Why You Should Stay Overnight Near Mount Fuji Instead of Day Tripping

Mount Fuji was one of the absolute top places on my Japan bucket list, and I was going to do whatever I could to see it. To give ourselves the best possible chance, we deliberately chose to stay for a few nights in the Fuji Five Lakes region.

Even though many people will tell you to take a day trip to Mount Fuji, I’m a bit contrarian in this respect. After visiting Japan and getting to see the mountain, I firmly believe that staying overnight is a much better option. Instead, I would only recommend a day trip as an absolute final resort.

In this guide, I’ll give you all my reasons why I recommend staying for a night, two, or more in the Fuji Five Lakes region. I will also share the exact place I stayed, along with helping you plan your trip. To provide some balance and help you make the best possible decision, I’ll share when I think that a day trip could actually make more sense, too.

Before We Start: Here Are My Quick Mount Fuji Travel Tips 🗻

If you don’t have the time to read this article right now, I recommend bookmarking it so that you can go through it in more detail when you do have time. I will also share a quick overview of my tips and recommendations in this section.

Where to Stay: We stayed in Kawaguchiko, which was an ideal base. It’s very easy to reach from Tokyo, and we stayed at the Ooike Hotel. It was absolutely amazing, and we booked a room with a view of Mount Fuji. We also got picked up from Kawaguchiko Station, which was a nice bonus.
Chances of Seeing Fuji: You’re not guaranteed to see Mount Fuji, so you need to keep this in mind. However, we went to Japan in December and were very lucky. This is one of the best times to go, and I’ve written a guide to visiting the Golden Route in December.

Getting to and From Kawaguchiko: We took the bus from Tokyo, which was just over two hours. We booked our tickets via Japan Bus Tickets, which I can also recommend for you. Afterward, we took the bus to Mishima and then a Shinkansen train to Kyoto (you can book Shinkansen tickets here).

I Actually Tried to Go on a Day Trip From Tokyo to Mount Fuji…

Okay, so… I actually had the intention to both visit Mount Fuji on a day trip from Tokyo and also stay there for a few nights. This sounds counterintuitive, but I had two main reasons for taking this approach.

The first reason was that I wanted to spend the time while we were in Kawaguchiko doing other things, such as walking around the lake. Our day tour would’ve taken us to some of the famous sights nearby, such as the Chureito Pagoda. Beyond that, though, I already had the idea for this article in mind and wanted to stress-test my hypothesis.

Well, as it goes, the day trip to Mount Fuji never happened.

Our tour was supposed to depart from close to Shinjuku Station in the morning, and let’s just say that this station is *not* for the faint-hearted. I grew up in London, and my mom is from NYC, and I have never seen so many people in one place as I did at Shinjuku Station.

We arrived there later than expected, and eventually found our guide to check in. They showed us where the bus was, but there were so many other buses that we didn’t find it in time. So, in the end, we were left with just the two-night stay.

I was annoyed, but I would’ve been more irritated if we only had the day trip and weren’t going to stay nearby anyway. Plus, I got an extra day in Tokyo, which I’m not complaining about 🤷🏾‍♂️. If you *must* take a day trip, be sure to arrive with much more time than you think. I also suggest coordinating properly with the company running your tour so that you know exactly where to go.

Mount Fuji in Japan Partially Covered by Clouds

There Are Multiple Reasons Why I Suggest Staying for a Night or Two Close to Mount Fuji

Right, cool. So I’ve now got my sob story out of the way. Beyond logistics, there are multiple reasons why I recommend staying for a night or two in the Fuji Five Lakes region anyway.

The first is that it’s a very beautiful part of Japan. Mount Fuji itself is amazing, and to be honest, I was mainly here for photography. However, the lakes close to the mountain are worth seeing, too. For example, we walked around part of Lake Kawaguchiko on our first morning, as it was originally too foggy to see Mount Fuji.

I also think that you should stay overnight because doing so is an opportunity to stay at one of Japan’s iconic ryokans. Staying at one of these inns was one of my favorite experiences in the country, and I honestly was part-hoping that I have a house in the future that I could design like this. Just spending hours in a hot tub was a great way to relax and unwind.

I mentioned earlier that you also aren’t guaranteed to see Mount Fuji. We actually got to see it both while in the Five Lakes region and on the bus to Kawaguchiko, along with when we visited the Roppongi Hills observation deck in Tokyo. However, it wasn’t visible on other occasions. Staying for a night or more will increase your chances of seeing the mountain.

To be honest, it’s also nice to just be out of the city. I love Tokyo, but I am very much a nature person. Staying here for a bit was a nice middle ground, and I felt ready to then explore Kyoto afterward.

… and This Is the Town I Recommend Staying In

We stayed in Kawaguchiko while we were in the Fuji Five Lakes region, which was a good choice. Our main reason was that we didn’t want to rent a car while we were on our first trip to Japan, which wasn’t necessary for this town.

Kawaguchiko is super easy to reach from Tokyo. Our direct bus took just over two hours, and we were dropped off right outside the main train and bus station. From here, the staff called our hotel, and they sent a shuttle bus.

A view of Mount Fuji from Lake Kawaguchi in Japan

Planning a Trip to Kawaguchiko?

Check out Tokyo – Kawaguchiko bus tickets and secure your spot 🇯🇵

Another reason I recommend staying in Kawaguchiko is that the lake is really nice. Walking around part of Lake Kawaguchi was nice even when we couldn’t see Mount Fuji, but seeing the mountain at sunset was the highlight of my first trip to Japan. I would go as far as saying that it was one of the most magical moments of my entire life, too.

I don’t think that there’s a huge amount to do in the town itself, to be honest. I also have to say that the Lawson view with Fuji in the background, which is close to the station, is quite overrated. However, it’s a great base for seeing Mount Fuji and being somewhere a bit quieter for a bit. Plus, our hotel was amazing (which I will talk more about shortly).

One useful note: If you visit in December, keep in mind that the Mt. Fuji International Marathon takes place on the second Sunday of the month. We did not know about this, and it explains why our hotel was so expensive 😅. It was admittedly a nice atmosphere and fun to be in the town around this time, though.

A taxi driving in Kawaguchiko, close to Mount Fuji

Danny Maiorca standing next to Mount Fuji at sunset

If You Stay in Kawaguchiko, You Need to Stay in This Ryokan

I’ve recommended the Ooike Hotel to everyone ever since I stayed there, and that is precisely what I’m going to do right now, too. Everything about this place was great; I was pretty sad when we left, and I would happily have stayed for another week.

Our room at the Ooike Hotel in Kawaguchiko, Japan

The breakfast tasted great and was also fresh. The staff members were super friendly, too, and being picked up from the station was nice. The view was a bonus, and it was fun to watch Japanese baseball on some beanbags in the living room part of our room 😄.

Book a Stay at Ooike Hotel, Kawaguchiko 🛌

If I really had to pick a downside, the only one I’d say was that our accommodation was quite expensive. It was by far the priciest place we stayed on the trip. However, this was also because we visited when the Fuji Marathon was taking place and because we picked a mountain view room. Plus, accommodation close to Mount Fuji will in general cost you money.

A view of Mount Fuji from our hotel room — The view from our room 🙂

Besides the Ooike Hotel, you can—if you still want to do some research—check out other options via the map below. Before booking, I recommend checking to see if you need to rent a car or not. If you do (or you simply want to), DiscoverCars is my top recommendation for comparing prices and booking the right choice for you.

Getting to Kawaguchiko (and Continuing Your Journey)

You can take a direct bus from Tokyo to Kawaguchiko. We were dropped just outside the town’s main station; when we went in December, the bus was relatively full.

We partly took the bus because it was significantly less expensive than taking the train. Moreover, the journey was less complex when we looked for directions. We could also take our suitcases with us, which was a nice bonus.

Our bus departed from Shibuya. Finding the bus station was quite easy, but we had to wait a long time for the elevators since we had our suitcases with us. So, I recommend arriving with more than enough time to spare.

If you do choose to take the bus, I recommend booking your tickets in advance. This is particularly true for peak times in the year, but Mount Fuji is popular in general, and we had issues finding tickets elsewhere. Japan Bus Tickets is my top recommendation, and you can check bus times and routes here.

Continuing Your Journey From Kawaguchiko

How you continue your journey depends on where you’re going next. If you’re going back to Tokyo, you can take the bus again. We personally continued on to Kyoto before finishing our trip in Osaka. As a side note, you can read my Kyoto itinerary if that’s your next stop.

To get to Kyoto, you can also use Japan Bus Tickets to search for buses there. Otherwise, you can take the bus to Mishima and then the Shinkansen to Kyoto. We booked our bus tickets via Seikitori, since they weren’t available on Japan Bus Tickets, and then the Shinkansen via Klook. I booked a later Shinkansen train, which wasn’t necessary, but I’d rather wait a few hours than miss my train. 🙂

You could also take the bus back to Tokyo, spend a few more days there, and then take the bus or Shinkansen to Kyoto. It really depends on how much time you have, and how you want to plan your itinerary.

Are There Any Scenarios When I’d Recommend Taking a Day Trip to Mount Fuji Instead?

I had the luxury of two weeks when I visited Japan for the first time. However, I also know that not everyone will have so much time. Since Mount Fuji is on many people’s bucket lists, I would recommend taking a day trip if you have no other options.

Even if you don’t get to see Mount Fuji, it can be nice to go and experience more rural parts of Japan. Plus, if you do manage to see it, I’m being serious when I say that there are few more amazing sights on this entire planet.

As I mentioned earlier, just beware of where your bus leaves from if you take a day tour to Mount Fuji. I’d also get full transparency from the company beforehand. I don’t want you to have the same situation that I did and miss your bus 🫠.

If you do choose to take a day trip instead, you can browse your options below.

Staying Overnight Near Mount Fuji Was a Very Rewarding Experience

If you have the choice, I strongly recommend staying overnight near Mount Fuji instead of taking a day trip. Doing so gave me a much better chance of seeing the mountain, and it was also fun to see a different side of Japan than just being in the cities. Even without a car, it was pretty easy to reach.

Staying overnight at Mount Fuji will also give you the chance to stay in some lovely accommodation. If you’ve otherwise only booked standard hotels, I think it’s well worth spending the extra money and staying in a ryokan for one or two nights. If you’re planning to visit the region, Kawaguchiko is also a great town to base yourself in.

Now that you’ve read this guide, you should have a better idea of whether staying close to Mount Fuji or taking a day trip makes more sense for your specific trip. I’ve already expressed my opinions, but you ultimately will need to factor in how many days you have, your budget, and so on. To plan your Japan adventure further, I recommend next reading why I don’t think that you need the JR Pass for the Golden Route.