Photo/Illutration Mount Fuji and Lake Kawaguchiko seen from the Fujiyama Twin Terrace facility in Yamanashi Prefecture (Provided by the Fuefuki city government)

FUEFUKI, Yamanashi Prefecture—A tourist base opened here on April 25 to lure foreign visitors to a little-known spot high in the mountains that is touted to offer the most spectacular view of nearby Mount Fuji. 

Lily Bell Hutte, equipped with a cafe, shop and tourist information center, serves as the gateway to Fujiyama Twin Terrace, which sits on the 1,600-meter-high Shindo Pass.

The ridge straddles the city of Fuefuki and the town of Fuji-Kawaguchiko, both in Yamanashi Prefecture.

“Mount Fuji seen from Twin Terrace is the best in Japan,” said Masakatsu Okawa, manager of the Kofu branch of JTB Corp., the travel agency that operates Lily Bell Hutte. “But the spot is not yet widely known among foreign tourists.”

Visitors can view the majestic Mount Fuji, down through to its base, Lake Kawaguchiko and, far in the distance, Lake Yamanakako on a clear day.

It was a hidden spot known only to hikers and photographers, but the Fuefuki city government spent 178 million yen ($1.1 million) on constructing viewing decks and walking trails in 2021.

The Twin Terrace observation decks are not accessible by private vehicles because the roads are narrow.

Visitors take a 10-minute bus ride from the Suzuran Gunseichi parking lot, which is located in front of Lily Bell Hutte at an altitude of 1,300 meters, after parking their vehicles there.

Fuefuki Mayor Masaki Yamashita said he hopes that the new facility will help attract foreign tourists from Lake Kawaguchiko, a popular sightseeing resort, to the city and further onto other travel destinations in Yamanashi Prefecture.

“We need to create a place where (foreign visitors) want to come if we want to bring them over to Fuefuki from Kawaguchiko,” Yamashita said at the opening ceremony for Lily Bell Hutte on April 23. “We will be happy if we can establish a new route to travel around Yamanashi Prefecture via Fuefuki.”

The city government spent about 89 million yen on constructing Lily Belle Hutte.

Yamashita said he hopes to attract 100,000 visitors to Twin Terrace over the long term.

About 20,000 people visited the facility during the eight months through November, according to the city.

Jinji Yamada, JTB managing executive officer, said the company wants to increase visitor numbers to 50,000 this year with the opening of Lily Belle Hutte and other measures.

JTB on April 25 started a bus tour from Kawaguchiko Station on the Fujikyuko Line to Twin Terrace and back three times daily.

The tour costs 3,500 yen for an adult. The company expects 13,000 participants this year.

JTB is also considering offering guided tours along hiking trails around Twin Terrace as well as travel plans combining other attractions in Yamanashi Prefecture, such as dips at the Isawa Onsen hot spring resort and fruit picking at orchards.

The shuttle bus between the Suzuran Gunseichi parking lot and Twin Terrace will run until November.

The round-trip ticket costs 1,800 yen for an adult. The fare is 500 yen for Fuefuki residents.

There is a free bus service to the Suzuran Gunseichi parking lot from a location in Fuefuki where vehicles can be parked.

For more information, visit the city government’s website at (https://www.city.fuefuki.yamanashi.jp/kanko/sports/spot/fujiyamatwinterrace.html) or Lily Belle Hutte’s website at (https://fujiyama-twinterrace.com/en/).

Related News