Mt. Fuji . Photo: Ningyu He//Unsplash
Tourists hoping to hike Mt. Fuji will now have to pay an increased permit fee and will be required to pass a test starting later this year. The new 4,000 yen fee (USD $27) is double the amount of the original “tourist tax” that was instituted in 2024. Prior to that, an optional donation of 1,000 yen had existed to manage the flood of tourists and the large footprint left on Fuji’s famous trails each year, as well as provide greater resources and availability of medical responses.
“By strongly promoting comprehensive safety measures for climbing Mount Fuji, we will ensure that Mount Fuji, a treasure of the world, is passed on to future generations,” said Koutaro Nagasaki, governor of Yamanashi Prefecture, last year.
The fees that were instituted did result in a decline in visitation. According to the Japan Times, visitation dropped from 221,322 in 2023 to 204,316 in 2024. Officials say that 200,000-plus visitors is still a huge number.
“There is no other mountain in Japan that attracts that many people in the span of just over two months. So some restrictions are necessary to ensure their safety,” said Natsuko Sodeyama, a Shizuoka Prefecture official. Mount Fuji straddles both Shizuoka and Yamanashi Prefectures.
Other measures aimed at increasing safety and managing the flow of hikers include booking time slots online when securing a permit. Tourists will also have to take a short class that will cover safety for hikers and local rules. Once a prospective hiker is done with the class they will have to take a test.
Nagasaki, meanwhile, has maintained a position aimed at making Mount Fuji a world-class tourist destination.
“If the tourism industry continues being a low-wage and high-workload industry, nobody wants to work for the industry, and human resources may flow from the prefecture to others,” Governor Nagasaki said in 2024. “We try to raise the status of the tourism industry and make it an attractive workplace for young or female people.”
