Mount Mitake

Mt. Mitake (御岳山) is considered a sacred mountain by many Japanese, who frequently make a pilgrimage from Tokyo to the shrines up the mountain and on top. The 929 metre tall summit is easily, and cheaply, accessible from the big city and provides great views of Kanto. Alongside Mount Takao, the best mountain for hiking in Kanto for foreign travellers.

Budget travel tips

• Pick up or make a lunch from one of the convenience stores in Tokyo, as there is not much around the mountain for budget travellers.
• Save money by skipping the Mitake Tozan Railway and walking all the way up. The path up is right besides the lower station. You will also see many little shrines and tranquil architecture along the way.
• If you want to do a longer or more difficult walk, pop into the Mitake Visitor Center located between the upper cablecar station and main shrine. There are free maps to places such as Mount Otake.

Information

Visitors can either walk up from the lower cablecar/railway station or take the railway up.

Difficulty: Easy to medium

Time required: 3-4 hours without cable car, under 1 hour with cablecar

Hostels and cheap hotels

Mount Mitake is cheapest as a day trip, and there is not much budget accommodation around. See our Tokyo Budget Accommodation guide for where to stay in the big city.

How to get there

From Shinjuku, take a JR Chuo line train to Ome, then a Ome line train to Mitake station (100 mins, 920 yen).

Once at Mitake station, take Nishitokyo bus (10 mins, 290 yen) to the lower station of the Mitake Tozan Railway (also known as the Mitake cablecar or Cableshita). There are usually 2 buses an hour.

Map