Many people are looking forward to visiting Mt. Fuji.
About Mt. Fuji
Mt. Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. It is 3776m high and is a volcano. It is a Unesco World Heritage and are theme for many ukiyoe block prints. It’s one of the most famous landscape of Japan.
There are several ways to enjoy Mt. Fuji.
Go to nearby area to enjoy the view of Mt. Fuji
Places that you can enjoy Mt. Fuji views are:
Hakone Hakone is a popular sightseeing spot about 1 hour from Tokyo. There is a lake (Lake Ashi) and rope way. If the weather is good, you will have a good view of Mt. Fuji. You can spend a whole day. Also there are hot springs. If you would like to relax, you can spend a night in Japanese style inn (Ryokan) and enjoy hot spring.
Lake Kawaguchi There are 5 lakes near Mt. Fuji and Lake Kawaguchi is one of the most popular one. You can go up a mountain by rope way and have a good view of Mt. Fuji.
Fuji Yoshida (famous pagoda) Fuji Yoshida became famous with the view of Mt. Fuji and pagoda. It’s a photogenic area. You can go up stairs in one of the Shinto Shrine.
If the weather is good, you can see mt. Fuji from Shinkansen Bullet train between Tokyo and Nagoya for a few minutes.
Go to 5 th station
Climbing Mt. Fuji is quite difficult but you can join a tour and go to 5th station of Mt. Fuji by car. During the July and August, only bus can go to the 5th station. This is closest you can get to the mountain but if the weather is not good, you cannot see the mountain itself, so the weather is important. There are sourvenir shops and restaurants on 5th station.
Go climb Mt. Fuji
If you love to climb mountain, you might like to climb mountain. You can only climb mountain from middle of July to early September and from 2024, you need to pay 4,000 yen to enter mountain. This is used to improve mountain routes.
As Mt. Fuji is high in altitude, you need to be parepared to climb the mountain. Generally, it takes 2 days to climb. So you need to make reservation at the mountain lodge (hut). It depends where you want to view the sunrise. If you want to see the sunrise on top of mountain, you should start in the late afternoon and sleep in the lodge. Then, you would start climbing around 2 o’clock in the morning to the top. This is a popular way and quite crowded. If you would like to go slower, you can sleep until sunrise in the lodge and start climbing after you see the sunrise. This would be less crowded.
Climbing Mt. Fuji is quite difficult and not recommended if you are not fully prepared. You should have proper clothes and shoes. Things you should take are: water, chocolate, change of clothes, rain gear.
Maybe it is easier if you join a tour.
Comments