu-Futamata.

Sources: Official Site — Village-3 Miniature & Production Process / 2021 Preview Exhibition — Miniature Facilities & Timeline

A Folded Plugsuit and Hand-Drawn Utility Poles

Rei's quiet emotional growth also appears in how she handles her belongings: left unfolded the first time she uses the village bathhouse, her plugsuit is neatly folded the next time she bathes—a detail art director Tatsuya Kushida highlighted as showing how living among the villagers changes her.

For Part A in the first half of the film, hand-drawn background art was prioritized, and Kushida's art team painted countless utility poles in the backgrounds. Prominent foreground utility poles were drawn by dedicated 'utility pole animation director' Tatsuya Tanaka, dividing the work according to how each slender structure functioned in the frame.

Layering hand-painted background art over camera layouts discovered inside the 1/45 miniature gave the Village-3 sequence in the first half a tactile warmth distinct from the expansive digital imagery of the film's second half.

Source: Tatsuya Kushida on Character Living Spaces & Part A Background Art

Layouts and Key Animation Frames Preserving the Final Scene at Ube-Shinkawa Station

Published by Studio Khara, the second volume of the official 'Evangelion: 3.0+1.0' Key Animation Book compiles production drawings from the latter half of the film, including the final scene at Ube-Shinkawa Station alongside the clash between Unit-01 and Unit-13, Gendo's monologue, and Mari's Unit-08γ.

Containing layouts, key animation frames, corrected drawings, and select exposure sheets across thousands of color-tuned scans that preserve the texture of colored-pencil lines on paper, the volume documents how the station finale was drawn by hand.

Source: Studio Khara — Key Animation Book Vol. 2 Contents & Production

Official Making-Of Documentary Recording the Production Process

The home video release includes the behind-the-scenes documentary 'Rebuild of EVANGELION:3.0+1.11,' whose opening minute was released officially on YouTube in February 2023.

Source: Official Making-Of Video Excerpt Release

From the 1995 TV Broadcast to the Four Rebuild Films and Local Installations

Film Releases and Regional Milestones Across Hakone, Hamamatsu, and Ube

Sources: 1995 TV Broadcast Launch / 1997 & 1998 Theatrical Films / Rebuild Release Dates & Box Office / Yokohama Arena 30th Anniversary Event / 2026 Regional Exhibitions

Version Numbers Distinguishing Theatrical Screenings from Home Video Editions

'Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time' opened in theaters across Japan in March 2021 as version '3.0+1.0,' was updated in cinemas on June 12, 2021 with revised animation cuts as '3.0+1.01,' and was released on Blu-ray and DVD in March 2023 as '3.0+1.11.'

Throughout the four-film Rebuild tetralogy, version numbers indicate visual adjustments, sound mixes, and added cuts made between initial theatrical screenings and home video mastering, helping viewers identify the exact edition on disc.

Sources: Official Site — Version Numbers Across the Rebuild Films / '3.0+1.11' Home Video Specifications

Standard Edition Blu-ray Containing the Feature Film and Making-Of Documentary

Released on March 8, 2023, the Standard Edition Blu-ray (catalog number KIXA-952~953) is a two-disc set containing the 155-minute feature film, 107 minutes of bonus video features, and a 28-page explanatory booklet.

Bonus video features on the two-disc set include the production documentary 'Rebuild of EVANGELION:3.0+1.11' introduced above alongside newly produced short animations.

Sources: Official Site — Standard Edition Blu-ray / King Records — Disc Contents

Lab Note | From a Business Perspective: Active Railway Facilities and Locally Cast Sculptures

At Tenryu-Futamata Station in Hamamatsu, daily guided tours open an active railway maintenance depot to visitors, presenting the historic timber roundhouse and revolving turntable that inspired Village-3 alongside the everyday work of operating a regional rail line.

In Ube City, local steelmakers cast both the over 7-meter Spear of Longinus and the 'Hand of Eva' sculpture placed outside the station and in Tokiwa Park—pairing the railway platform from the film's final moments with tangible works of local industrial craftsmanship.

Official Sources & Primary References

• Official Site — Series Introduction
• Concluding Film Official Site
• Tenryu Hamanako Line Tour Guide
• 2026 Ube & Hamamatsu Exhibits
• Concluding Film Blu-ray & DVD

Exhibition dates, opening hours, admission fees, and ticket details are current at the time of writing. Always check the official websites for the latest schedule updates before setting out on your pilgrimage visit.