It has always been my dream to see Mount Fuji up close and in person. I had the opportunity to see it for the first time in the spring of 2023 during our trip to Japan. Its symmetrical shape and snow-covered peak were beautiful. As an avid hiker, my other dream is to hike Mount Fuji. However Mount Fuji only opens to hiking during the summer months. I had to leave that dream to another time.
If you want to see Mount Fuji as a whole, the best place is Fuji 5 lakes area. This time, we chose Lake Kawaguchiko (河口湖) and surrounding areas as the place to see the mountain.
From Tokyo to Lake Kawaguchiko is a less-than-2-hours-one-way trip, either by train or bus. By bus it may be more economical but buses have limited seating, so it’s best to reserve seats as soon as you finalize your itinerary. By train you may have to transfer to another train if you depart from Tokyo. It would be good if you can get to the lake area early in the morning by taking an early bus/train. The reason is that Mount Fuji could be covered by cloud. Or in our situation, the atmosphere is a little hazy as you can see from the photos.
We spent the whole day around Lake Kawaguchiko area and saw Mount Fuji from different angles and view points. We saw it on the shore of Lake Kawaguchiko. I got the advice that the north shore of the lake was the best place to see the mountain and indeed it was. We saw it on top of a local mountain by taking a ropeway/tram. We saw it along with Chureito Pagoda (which is a 30 minute-train-ride-and-15-minute-walk-and-hike from Kawaguchiko station, yes there is a short or intermediate hike, depends on your physical level, to get to Chureito Pagoda). We saw it through a torii gate called Kanadorii near Fujisan station (which is just one station away from Kawaguchiko station).
