Mount Fuji (Fujisan)

Mount Fuji is 3776 meters, the highest mountain in Japan. It is located on Honshu, the main Island of Japan, stands on the border between Yamanashi and Shizuoka. It is also known as Fujisan (富士山), which has become the most popular icon of Japan for both tourist and culture.

Mount Fuji is about 100 kilometers south-west of Tokyo and is visible from Tokyo on sunny days. You can access to Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building or Tokyo Tower to view it from observation decks. Another alternative is to view it from the train (Tokaido Shinkansen Line) when you are travelling between Tokyo and Osaka. 

You can go to the recommended places to enjoy the best view of Mount Fuji.

1. Lake Kawaguchiko
2. Fuji Q Highlands
3. Hakone
4. Gotemba

If you wish to go up to summit, Mount Fuji is also opened for climbing from July to August. During this season, the weather is stable and the mountain is free of snow. The mountain huts and other facilities are open. Anyway, try to avoid Aug 13th to 17th as it is Obon Week usually very packed with crowds of people.

Mount Fuji has ten stations with the first station is the foot of the mountain and tenth station is the summit. Most people start climbing from the fifth station which is half way up to summit.

There are four routes from the fifth station. The stations on different routes are at different elevations. The highest fifth station is located at Fujinomiya, followed by Kawaguchi, Subashiri, and Gotemba. The Kawaguchiko route is the most popular route because it has large parking area, a lot of mountain huts for climbers to rest, and the sun rises on this side of mountain.

Fifth Station	Altitude (meters)	Ascent (hours)	Descent (hours)
Fujinomiya	2400	4-7	2-4
Kawaguchiko	2300	5-7	3-5
Subashiri	2000	5-8	3-5
Gotemba	1400	7-10	3-6

You can take Fujikyu or Keio buses to fifth stations.

From	To	One way (yen)	Round Trip (yen)
Shin-Fuji Station	Fujinomiya  Fifth Station	2310	3000
Fuji Station	Fujinomiya  Fifth Station	2240	3000
Fujinomiya Station	Fujinomiya  Fifth Station	1970	3000
Shinjuku Station	Kawaguchiko Fifth Station	2600
Kawaguchiko Station	Kawaguchiko Fifth Station	1500	2000
Fujisan Station	Kawaguchiko Fifth Station	1500	2000
Gotemba Station	Subashiri Fifth Station	1500	2000
Gotemba Station	Gotemba Fifth Station	1080	1500