Mount Fuji via Shimizu, Japan: Japan's Most Recognizable Peak, Up Close

Mount Fuji is 3,776 meters tall and visible from the Shimizu waterfront on clear days as a symmetrical volcanic cone rising above the surrounding mountains. The Japanese expression "Once climb Fuji, but only a fool climbs it twice" reflects what the actual climb involves: a long slog on volcanic rock above the treeline, often in cloud, with crowds at the summit in summer. Climbing season runs from early July to mid-September; ships calling during this window can arrange early-departure summit climbs if the timing aligns.

Miho no Matsubara, fifteen minutes from the port, is a pine-forested beach on the Miho Peninsula with a UNESCO World Heritage designation as a cultural site — this is where the Hagoromo (Feather Mantle) nō play is set, and the view of Mount Fuji rising above the bay through the pine trees is one of the most referenced landscape compositions in Japanese art. The beach and the forest path are open; the Hagoromo no Matsu (a specific ancient pine tree associated with the legend) is at the end of the main path.

The Nihondaira Plateau, accessible by ropeway from the Kunozan Tōshōgū shrine, gives a panoramic view over Suruga Bay and Shimizu Harbor, with Mount Fuji on one side and the Izu Peninsula on the other. Kunozan Tōshōgū is one of two main shrines dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first Tokugawa shogun; it is ornate, set in old-growth cryptomeria forest, and reached by 1,159 stone steps from the base. The ropeway cuts the ascent.

Shimizu's tuna market (the Maguro Sho in the harbor fishing village of S-Pulse Dream Plaza) is where the local catch comes in. Shimizu is one of Japan's leading ports for Pacific bluefin tuna; the sushi served at the market restaurants is as close to the source as it gets. The Umiganku Terrace lunch counters open from 11:00; arriving before noon avoids the longest waits.

Lake Kawaguchi, roughly 90 minutes from Shimizu by road, is one of the Fuji Five Lakes and gives the classic reflection-of-Fuji-in-the-lake view that appears in most photographs of the mountain. The drive follows the Tomei Expressway north through tea country — Shizuoka Prefecture produces 40% of Japan's green tea; the hillsides between Shimizu and the lake are planted with orderly rows of tea shrubs.