Japan offers luxury tour packages for visitors to Mount Fuji

This is considered a breakthrough for Shizuoka Prefecture's tourism industry, with the expectation of providing an option that meets the needs of the few tourists who want to experience a visit to Mount Fuji in a refined and in-depth way.

The project was developed in collaboration between Ecologic, an association that plans ecotourism trips in Fujinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture, and Eco Vision Brains, a company that provides hands-on experiential tours based in Kawaguchiko Town, Yamanashi Prefecture.

The premium tour package is called “Explore Mount Fuji in the Footsteps of Ukiyo-e Artists”, serving groups of 2-8 people. Based on the proposed service packages, visitors can choose according to their needs corresponding to the 7-day, 6-night schedule. Regarding transportation, there will be a small luxury tourist car arranged throughout the itinerary with a tour guide fluent in the visitor’s language.

Options for the tour include visiting Fujisan Hongu Sengen Taisha Shrine, the shrine to the guardian deities of Mount Fuji (in Fujinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture), visiting and experiencing high-class hot spring baths in Hakone, introducing Ukiyo-e paintings of Mount Fuji by famous artist Katsushika Hokusai, visiting Kirin Fuji Gotemba distillery, where famous Japanese Whiskey products are distilled...

According to Mr. Osamu Akita, Head of Planning Department of Shizuoka Prefecture Tourism Association, the high-end tourism package aims to experience Mount Fuji based on “faith”, “art”, “lifestyle” rather than simply a normal tourist activity.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), “high-value-added tourists” who are willing to spend more than 1 million yen on a tour in Japan account for only about 1% of all foreign visitors but account for more than 10% of spending. However, figures from the Shizuoka Prefecture Tourism Association also show that most of that spending is spent on shopping in major urban areas, while less than 1% is spent in Shizuoka Prefecture.

Shizuoka Prefecture’s determination to create a breakthrough in high-end tourism to Mount Fuji is great, but the challenge is how to attract this small number of “willing-to-spend” tourists. For example, Tochigi Prefecture planned a 4 million yen (over $27,000) Oku-Nikko tour in the fall of 2023, but Governor Tomichi Fukuda revealed at a press conference in January that no tourists have signed up to use this service package so far.