Destination Highlight: Mt Fuji World Heritage Center & Hongu Sengen Taisha Shrine

Look out on magnificent Mt. Fuji from the open-air Observation Hall of the Mt. Fuji World Heritage Center, the first stop on your Mt. Fuji area excursion. Opened in 2017, the building is designed to simulate the conical shape of Mt. Fuji. Inside, you'll find the museum is just as spectacular as the building's shape, offering interactive exhibits along a 633-foot spiral ramp that gives you the feeling of actually climbing the mountain. On your next stop, you'll learn about the gentle, female deity of the Hongu Sengen Taisha. The shrine was built in 806 by the Shogun Sakanoue no Tamuramaro, during the time of the emperor Heizei, who believed that a shrine honoring the goddess Asama-no-okami would pacify her anger. Then it's on to the Nihondaira observatory, located on a plateau in the center of Shizuoka, where you'll be treated to a view of Mt. Fuji, Suruga Bay, and the city of Shizouka.