Fuji or Hakone by Private Car: a Menu of Stops, You Choose

Mount Fuji

The highest peak in Japan and its best known image. A World Cultural Heritage site since 2013.

Arakura Fuji Sengen Shrine

Sengen Shrine, which enshrines the goddess of fire, the symbol of Mt. Fuji, and where the famous view of the mountain with the five-storey pagoda is taken from. 30 to 60 minutes.

Chureito Pagoda

The panoramic shot of Mt. Fuji with the Chureito Pagoda, the five-storey one, at Arakura Sengen Shrine.

Fujisan World Heritage Center(Mt.Fuji World Heritage Center)

A video that explains Mt. Fuji visually, along with the rituals of the region. 20 to 60 minutes.

Lake Kawaguchiko

The most visited of the five lakes around Mt. Fuji. Photo stops are possible from several points, depending on the season.

Kitaguchi Hongu Fuji Sengen Jinja Shrine

The main shrine of the northern side of Mt. Fuji, and the most visited, protecting the region. It is also the first step of the ascent of the mountain, and part of the Fujisan Cultural Site World Heritage listing. 20 to 60 minutes.

Fuji Oishi Hana Terrace

Regional crafts and souvenirs, and some of the best ice cream and sorbet in the area, made with local fruit, in a place built for sitting still. 20 to 90 minutes.

Oishi Park

More than 90 different flowers across the four seasons, and lavender above all, which is what the park is known for. 20 to 90 minutes.

Mt. Fuji 5th Station

2,300 metres up Mt. Fuji, the highest point a car can reach. The 5th Station carries a toll of 2,100 yen, paid on the spot. Allow about two hours. Access is closed from July to mid-September, during the climbing season, and again in winter.

Saiko Iyashi no Sato Nemba

Old Japanese houses with straw roofs, with Mt. Fuji behind them, where local crafts are made and the artists are there to meet. Kimono and samurai armour can be hired if booked in advance. 30 to 90 minutes.

Costo extra

Saiko Lake

One of the five lakes of Mt. Fuji, known as the Maiden Lake. A photo stop is possible here.

Kawaguchiko Music Forest Museum

A European-style park with a collection of automatic musical instruments, some more than a hundred years old, and seasonal flowers around them. 30 to 120 minutes.

Costo extra

Oshino Hakkai

Eight ponds fed by snowmelt off Mt. Fuji, part of the Fujisan Cultural Site World Heritage listing, with Japanese street food and shops around them. 20 to 60 minutes.

Oshino Shinobi no Sato

A ninja show, and a ninja village with costumes to hire in all sizes. 30 to 90 minutes.

Costo extra

Ide Sake Brewery

The only sake brewery in Lake Kawaguchiko city using snowmelt from Mt. Fuji. Tastings and a brewery visit run daily from 3 pm at 1,500 yen, by reservation. 20 minutes for the tasting alone, 90 for the guided visit.

Costo extra

Lake Yamanaka

The largest of the five lakes of Mt. Fuji. A photo stop is possible here.

Aokigahara Forest

The sea of trees, which can be walked into. 30 minutes.

Narusawa Ice Cave

A cave inside the Aokigahara forest. 15 to 30 minutes.

Costo extra

Fugaku Wind Cave

Another cave inside the Aokigahara forest. 15 to 30 minutes.

Costo extra

Be at 1

1,075 metres above sea level in three minutes from the shore of Lake Kawaguchiko, with Mt. Fuji, the lake and Fuji Yoshida city all in view. 30 to 90 minutes depending on the queue.

Costo extra

Itchiku Kubota Art Museum

A collection of rare kimonos in a building of its own design, all of it by the same artist, Itchiku Kubota. 30 to 90 minutes. The museum shop sells souvenirs that locals buy too.

Costo extra

30 minutes of ride and cruise at lake Yamanakako on the…

Thirty minutes on Lake Yamanakako aboard KABA, the amphibious bus, whose name is Japanese for hippopotamus. 30 to 45 minutes.

Costo extra

Yamanashi Gem Museum

Yamanashi is known for its gems, and the cutting is still done here. The museum holds a wide collection from around the world. 30 to 60 minutes.

Costo extra

Yamanakako Hananomiyako Park

From spring to autumn, seasonal flowers across 30 hectares (74 acres). In winter this is where Diamond Fuji is seen, the sun setting on the summit. 20 to 60 minutes.

Costo extra

Fuji Shibazakura Festival

From mid-April to the end of May the Fuji Motosu resort fills with shibazakura, moss phlox, in quantity. About an hour.

Yamanashi Fuji Fruits Park

Seasonal fruit from Yamanashi, which is the fruit-growing prefecture of Japan: strawberries, cherries, peaches, grapes, shine muscat and more. A reservation is needed.

Nakajima Farm Strawberry Land

Thirty minutes of all you can eat Japanese strawberries.

Katsunuma Winery

Yamanashi has more than 80 wineries, from family businesses to major brands, and produces more Japanese wine than any other prefecture. Say in advance if you want a visit and a tasting.

Shiraito Falls

Shiraito Falls is 150 metres wide and counted among the most beautiful waterfalls in Japan, listed as part of the Fujisan Cultural Site World Heritage. The round trip from Lake Kawaguchiko takes about two hours.

Hakone Ropeway

The best place to see Mt. Fuji from in the Hakone area, and the best aerial photograph of it, from 1,350 metres (4,430 feet). 45 to 90 minutes.

Costo extra

Owaku-dani Valley

Volcanic activity in the open, and the black eggs, which are said to add seven years to your life. On a clear day the view of Mt. Fuji from here is worth the stop on its own. 30 to 60 minutes.

Hakone Jinja

A shrine built about 1,260 years ago and visited by many of the shoguns over the centuries. The torii gate is the one everybody photographs. 30 to 90 minutes.

The Hakone Open-Air Museum

Sculpture by Japanese and Western artists, outdoors, in a space that works for every age. Photographs are allowed everywhere. 45 to 90 minutes.

Costo extra

Lake Ashinoko

A large lake formed inside a caldera after an enormous eruption. A nine-headed dragon is said to live in it. The lake is known for its cruises and for Hakone Shrine. There are two sightseeing boats: the pirate ship is the famous one, but the regular cruiser is the way to avoid the crowd.

Odawara Castle

The nearest castle to Tokyo, and the history of the samurai and the ninja from the warring states period. The museum holds real armour and swords. 30 to 90 minutes.

Costo extra

Hakone Sekisho and Hakone Sekisho Museum

The life of the Edo period and the duties of the samurai under the Tokugawa Shogunate. 10 to 45 minutes.

Costo extra

Enjoy Lake Ashi on a cruise ship

Lake Ashi by cruise ship, either the famous pirate boat or the ordinary one.

Costo extra

Onshi Hakone Park

The former garden of the Imperial family, kept immaculately: cherry blossom in spring, red maples in autumn, and on a clear day Mt. Fuji with Lake Ashi in front of it. 15 to 60 minutes.

Enjoy snow and ski on Mt

Snow and skiing on Mt. Fuji. The runs are easy enough for beginners, and skis, snowboards, clothing and sledges for children can all be hired. One to two hours depending on what you want to do.

Mishima Skywalk

The longest pedestrian suspension bridge in Japan, with Mt. Fuji in view on a clear day. 30 to 90 minutes depending on which activities you add.

Costo extra

MOA Museum of Art

One of the largest collections of Japanese masterpieces there is, at Atami, about 30 minutes from Hakone. Worth it even if art is not usually your thing. One to two and a half hours.

Hakone Venetian Glass Museum

A small piece of Venice in Hakone, with glass art and seasonal events. Ask if the events interest you. 30 to 90 minutes.

Hakone Museum of Art

Japanese and Oriental art in a Japanese garden. 30 to 60 minutes.