CLIMBING SEASON is 1st July to 14th September. Probably best not to try and climb outside of this time because everything will be shut and the conditions would be tough (experienced climbers only).
ITS COLD! – its typically around minus 8 Celsius (17 Fahrenheit) at the summit, and can drop to minus 15 Celsius (5 Fahrenheit) even in the hiking season. Bear in mind that you might get to the top early / get caught behind a big slow moving group, so even if you’re quite resistant to cold, it makes sense to bring the right clothes for this.
TOTAL DISTANCE from the start (Fifth Station) to the summit and back is 18.7km (11.6 miles); incline of 1.5km (5,000 feet); and around 32,000 steps. Should take around 5 hours to reach the top (around 3.5 hours to get to the Fujisan Hotel, for sleep and then another 1.5 hours to the summit), and around 3 hours to come down. For the return, its mainly on loose gravel / scree, so can be quite painful if you take it too quickly on the knees.
ALTITUDE – the summit is 3,776m (12,389ft) so starting to get high enough for some minor altitude sickness. Usual rules apply – take it easy and drink plenty of water, plus I’d suggest bringing some painkillers in case you get a bit of a headache, but nothing more than that.
YOU DON’T NEED A GUIDE – the layout and routes are very simple. You’ll start at the Fifth Station (which you can reach from one of the many buses leaving from Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal in Tokyo, takes around 2.5 hours) and then head up on one of the 4 clearly marked trails that will also be full of fellow hikers. We took the Yoshida Trail, which is the well known one and where our mountain hut was located, but it would be fun to try some of the other options. This website gives a very simple comparison between the routes: www.fujisan-climb.
STAY IN A MOUNTAIN HUT – You could climb through the night, but it’s a better experience to stay in one of various mountain huts that sit around 400m below the summit. As with all things in Japan, the places are clean, with great food and a very friendly atmosphere – we stayed at the Fujisan Hotel which I’d recommend, and make sure you book ahead (very simple to book on their website).
TIMINGS – as long as you start in the early afternoon (we started at 1pm), you’ll have plenty of time to get to the mountain huts before dark. The Mountain hut and fellow hikers will let you know what time to start the final ascent, but it will be around 2 hours before first light. Its worth waking up a little earlier than you might normally plan, just because the route can get busy and you’ll want to make sure you get to see the first peaks of sunlight emerging over the clouds / horizon. Once at the top, you’ll probably be there for 2 hours or so to see the sunrise and walk about. The crater isn’t that impressive to be honest, its more about the views and the general spectacle of it all.
BRING A BOTTLE OF WHISKEY (or something alcoholic). The night we stayed at the Fujisan hotel, we found that offering a glass (or twelve) to our fellow Japanese guests brought out the wonderful friendliness of them, getting us chatting with them about their country and adding to the great experience all round. I don’t think they sold alcohol at the mountain hut (or was crazy expensive).
BRING CASH, EAR PLUGS AND A HEAD TORCH. Cash as I don’t think there were ATMs up there. Ear plugs because the mountain huts can get a bit noisy. Head Torch as you’ll be climbing a bit at night.
TRAILS CAN GET BUSY on the way up, so be prepared to be stuck behind quite a few people. Once you’re at the summit though, there is plenty of room.
PRICES – were around 9000Y accommodation; 2700Y bus; 1000Y snacks.
