More than 204, 300 people ascended Mount Fuji during the 2024 climbing season, according to Japan's Ministry of the Environment. (Juan King/Stars and Stripes)
TOKYO — Hikers planning to summit Mount Fuji — Japan’s highest mountain and a popular bucket-list destination — will pay more to access its most-used trails this year as prefectural governments raise fees.
The Shizuoka Prefectural Assembly on Monday imposed a 4,000-yen (nearly $27) trailhead access fee for the first time on the mountain’s south side.
On March 3, Yamanashi prefecture, which manages the mountain’s north side, doubled its fee to 4,000 yen for the most popular route to the 12,388-foot summit.
U.S. service members, Defense Department civilian employees, contractors and their families may see higher prices for outdoor recreation programs run by U.S. military bases.
“Due to the increased entrance fee, we will need to adjust the price, especially nonrefundable entry fees,” Martin Trost, outdoor recreation supervisor at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo, said in an email Wednesday. “However, at this moment we do not have the actual price yet.”
Last year, Yokota Outdoor Recreation increased its Mount Fuji trip fare by $20 to a total of $90.
At Camp Zama, headquarters of U.S. Army Japan, outdoor recreation prices for Fuji trips are unlikely to change.
New fees and restrictions aim to reduce congestion on Mount Fuji and highlight the risks associated with the climb. (Juan King/Stars and Stripes)
The program “only provides a safety briefing, transportation, and a guide, but it does not affect the price; individuals go directly to the Mt. Fuji official website to pay the fee for the climb,” Miho Overly, a Morale, Welfare and Recreation program assistant, said by email Wednesday.
The climbing season on the active volcano, about 60 miles southwest of Tokyo, usually runs from July to early September. The official dates will be released in mid-June, according to the prefectures’ spokespeople.
Four trails lead to the summit: the Yoshida Trail in Yamanashi and the Subashiri, Gotemba and Fujinomiya trails in Shizuoka, according to the Japan Ministry of the Environment.
Last season, 204,316 people climbed Mount Fuji, with 55% — or 114,857 hikers — taking the Yoshida Trail, according to the ministry.
Shizuoka has also introduced a new requirement that climbers complete an online course covering rules, etiquette, hiking safety and environmental protection before attempting the summit.
Last year, Yamanashi limited the number of hikers on the Yoshida Trail to 4,000 per day and closed the 5th Station gate from 4 p.m. to 3 a.m., except for hikers with reservations at mountain huts. This year, hikers without hut reservations will be restricted from entering between 2 p.m. and 3 a.m.
The new fees and restrictions aim to reduce congestion on the mountain and highlight the risks associated with the climb.
In June, authorities found the bodies of three missing climbers inside Mount Fuji’s crater. That same day, professional climber Keita Kurakami, 38, lost consciousness around 10,000 feet on the Yoshida Trail and later died at a nearby hospital.
