Is It Dangerous to Climb Mount Fuji Alone? (Other Related Questions Answered)

I have climbed Mount Fuji overnight with the idea of watching the sunrise from the summit. This was a lifetime experience for me, and I would recommend it to everybody.

Below you have details on the AllTrails map about Yoshida Trail that I followed myself 20 years ago:

Do you need to train to climb Mt. Fuji?

Mount Fuji (or Fuji-san) is 3776 meters (12388 ft) high. I find it very similar to El Teide (3718 m, 12198 ft) that is described here in the site. The start point is at a similar elevation and the environment is almost the same, a harsh volcanic rock.

So this is a high mountain and you can have altitude sickness symptoms, but this is all individual and cannot be predicted.

I myself did not train when I climbed it. This was my typical period, days in the office without any physical activity, and waiting for an interval without rain to climb the mountain. All in all, you do not really need special training for this.

Can a beginner climb Mt. Fuji?

The answer is yes, you do not need any mountaineering skills. I have seen many elderly people who climb the mountain that they consider a holly place. I am pretty sure for many of them this is the only mountain they have ever climbed.

Can a normal person climb Mount Fuji?

I guess it should be necessary to define what ‘normal’ means. But I am sure that any person with normal physical conditions and regardless of age can get to the summit.

I have seen some people carrying small oxygen bottles, so this is up to you. I do not think this is really necessary.

Is Mt. Fuji difficult to climb?

Technically it is not difficult at all. But this is a high mountain and you will feel lack of oxygen at every step. There are some sections that are steeper than the rest, but this is always a simple walk up. The route is always clear, marked all the way up.

The elevation difference from the Yoshida trail 5th station, which is at around 2300 meters of elevation, is 1476 meters. This is a lot at such elevations.

Note that there are four places that are cold the Fifth Station, they are on different sides of the mountain, so do not get confused.

Essentially, these are trailheads, places to which you have a public transport. Lots of useful information you will find in this link.

On the trail that I followed, there are more than 10 huts on the way up. So if you are tired or/and want to stay and sleep, you have plenty of options for this. From what I know, not all the trails have so many huts on the route.

How much does it cost to climb Mt. Fuji? Is it free to go to Mount Fuji?

I climbed Mount Fuji in 2002 and at that time there was no fee. So the only thing I paid was my ticket from Tokyo to the Fifth Station on the mountain. I do not remember how much I paid for the buss but this was an ordinary bus ticket and not a big deal.

But from what I read around, now it is not free to climb Mount Fuji. Starting from the 2024 climbing season, there is a mandatory admission fee for climbers using the Yoshida Trail, which is the most popular route. It was 2000 yen, but for 2025 the fee for the Yoshida Trail is 4000 yen. What a remarkable progress!

For Subashiri, Gotemba, and Fujinomiya Trails there is no mandatory fee. However, climbers are requested to pay a voluntary conservation fee 1000 yen to support environmental efforts. This additional voluntary fee holds for the Yoshida route too. 

My guess is that people will now rather choose the mentioned free trails, so a compulsory fee may be expected there too.

How cold is it on Mt. Fuji?

Out of curiosity, I checked the summit temperature as of the moment of writing this text. It was 42 F (6 C). With winds this can feel much colder.

All in all, this is a high elevation and be ready for sub-zero temperature even in summer time.

How many hours does it take to climb Mount Fuji?

This is very individual and it is advisable not to push if you are not in a very good shape and not acclimatized. I myself was in a normal shape and the age of 43 years at that time, but I was not acclimatized at all.

So I started at 10:30 pm, and I was on the summit at 4:30 am. This makes 6 hours and I would say this was reasonable.

Can children hike Mt. Fuji?

This is an actual question that people ask, but I would not use the word ‘hike’. In any case, I do not remember seeing children, but I do not see any reason why children could not do this.

So the answer is yes, kids can do this for sure. In fact, I have seen a YouTube video about somebody climbing with a kid.

What is the best month to climb Mount Fuji?

Actually there is no much to choose, the mountain is officially open only in summer time. This means beginning of July to mid September.

This coincides more or less with the rainy season in Japan, so this can make the adventure a bit more complicated. This is partly behind so much crowd on the mountain. People have only those two months to climb it, and this is the consequence.

You can climb it in some other periods but it will be complicated. There is no public transport, the road is officially closed so you have to walk far longer. The huts are also closed.

Can you climb Mt. Fuji at night?

Absolutely. As mentioned above, this is how I myself climbed it, and there were many people on the way up all the night. So you will not be alone even if you want to be. In this video you can see how this may look:

You might want to see this video as well, it shows the route which I followed and a lot of useful information you may need. Please activate subtitles:

Final thoughts

So these are my answers to some of the questions that people ask about Fuji-san. This is a fascinating mountain that I fully recommend if you get a chance to be there.

Please follow the link for more information from my own climb of Mount Fuji. Note that I have another text here in the site about essential equipment needed for this mountain.

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