Possible eruption ahead over proposed fee for climbing Mt Fuji

By Kazumasa Masuyoshi

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Latest 15 of 32 Total Comments Show All

Taka313 at 12:09 AM JST - 23rd November

I don't think this is a good idea.

You have to pay tolls to drive to station 5, where you have to pay to park. If you want to buy a walking stick and have the numerous stations burn their crest in your stick, which is part of the experience, you pay more. A plate of curry rice and a bottle of water at the top....you're easily over 10,000 yen already.

Adding another fee will price out a lot of people, especially in the current economy. The govt. is going end up making the idea of climbing Mount Fuji far less attractive due to the cost.

With the money you spend to climb Mt. Fuji, you could have a FAR more enjoyable and scenic experience in Kamakura and Kita-Kamakura (I recommend checking out Kita-Kamakura; not as many crowds) for FAR less the cost.

Taka
osmondau at 04:36 AM JST - 23rd November

it is becoming lucullan to travel japan. hotels, onsens, eateries, entrance fees are all forcing tourists to stay away from japan. with so many charges, taxes, i wonder how jpan can boost their tourism indices.

japanese are too rapacious to squeeze the last penny from tourists' pocket. outrageous!!!
meiwaku at 11:59 AM JST - 23rd November

On second thought, I have to agree with Sidwarwick. The money would probably go to pay some useless politician or two so that they can play golf and go whoring somewhere.
Ninjazilla at 12:22 PM JST - 23rd November

Anyone ever been to that famous Rope bridge in Iya in Shikoku?500 yen to walk across.Unbelievable.
darknuts at 02:09 PM JST - 23rd November

What about all the money we already pay while climbing Mt. Fuji? The Subaru toll road, the shops at each station, donations for using the toilet. None of that goes to environmental preservation?
haytkayokomiya at 11:25 AM JST - 24th November

And it should consist of carrying a bag of trash off Fuji-san.
Richard_the_First at 05:19 PM JST - 24th November

Maybe they could build a paved road then charge a toll like in the the rest of the country. They could even issue ETC like cards for quick access. I hear it's like Tomei at GW, during the peak season as it is.
gogogo at 09:23 PM JST - 24th November

I don't mind a fee as long as the money is used for what it is suppose to be used for.
CaptDingleheimer at 02:37 AM JST - 25th November

In my years in Japan, I've climbed too many peaks to remember, but despite many invites, I never climbed Fuji. Can't say I regret it. Walking with thousands of other people? Precisely to avoid situations like that is why I climb mountains.
bdiego at 05:06 AM JST - 25th November

Like others, I don't mind paying a fee as long as it's used for the park itself. I think in this case, the need for an individual fee comes from buses of tourists that are coming in and not contributing their share. It might be fairer if after adding this fee they eliminated the parking fee.

You can have a good cheap vacation in Japan if you want, more so than Europe for example. When I wanted that, I'd stay at hostels and had a blast with my rail pass going end to end (and staying in the same place each night thanks to bullet train travel times).
ScottishThug at 06:22 AM JST - 25th November

I hope I don't have to go down there to teach them a lesson personally, but I will do it if it's necessary.
littleboy at 02:50 PM JST - 25th November

Great idea, but make the toilets on Fujisan FREE!!
76waystofly at 01:35 PM JST - 26th November

Putting eruption and Mt. Fuji in the same headline is about as sensational as every major American news network permanently embedding "Breaking News" into their screen banners. Whoever heard of such innuendo?

But yeah, right -- like I'm gonna pay some municipal ding-dong to climb a freakin' hill...keep dreaming. Hey Mayor Horiuchi: how about you start paying your constituents an "eco-tax" everytime you're chauffeured around town in your black Mercedes?

And they want to know how to make Japan more inviting to tourists...sigh
ca1ic0cat at 03:39 AM JST - 27th November

It's a good idea because the people who want to climb will be funding the costs of cleaning up after them rather than pushing a tax onto the whole population. It's a use tax and that's the way it should be.
helloklitty at 05:24 AM JST - 30th November

Anyone ever been to that famous Rope bridge in Iya in Shikoku?500 yen to walk across.Unbelievable.

I've never been there. Unbelievably cheap or unbelievably expensive?