Mount Fuji is a must see attraction but a lot of people, they unfortunately miss the opportunity to see it because of bad planning and sometimes just bad luck. Kawaguchiko is a great destination to stay a couple of nights to give you the best chance to see the great Fuji!
I’ll start off by saying, even if you stay a few days in Kawaguchiko, there’s still a chance you may not see Fuji. Mount Fuji is only visible for roughly 80 days in the year so chances are slim and it’s good to come in without high expectations. Kawaguchiko by itself is still an awesome location and I would have enjoyed my time here even if we hadn’t have seen Mount Fuji!
How to increase your chances of a view
- Winter months are typically best with drier weather and less clouds/rain (December-February)
- Try and avoid June-September which have the worst visibility
- 6am-11am usually has lower cloud coverage! This is why staying a night or two gives a better chance since you don’t lose the best hours travelling to a viewpoint
- Walk the city! There are some pretty random spots where you can see Fuji and it’s cool to get multiple viewpoints
- Consider your accommodation. Booking a room with a window view of Mount Fuji might be a bit more expensive but if you’re serious about seeing the mount it might be worth it! With early morning being the highest chance of low cloud cover, you can check from the comfort of your room to see if it’s worth getting up yet. We didn’t have a view room and nearly missed an evening view because of it
Our two-day itinerary
We were travelling Japan in late November because we wanted to be there around the Autumn leaf season. For Mount Fuji views, we were aware this wasn’t the most ideal time but definitely not the worst.
Day one: We were travelling from Kyoto, so we took the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Mishima and then from there we took a bus to Kawaguchiko. We arrived around 3pm and the weather was fully overcast and drizzly so no view on arrival. We checked into our accommodation and went for a stroll around the neighbourhood before stopping for dinner at an Izakaya restaurant called 都呂松. The vibes were very chill and felt like it was run from a modest family home. They also had tablets for ordering which included English translations. The food was well priced and delicious, highly recommended if you’re staying around the same area. There’s also a gelato place just down the road that was advertising Mount Fuji cronuts, so we stopped in there after for the novelty!
Day two: This was our only full day in Kawaguchiko so we woke up early to make the most of the daylight. The weather was lovely but Mount Fuji was wrapped in cloud. We walked across the bridge to the other side of town (we were staying in Funatsu/close to the bus station) and along the lake front, which was a beautiful walk. It’s along this section where we first saw a glimpse of Mount Fuji as clouds cleared a small section around the peak of the mountain. There’s a wonderful lookout spot just as you come off the bridge called Ubuyagasaki Shrine where you can get some photos of Fuji with some nice framing of the trees. We went up the Mount Fuji Panoramic Ropeway cable car and although we didn’t get mountain views up there, the views of Kawaguchiko were so worth it so I would highly recommend that as a day activity! There’s a small cafe up there and a short track up to Komitake Shrine which also has lovely views. There’s also a track back down to the street (instead of taking the cable car back down) that you could take but there were signs up warning of recent bear sitings so we decided against this!
Day three: The day we were departing was the day Mount Fuji was in full view! This meant we only got photos as we were walking to the bus station but it was wonderful to see! By the time we got to the bus station it was mostly covered again, just as a new group of hopeful tourist started arriving.
Key takeaways
No matter how much planning you do, there’s still a chance you may not see Fuji. This is just a part of exploring nature; it’s unpredictable! If you have the flexibility in your trip, it may be worth deciding when to visit Kawaguchiko once you’re in Japan and have a more accurate weather reading, although, even on a sunny forcast day, Mount Fuji can still be covered in cloud, so keep this in mind!
All in all, Kawaguchiko is a really lovely little town and a great place to relax and have a reset in between the hustle and bustle of the cities in Japan. Take some time to explore and spend time in nature without the crowds!