Mount Fuji Private Tour: Five Lakes, Hakone and the South Side

Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan — 3,776 metres of almost perfectly symmetrical cone, and the most photographed single object in the country. Most visitors meet it from a train window, or from a car park with forty coaches in it, which is a poor introduction to a mountain that has been a pilgrimage destination for centuries. Seen from the right shore at the right hour, with the light coming from behind you, it is still worth every photograph ever taken of it.

Getting there

The mountain sits on the border of Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures, and that border decides what you see. Yamanashi, to the north, holds the Five Lakes and the wide composition — water in front, mountain behind. Shizuoka, to the south, gives you the Pacific, the tea terraces and the mountain's own flank. The two sides are about two hours apart by road. A car can do both in one loop; the trains and buses cannot, and that is the single strongest argument for driving here.

From Tokyo, Lake Kawaguchi is roughly two hours by car on the expressway, and longer on weekends, public holidays and during the Obon week in mid-August. Haneda is the closer airport; Narita adds about an hour. From Kyoto or Osaka the Shinkansen reaches Mishima or Shin-Fuji in about three hours, and a car can meet you there. Public transport exists — the Fuji Excursion runs from Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko — but it keeps its own timetable, and the point of coming here is to move when the mountain appears.

包車 — charter

Charter here means one party, one vehicle, a driver who knows these roads, and no timetable but yours. It behaves like a practical tool: Fuji is visible perhaps one morning in three, and a car lets you abandon a clouded-in lake at nine, drive round to the Shizuoka side, and catch the mountain clear from the coast by eleven. A driver working the area checks the live cameras and the cloud line before you leave the hotel, and reorders the day accordingly.

The lakes are connected by ordinary two-lane roads that clog badly in autumn colour season and during the July lavender-and-tourism peak, so start early. Parking at the main viewpoints is limited and paid; being dropped at the entrance saves twenty minutes of circling. The toll road up the mountain, the Subaru Line, is usually open to private cars outside the official climbing season, and usually closed to them during it, when you transfer to a shuttle from the base car park. None of this is a reason to avoid the mountain — it is a reason to have someone local driving.

包團 — private tour

A private tour is the same vehicle with the thinking included: we plan the order of the days before you arrive, match the driving to the ages and walking ability of the group, and build in the stops that a fixed itinerary cannot hold — a tea farm in Shizuoka, a long lunch by the lake while the cloud burns off. One party per vehicle, no strangers, no shopping detour, no microphone. If you want a guide who walks with you rather than a driver who waits, say so when we plan; the two are different jobs and we quote them separately.

We also tell you honestly when the plan is wrong. A day trip from Tokyo to the Five Lakes and back is possible and we arrange it often, but it is a long day in the car for two hours at the mountain. Two nights at Kawaguchiko, or one night there and one in Hakone, is the shape most people are actually looking for.

Routes that work

Five days. Tokyo for two nights, then out early to Lake Kawaguchi for the north shore and the pagoda viewpoint, an afternoon at the lakes, a night in a ryokan with a view, then Hakone the next day for the crater, the lake and the onsen, and back to Tokyo. This is the shortest route that does not feel rushed.

Seven days. The same spine with room around it: a day in Nikko or Kamakura at the start, two nights at the lakes instead of one, and a loop down to the Izu peninsula for the coast road and the seafood, returning through Hakone. It also allows a second attempt at the mountain if the first morning is cloudy.

Ten days. Tokyo, Fuji, Hakone, Izu, then west along the old Tokaido to Nagoya and on to Kyoto and Nara, with the mountain behind you by the time the temples start. This is a sensible first trip to Japan for a family, because the driving days and the walking days alternate instead of piling up.

When to come

The mountain is clearest in the cold, dry months. December, January and February give the highest number of cloud-free mornings, and the air is sharp enough that the snow line reads properly; the trade-off is short days and cold wind at the lakes. April brings cherry blossom on the north shore, with the mountain behind it, and crowds to match. Late May and June are green, quiet and frequently hazy. July and August are the official climbing season, hot, humid, and the worst months for a clear view from below — the mountain hides in afternoon cloud and the lakes fill with visitors. October and November are the best all-round compromise: crisp air, autumn colour on the slopes, and long enough days to do both sides. Whatever the month, mornings beat afternoons, and a plan that can move is worth more than a plan that is full.

Frequently asked questions

Can we see Mount Fuji in summer?

Rarely. Heat haze and afternoon cloud hide the mountain for much of July and August. If summer is your only window, go early and stay at the lakes rather than attempting a day trip from Tokyo.

Can we drive up to the Fifth Station?

Outside the climbing season, usually yes, by the toll road on the Yamanashi side. During the season it is normally closed to private cars and visitors take a shuttle from the base. Snow closes it in winter.

Is one day from Tokyo enough?

Enough to see the mountain if the weather cooperates, not enough to enjoy the driving. We run it, but usually suggest a night at the lakes or in Hakone so the day does not hinge on one hour of visibility.

Can we climb the mountain?

Climbing is separate: a short season, its own gear, done on foot from the trailheads. We can drive you to the trailhead and collect you, but we do not guide the climb.

Where are the best views?

The north shore of Lake Kawaguchi for the classic reflection, the staircase at Arakurayama Sengen Park for the pagoda-and-mountain shot, Lake Ashi for the mountain over water, and the Shinkansen window for the free version.