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Home: Diamond Fuji Viewing Spots, Dates, and Times in Tokyo

Diamond Fuji Viewing Spots, Dates,
and Times in Tokyo

One of the most interesting things about Mt. Fuji I've ever heard of while residing in Japan is what's known as "Diamond Fuji," a phenomenon which occurs when the sun sets into or rises out of Mt. Fuji's cone, setting off sunbeams that resemble a glittering diamond. Because Mt. Fuji lies southwest of Tokyo, Diamond Fuji is visible at sunset from most locations in the nation's capital only from Oct. to Feb. The Diamond Fuji pic below was taken by a Tokyo friend of mine from the shore of Lake Yamanakako, one of the Fuji 5 Lakes.

Berndt's Diamond Fuji
Diamond Fuji photo taken Feb. 17, 2011 by Berndt Otto




And WOW, check out this 34-sec. timelapse video of the Diamond Fuji taken Feb. 19, 2021 by a Weathernews staffer from the shore of Lake Yamanaka.
(If the player above is not visible, you can view video at YouTube here.)


After a failed attempt to view Diamond Fuji on Dec. 23, 2014 atop Mt. Takao along with hundreds of other photographers and romantics, smiley and a lengthy but very fun Xmas Day Diamond Fuji discussion thread with my friends in the "Hiking in Japan" group at Facebook, I decided to put together the table below, listing the best high-rise spots in Tokyo for viewing Diamond Fuji along with recommended dates, sunset times, admission fees, and links to Google maps.


Diamond Fuji
Viewing Spot
Admission
fee

Best Viewing Dates
(1st chance)
Approx. Sunset Time(1)
Best Viewing Dates
(2nd chance)
Approx. Sunset Time(1)
¥700
Jan. 27-28
16:50
Nov. 15-16
16:35

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bldg. Observatory

Free

Jan. 31-Feb. 1

17:08

Nov. 10-11

16:39

Bunkyo Civic Center
Observation Deck

Free

Feb. 1-2

17:08

Nov. 9-10

16:39

Tokyo Skytree ¥2060 for 350m first observatory (an extra ¥1030 for 450m second observatory)
Feb. 3-4 17:10 Nov. 7-8 16:41
Free
Feb. 5-6
17:11

Nov. 5-6

16:42
Shibuya Scramble Square
(added Jan. 27, 2020)
¥2,000
(¥1,800 online)
Feb. 6-7
17:13
Nov. 5-6
16:43
¥1800 for 218m main deck (an extra ¥500 for 238m sky deck) 
Feb. 7-8
17:14

Nov. 3-4

16:45

Tokyo Tower

¥820 for 150m main observatory (an extra ¥600 for 250m special observatory)

Feb. 8-9

17:15

Nov. 2-3

16:46

Free
Feb. 9-10
17:16

Nov. 1-2

16:46
¥490 1-way (¥950 roundtrip) for both cable car & chair lift
16:00-16:15

N/A

N/A
Notes:
  1. Sunset times indicated above are from <suncalc.net>, and reflect the moment the top of the sun disc touches the horizon, therefore, depending on the viewer's altitude, the sun may begin setting into Mt. Fuji's cone (perhaps as much as 10-15 min.) earlier. [suncalc.net has since bit the dust, so I recommend using this site for sun tracking: suncalc.org]
  2. Diamond Fuji viewing spot names above are linked to their Google maps.
Sources: Thanks mostly to <jnto.go.jp>, <japan-guide.com>, <suncalc.net>, and my friends in the "Hiking in Japan" group at Facebook. smiley


Links to other Diamond Fuji pics/sites:

Diamond Fuji, as seen from the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower 52nd floor observatory on Nov. 4, 2015
Diamond Fuji, as seen from my apartment building on Feb. 10, 2015
Diamond Fuji pics taken in Ichikawa, Chiba on Mon., Feb. 11, 2008 from 5:11-5:16 pm
Viewing Diamond Fuji from atop Mt. Takao (in Japanese)
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (ダイヤモンド富士 - Diamond Fuji) - a very LONG list & map of recommended Diamond Fuji viewing spots & dates throughout the Kanto region (in Japanese)
Google map of Diamond Fuji viewing spots around Lake Yamanakako (in Japanese)
Photo gallery of Diamond Fuji photos taken since 2006 (mid-Oct.-late Feb.), linked from Google map above (in Japanese)
Tokyo Observation Deck Guide - the best high-rise observatories in Tokyo, with opening hours/dates, admission fees, deck heights, etc.
 

Sample Diamond Fuji sun position calculation using Suncalc.net

Diamond Fuji sun position from Sunshine 60 Bldg.
Diamond Fuji sun position from Sunshine 60 Bldg.
for 16:35 sunset on Nov. 16
(the orange line indicates the sunlight trajectory at sunset)
(Source: suncalc.net (no longer functional))



Diamond Fuji - July 30, 2012
Diamond Fuji - July 30, 2012
(photo credit: The Asahi Shimbun, Asia & Japan Watch)




Climbing Mt. Fuji - Frequently Asked Questions

Highest Mountains in Japan

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