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Kyoto to Mount Fuji in two weeks on a rail pass

Fujiyoshida

Temples, a night in a mountain lodge and the five lakes below Fuji: a two-week route that works out the rail pass.

The Japan Rail Pass went up sharply in price in 2023, and for a Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka triangle it rarely pays for itself any more. For a longer loop it still can, and this is the one we took.

Five days in Kyoto (the Fushimi Inari gates at 7am, Arashiyama before the crowds), two in Nara, then north to the Japanese Alps: Takayama’s old town and a night in a thatched farmhouse at Shirakawa-go. We finished at Fujiyoshida, where the Chureito pagoda frames the mountain.

Seeing Fuji

Fuji hides in cloud more often than not, especially in summer. Winter mornings are clearest. The official climbing season runs from July to early September, and the trails now have a daily cap and fee, so book ahead if you want to climb.

Kyoto to Mount Fuji in two weeks on a rail pass | Lost Backpackers