Kawanehon is located in north-central Shizuoka, along the upper reaches of the Ōi River, with approximately 90% of the town area covered in forest and mountains.

Forests range from Siebold's Beech at lower elevations to Siberian Dwarf Pine at higher altitudes, and wildlife include wild boar and kamoshika.

Kawanehon is on the border between the former provinces of Suruga and Tōtōmi, and was mostly tenryō territory under direct control of the Tokugawa shogunate in the Edo period.

With the establishment of the modern municipalities system in the early Meiji period in 1889, the area was reorganized into numerous villages within both Haibara and Shida Districts within Shizuoka Prefecture.

The economy of Kawanehon is dominated by forestry and the production of green tea, with tourism on the Ōigawa Railway and to hot spring resorts also playing a role.