Booking choice: The private Fuji or Hakone tour, from $507 per group. Check dates Tour details
Two private tours sit on this site. The private Fuji or Hakone tour is a licensed van with a driver-guide, from $507 per group, ten hours hotel to hotel. Xplor Japan's private tour is $314 per group for up to five, covers the Fuji lakes and Hakone, and ends with a reserved Shinkansen seat to Tokyo Station.
The group alternative is a full-size coach (Local Guide Stars caps it at 49) from a fixed meeting point at 7:20 to 8:00 a.m. Both have a place. The deciding factors are how many of you there are, how much the weather matters, and who in your group finds an 11-hour coach day hard.
The quick answer
For two people a private car costs more: $157 to $254 each against $159 on the bullet train coach, plus tickets. For four or five it costs about the same or less, starts at your hotel and goes where the sky is clearest. Check that the vehicle has green commercial plates: paid rides in white-plate private cars are illegal in Japan and void the insurance. Tickets, lunch, the 2,800 yen toll and overtime are extra on the $507 car.
How much does a private Mt Fuji tour cost per person?
The $507 car is $253.50 each for two, $126.75 for four and $101.40 for five. Xplor Japan's $314 car is $157, $78.50 and $62.80. Tickets come on top.
Per person, before extras, against the $159 bullet train coach that includes the ropeway, cruise and Shinkansen:
| Group | Private Fuji or Hakone ($507) | Xplor Japan private ($314, up to 5) | Bullet train coach |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 people | $253.50 each + 1,400 yen toll | $157 each | $159 each, all in |
| 4 people | $126.75 each + 700 yen toll | $78.50 each | $159 each, all in |
| 5 people | $101.40 each + 560 yen toll | $62.80 each | $159 each, all in |
Add 3,700 yen each on either private tour if you ride the ropeway and the cruise. Even then, a family of four on Xplor Japan pays well under the coach price, and gets a reserved Shinkansen seat thrown in. The $507 price is the mini van, the smallest vehicle; the listing also sells a Toyota HiAce for up to 9 and larger coaches, at higher prices.
Four or more of you? Price the private car: from your hotel, on your route, often for less per head.
Check dates for the private Fuji or Hakone tourWhat do you get for the extra money?
Pickup at your hotel, your choice of route, your own pace, and a guide who answers your questions instead of a microphone's.
- No meeting point: the group tours meet at the LOVE statue in Nishi-Shinjuku, Matsuya Ginza or Tokyo Station between 7:20 and 8:00, with no refund if you are late.
- Your route: on the $507 tour you choose Fuji and Hakone, or the Fuji lakes route with Kawaguchiko, Chureito Pagoda and Oshino Hakkai.
- Your pace: stops last as long as you like, inside ten hours. Coaches give 30 minutes at the 5th Station.
- Older or younger travellers: a big family on the $507 tour wrote that “timing was nice and easy which was great for the older and younger family members.”
Another group simply liked the room: “We had a van which was nice and spacious for the four of us”.
What does the private price leave out?
Every ticket, lunch and, on the $507 car, the 2,800 yen Fuji toll and overtime after ten hours. Xplor Japan leaves you at Tokyo Station.
From the listings:
| Private Fuji or Hakone ($507) | Xplor Japan private ($314) | |
|---|---|---|
| Ropeway and cruise | Extra | Extra |
| Lunch | Extra | Extra; no eating in the car |
| Fuji toll | 2,800 yen per group | Not listed; fuel and parking included |
| Overtime | 5,000 yen per hour after 10 h | Not listed |
| Return | Car to your hotel | Reserved Shinkansen to Tokyo Station, then on your own |
| Languages | English; Spanish +30,000 yen, French +20,000 yen | English |
None of this is hidden; it is just easy to miss next to a coach price that includes the boats. Budget about 5,000 to 6,000 yen per person on top for tickets and lunch.
What is a green-plate vehicle, and why does it matter?
Green number plates mark a licensed commercial passenger vehicle in Japan. A paid ride in a white-plate private car, called shirotaku, is illegal, and its insurance won't cover you.
Private cars carry white plates; licensed taxis, hire cars and tour vehicles carry green ones. Carrying passengers for money in a white-plate car without a transport bureau licence breaks the Road Transportation Act: up to three years in prison or a 3 million yen fine for the operator, The Japan Times reports. Illegal operators target foreign tourists around Narita, Haneda, Ginza and Kyoto.
The risk for you is the insurance. Hokkaido Police's warning leaflet notes that if you are hurt in an unlicensed taxi, you may not be covered. That is why the $507 operator lists “Green Number Plates Commercial vehicle”, commercial driving permits and commercial insurance as inclusions, and warns against white plates. Cheap private drivers found on social media are where this goes wrong. Look at the plate when the car arrives.
A licensed green-plate van with commercial insurance and an English-speaking driver-guide, from your hotel.
Explore the private Fuji or Hakone tour Tour detailsIs a private tour better on a cloudy day?
Yes. A private driver can switch sides of the mountain, start early to beat the cloud, and fill a grey day with stops that don't need Fuji.
Coaches follow a fixed route; a van follows the sky. Fuji is usually clearest early, and only a private car leaves before the 8 a.m. coach departures. A guest on Xplor Japan's tour wrote: “he suggested to start the tour early to we can see perfect view of Mt. Fuji. He is right we seen Mt.Fuji without clouds, amazing.”
No guarantee comes with it. The $507 listing won't accept negative reviews about bad weather, and no tour refunds for cloud. Bad days happen on private tours too: “Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate!” began one review that still gave five stars. More on picking a date in will I see Mt Fuji.
How long is a private Mt Fuji day, and what about overtime?
Ten hours on both. The $507 tour charges 5,000 yen per extra hour; holiday traffic is the usual reason you run over.
Ten hours sounds like plenty. Tokyo to the Fuji lakes or Hakone is 1.5 to 2 hours each way without traffic, more on weekends, so you get roughly six hours on the ground. Holidays stretch the drive back: Golden Week, Obon and autumn weekends in Hakone are the worst.
Ask the driver to call time so you are back inside ten hours, or accept 5,000 yen an hour as the cost of a relaxed afternoon. Xplor Japan sidesteps the evening jam with the Shinkansen from Odawara; the trade-off is finding your own way from Tokyo Station. Bullet train or bus covers the return options.
Beat the evening traffic: a private day that ends with a reserved Shinkansen seat.
Check dates for the private tour with the Shinkansen backWhen is a group tour the better deal?
For solo travellers and couples, and for anyone who wants the 5th Station, ropeway, cruise and bullet train in one fixed price.
At two people, the $159 bullet train coach costs about the same as Xplor Japan before tickets, and includes the ropeway, the cruise and the Shinkansen. Solo, a private car makes no sense at all. The cheaper coaches go lower still: Local Guide Stars at $83 with both tickets, Gogoday at $78 with the ropeway.
Group guides get good reviews too, and a coach full of strangers is half the fun for some people. What you give up is the pace: about four of the eleven hours are on the coach, and every stop runs to the minute. Prices for every tour are in Mt Fuji tour prices.
For two or one: the 5th Station, the ropeway, the cruise and the Shinkansen back, all in one price.
Explore the Fuji and Hakone bullet train tour Tour detailsHow do you book a private Mt Fuji tour well?
Pick the route before the day, start early, book the right vehicle size, and sort tickets and lunch money in advance.
- Route: on the $507 tour you choose Fuji and Hakone or the Fuji lakes. Decide with the forecast; the driver will advise on the morning.
- Start time: as early as your group can manage. Clear skies and empty viewpoints both favour the morning.
- Vehicle: the mini van is the $507 price; book the HiAce or a larger coach for bigger groups. Xplor Japan takes up to five.
- Cash: bring yen for the toll, the ropeway (2,000 yen), the cruise (1,700 yen) and lunch.
- Language: English is standard; Spanish or French guides cost extra on the $507 tour.
Guests return to the same point in reviews: the driver makes the day. “He was very flexible and responsive to the group's needs,” wrote one.
Up to five of you, Chureito Pagoda to Lake Ashi, and a reserved Shinkansen seat back to Tokyo Station.
Explore the private tour with the Shinkansen back Tour detailsFrequently asked questions
Is a private Mt Fuji tour worth it for 2 people?
Only if flexibility matters a lot. At $157 to $254 each before tickets, it costs the same or more than the $159 bullet train coach, which includes the ropeway, cruise and Shinkansen.
How much is a private Mt Fuji tour for a family of four?
From $126.75 each on the $507 private car, or $78.50 each on Xplor Japan's $314 tour, before tickets (3,700 yen each for the ropeway and cruise) and lunch.
What are white-plate taxis in Japan?
Private cars used illegally as paid taxis or tour cars. Licensed vehicles have green plates. In a white-plate car, insurance may not cover passengers in an accident.
Does a private Mt Fuji tour include hotel pickup?
Yes, both private tours pick up at your Tokyo hotel. The $507 tour drives you back; Xplor Japan ends at Tokyo Station by Shinkansen.
Ready to book
Choose your tour
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on every option. Prices are from-prices in USD and move with the season.
Private Mt Fuji or Hakone Day Tour by Car
- English-speaking driver-guide
- Private licensed vehicle, hotel to hotel
- Ropeway, cruise and lunch are extra
Private Fuji Lakes & Hakone Tour, Shinkansen Back
Chureito Pagoda, Oshino Hakkai and Lake Ashi with your own guide, then a reserved bullet train seat.
Mt Fuji & Hakone Day Tour, Bullet Train Back
- English-speaking guide and coach with Wi-Fi
- Hakone Ropeway and Lake Ashi cruise tickets
- Shinkansen Odawara to Tokyo Station
