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Japan's Mount Fuji opens for climbers, but this time they've got to pay

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Reuters

<div><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Japan&#x27;s tallest peak opened for the 2024 climbing season on Monday with one crucial change: now it&#x27;s for ticket holders only.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Starting this year, the Yoshida trail on Mount Fuji will operate with a daily limit of 4,000 visitors.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Access is controlled by a newly-installed gate at the trailhead. Visitors may only pass if they have reserved their place and paid a 2,000 yen (USD 12.43) fee. Once the 4,000 cap is breached, the gate will close.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/world/2024/5/21/sick-of-tourists-japan-town-blocks-view-of-mt-fuji-1030">Sick of tourists, Japan town blocks view of Mt Fuji</a></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">For their money, climbers will receive a wristband granting access to the trail between the hours of 3 a.m. and 4 p.m. Those with reservations for mountain huts closer to Fuji&#x27;s peak will be able to pass outside those hours and will not be subject to the daily visitor limit, authorities say.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/2/23/philippine-tourists-to-japan-hit-record-high-126#:~:text=MANILA%20%E2%80%94%20Tourists%20from%20the%20Philippines,Koshikawa%20Kazuhiko%20said%20on%20Friday.">Philippine tourists to Japan hit record high </a></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The 3,776-meter Mount Fuji, which straddles Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures in eastern Japan, has always been popular with local and overseas tourists.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">But local authorities say a recent surge in inbound tourists to Japan has led to high levels of environmental harm and incidents of under-prepared climbers needing rescue, prompting them to limit access.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/2024/5/1/weak-yen-boosts-tourist-wallets-in-japan-1305">Weak yen boosts tourist wallets in Japan</a></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><strong>(Story by Tom Bateman)</strong></span></div>

<p>Japan's tallest peak opened for the 2024 climbing season on Monday with one crucial change: now it's for ticket holders only.</p>

Japan's tallest peak opened for the 2024 climbing season on Monday with one crucial change: now it's for ticket holders only.