"Fuji: More Than a Mountain; It's an Experience" Fuji-Hakone-Izu-kokuritsu-koen by AKtravelers

....Before I had moved to Japan, I had visited several times with only a few glimpses of the legendary Mt. Fuji. Often hidden by smog or enshrouded with clouds, Mt. Fuji is a shy denizen of the horizon. Of course, I could always have made a trip specifically to visit the mountain, but logistics and poor weather often conspired against it. Finally, in October 2009, all the stars aligned. I had a rental car, a long weekend and Typhoon Melor had just blown through Japan and cleared up the air. From western Tokyo, the mountain's silhouette was clearly visible as the sun set behind it. Tomorrow would be the day!
....While we were excited to visit a mountain, we were mentally unprepared for all of the other acoutrements to visiting Mt. Fuji. We drove on a musical road, we ate in a Canadian restaurant, we bathed in an onsen, we ate blueberry snacks on a lakeshore. and we got stuck in a three-hour traffic jam. Yes, a trip to Fuji is more than about visiting a mountain -- it's a microcosm of Japan. Which is why I will keep fighting the traffic and visit here again and again

The world's highest rollercoaster?

The Mt. Fuji area has more than typical mountain activities to help one while away the time -- this is Japan after all. There are roller coasters and safari parks, onsen and traditional villages. Many shops and restaurants have mountain and wilderness themes, even though the place is hardly very wild -- though apparently there are deer and Japanese antelope around.

Looking out the window heading to Okinawa

Of course, you may not choose to visit Fuji at all, but you can still get a view of it if you're flying in Japan. In any route that would take youwest/southwest of Tokyo, request a window seat on the right side of the plane. If the weather is clear, you can get a great view of Fuji, crater and all!