Japanese government introduces curbs on Mount Fuji climbers to combat overcrowding, bad behaviour of tourists

New fees and visitor limits for climbing Japan's Mount Fuji have taken effect as part of a suite of measures seeking to protect the nation's sacred sites from tourism-induced dilapidation. 

Locals and visitors flocked to the Yoshida Trail — the summit's most popular route — on the first day of this year's climbing season on Monday, but were met with a first-time levy of 2,000 yen ($20) and cap of 4,000 hikers a day.

Climbers were processed through a newly opened gate at "fifth station" just over halfway up the 3,776-metres peak, where four trails to reach the top start: Yoshida, Fujinomiya, Subashiri and Gotemba. 

Japanese officials introduced the rules in May, after complaints of litter, pollution, and dangerously crowded trails flowed in last year.

Yamanashi governor Kotaro Nagasaki said at the time the new trail curbs were necessary to prevent accidents and incidents of altitude sickness, particularly among foreign "bullet climbers", or those racing to the top.

The regulations are only in place for people entering from the fifth station of the Yoshida Trail, not the mountain's other access points. 

Yoshida, on the Yamanashi Prefecture side, provides the easiest access and has the most residential amenities, resulting in extreme crowding during peak season. 

Under the new system, climbers need to choose whether they will do a day hike or stay overnight at the several available huts across the trail.

Those who have not booked an overnight hut will be sent back down and not allowed to climb between 4pm and 3am.

An online pre-booking requirement also applies. Of the 4,000 climbers allowed daily, 3,000 can buy their passes through the Mt. Fuji Climbing official website and the remaining 1,000 in person.  

The new regulations are to remain in place throughout the climbing season which runs from July 1 to September 10 this year.

The number of climbers recovered to pre-pandemic levels last year, with about 300,000 annually, according to the environment ministry. 

For their money, climbers receive a wristband giving access to the trail between 3 am and 4 pm, excluding those with reservations for mountain huts closer to the peak, to whom the daily limit on visitors will not apply.

Geoffrey Kula, one of about 1,200 hikers waiting to scale Mount Fuji on opening day, took the restrictions in stride.

"This is not Disneyland," he said.

To slash or control?

Mount Fuji is a symbol of Japan and a magnet for foreign visitors, now swarming into the country at a record pace, and has been a site of Shinto and Buddhist worship for centuries.

Last year the country attracted about 25 million tourists. 

In the first five months of 2024 alone, this figure was about 14.5 million, a 70 per cent increase from the same period the previous year, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO).

The yen's slide to a 38-year low has made Japan an irresistible bargain for overseas visitors, along with the removal of COVID-era travel restrictions and falling airfares.

But despite overseas tourism providing a much welcome boost to the economy, it hasn't come without putting strain on residents. 

Locals are frustrated with facilities for travel and hospitality being overstretched, overcrowding on trains and buses, disregard for cleanliness, and general bad behaviour by tourists.

The Japanese government recently blocked off an Instagram-famous Mount Fuji photography spot over a convenience store after hordes of tourists became a traffic hazard.

A range of measures to combat this influx are being trialled, including banning visitors from traditional areas and improving public transport planning.

It is however unlikely Japan will seek to cut back on its yearly tourist intake after the recent lifting of its blanket travel ban in 2022 and at a time when its economy needs it most.

ABC/Reuters