Fuji Five lakes - Trip to Kawaguchiko in Autumn 2016
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November 12, 2016 - Fuji Five lakes - Trip to Kawaguchiko in Autumn 2016
Lake Kawaguchiko is a beautiful lake near the foothills of Mount Fuji. It is one of the most popular and visited lake among the Fuji five lakes. This is because it is well connected with the major cities of Japan and also has breathtaking spots along the lake.
We started our trip from Mishima city, which is around 60 kilometres from Lake Kawaguchiko, on 12th November 2016. It is a one and half hour bus drive from Mishima and we took the first bus, which is at 7:30 A.M from Mishima station south exit. The ticket for Fujikyu express bus can be booked on prior at the railway station, to ensure the seat is reserved and the ticket fare is 4110 yen for round trip(single person). The bus has comfortable seats and good leg space and the bus route is along Gotemba, Fujikyu Highland, and the final destination is Lake Kawaguchiko. For more information, please refer the below link: http://bus-en.fujikyu.co.jp/highway/
We reached the Kawaguchiko station around 9:05 A.M and first spotted the tourist information centre.There are many tourist spots in and around Lake Kawaguchiko and the spots are divided into three different lines; namely, red line, green line and blue line. There are two types of bus passes; "Sightseeing Bus All Lines" and "Kawaguchiko Sightseeing Bus and Saiko Sightseeing Bus". All the above details, along with the maps and passes are available at the ticket counter of the station. Since we planned to cover the tourist places around Lake Kawaguchiko, we took the second type of bus pass which is priced at 1200 yen of a single person. The validity of the pass is two days . The Sightseeing Bus All Lines pass is widespread and connects three different lakes and is priced at 1500 yen (for 2 days).
Our first stop was Chureito Pagoda, located near Shimoyoshida station, which is 20 minutes train ride from Kawaguchiko station. The ticket costs 300 yen for one way (single person). Though it doesn't get covered in the bus pass purchased, it is worth the cost to see the view of Mount Fuji. Upon reaching Shimoyoshida station, the route map to reach Chureito Pagoda is easily available. It takes around 10 minutes of walk to reach the entrance of the pagoda. One has to climb 397 steps to reach the top of the pagoda and has a various view points enroute.
Our second stop was Oishi Park and we took the Kawaguchiko sightseeing bus from the station. The journey time was 32 minutes. The park is beautiful and has a nice view of Mount Fuji.
Next we went to Momiji tunnel which is around 2 kms (25 mins walk) from Oishi park. Since the last stop of the sightseeing bus is Oishi park, one has to walk to the tunnel. The maple trees along the sides of the road form a tunnel like structure. It is beautiful during autumn. Also, the view of Mount Fuji with Maple leaves in foreground is mesmerising. We then went back to Oishi park and boarded the sightseeing bus to Ropeway/Pleasure Cruiser stop.
The Kachi-Kachi ropeway is a three minute ride and the roundtrip ticket fare for single person is 800 yen. The best time would be during sunset and the ropeway closes by 5:10 P.M. While going up on the cablecar, one can see the panoramic view the Lake Kawaguchi along with autumn colours. The views of Mount Fuji is breathtaking from the top with the rays of the sun turning the Mount Fuji golden. There is a heart shaped bell and it is believed that, wishes come true upon ringing it. There is a souvenir and local food shop. Also, there is a small rabbit temple which is based on a legend. To know more about it, refer the below link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kachi-kachi_Yama
Our last stop was Maple corridor and there was a Kawaguchiko Autumn leaves festival. The maple leaves were illuminated and the views were amazing. There were also many art/craft shops and local food/drink stalls nearby.
Finally, we boarded the Fujikyu express bus from Kawaguchiko station back to Mishima at 6:30 P.M (Last bus) and reached Mishima by 8:15 P.M.
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2016/11/12 - Fuji Five lakes - Trip to Kawaguchiko in Autumn 2016 |
