Fujinomiya

Chubu, Japan · Mountain, Town / small city

The Shizuoka-prefecture side of Mt. Fuji: the 20-meter Shiraito Falls, part of Mt. Fuji's UNESCO World Heritage listing, and the great Fujinomiya Sengen Shrine, the traditional starting point of the mountain's climbing route.

The essentials

Getting there

Train — From Tokyo: Tokaido Shinkansen to Shin-Fuji (only Kodama trains stop here, ~60-75min, ¥5,490 unreserved) + local bus to Fujinomiya (~35min, ¥570); total ¥6,060. The Shinkansen leg is JR Central, covered by the Japan Rail Pass; the final bus is run by a local operator, not covered by any pass. Alternative from Kawaguchiko (the other side of Mt. Fuji): direct bus, ~90min, ¥2,420, unrelated to JR.

Frequently asked questions about Fujinomiya

What to do in Fujinomiya: 20 activities

• Shiraito Falls 1 h must-see

  A 20-meter waterfall formed by dozens of threads of water seeping straight out of porous volcanic rock, included in Mt. Fuji's UNESCO World Heritage listing since 2013.

• Climbing Mount Fuji by the Fujinomiya route 10 h booking

  The shortest route to the summit, and the only one starting on the Shizuoka side. Since 2025 the three Shizuoka routes charge 4,000 yen per person and require prior registration, though unlike Yamanashi they do not cap daily numbers. A very short season, July to early September.

• Fujinomiya Sengen Taisha Grand Shrine 1 h

  The head shrine of all Sengen shrines in Japan, dedicated to the goddess of Mt. Fuji, and the traditional starting point of the Fujinomiya climbing route.

• Mount Fuji World Heritage Centre 1.5 h

  A Shigeru Ban building with an inverted wooden lattice cone reflected in a pond to draw the silhouette of Mount Fuji; inside, a spiral ramp simulates the ascent and explains the mountain's history as an object of worship.

• Camping at Fumotoppara 12 h booking

  An enormous meadow at the foot of Mount Fuji, with no marked pitches, where you set up the tent facing the mountain directly; very popular since it appeared in the camping series Yuru Camp.

• Diamond Fuji at Lake Tanuki 2 h

  In late April and early August the sun rises exactly over the summit of Mount Fuji and the whole scene is doubled in the lake water; the rest of the year the lake remains a quiet viewpoint.

• Hoei Crater 5 h

  The huge crater opened by the 1707 eruption on the southern slope, reached from the Fujinomiya fifth station without entering the paid section or the summit route; a landscape of black scoria with views to the sea.

• Murayama Sengen Shrine 1 h

  The oldest centre of Mount Fuji shugendo, where mountain ascetics began the ascent from the 12th century; it keeps thousand-year-old cedars and a silent atmosphere very different from that of the main shrine.

• Paragliding at Asagiri Kogen 3 h booking

  The Asagiri plateau is one of the best places in Japan to fly a paraglider, with tandem flights for beginners and the whole of Mount Fuji in the background.

• Wakutama Pond 0.5 h

  A spring of Mount Fuji meltwater inside the grounds of Sengen Taisha, designated a special natural monument; pilgrims purified themselves here before setting off up the mountain.

• Asagiri Food Park 2 h

  A cluster of local producers open to visitors in Asagiri: a sake brewery, a green tea factory, a dairy and a coffee roaster, each with tastings and a shop.

• Fujinomiya autumn festival 3 h only 3-5 Nov

  In early November the neighbourhoods bring out their floats with drums and flutes and challenge each other in front of the shrine in what are called float 'fights'.

• Fujinomiya yakisoba 1 h

  A local variant of yakisoba with firmer noodles and a dash of sardine powder, popular enough that the city holds its own festival dedicated to the dish.

• Hitoana Cave and traces of the Fuji-ko cult 1 h

  A lava tube regarded as the dwelling of the deity of Mount Fuji and the founding site of the popular Fuji-ko cult; more than 200 stelae left by Edo-era pilgrim confraternities survive around it.

• Makaino Farm 3 h

  An open farm on the flank of Mount Fuji with animals, its own ice cream and cheese, workshops and grass slides; an easy stop when travelling with children.

• Omiya Yokocho 1 h

  A food stall alley next to the entrance of Sengen Taisha, the most direct place to try Fujinomiya yakisoba and other local products.

• Onbo no Yu public bath 1.5 h

  A municipal bath up on high ground with a rotenburo facing Mount Fuji; simple, cheap and used above all by locals.

• Taisekiji Temple 1.5 h

  A large Buddhist complex founded in 1290 at the foot of Mount Fuji, the head seat of its school; the grounds are enormous and heavily used by the faithful, especially in spring for the cherry trees.

• Yabusame at Sengen Taisha 2 h only 4-6 May

  Every May the shrine holds a horseback archery festival whose origin is attributed to an offering by Minamoto no Yoritomo in the 12th century.

• Yuru Camp location route 3 h

  Fujinomiya is the main setting of the camping series Yuru Camp and the city runs an official stamp rally around the places that appear in the work, from neighbourhood shops to viewpoints.

What only happens on specific dates

• Yabusame at Sengen Taisha 4-6 May
• Fujinomiya autumn festival 3-5 Nov

Chains well with

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