Would you like to enjoy a nice day-trip starting from Shimizu? I will offer you a fully-customized itinerary to make as many of your wishes come true as possible.
In north-east of Shimizu, you have Mt. Fuji, sacred sites related to the mountain and green tea farms. In the west, you will see central Shizuoka, with a castle ruin park, green tea merchant district and a fabulous shrine. On top of a hill near Shimizu is Nihondaira area with a superb view and the gorgeous Kunozan Shrine.
Shimizu Port
Take a shuttle bus or local bus to station, and from the station, take a train to Fujinomiya
Museum on Mt. Fuji
And famous Fujinomiya yakisoba noodles for lunch? Head to a tea farm using a taxi service.
Enjoy tea leaf picking experience and tasting various kinds of green tea (Shizuoka produces 40 % of green tea in Japan) (60 min).
Go to Fuji Station using a taxi.
Take a train and a bus to return to the port.
(If you have more time, and/or charter a car, Shiraito Falls--World Heritage Site--and/or Japanese sake brewery might be added.)
Shimizu Port
guide fee, and making necessary reservations
Transportation fare of you and the guide:
Train from Shimizu to Fujinomiya is ¥590, and it is ¥350 to Shin-Shizuoka.
Chartered taxi fare for 5 hours for example is ¥35500 for an ordinary taxi for 4-5 passengers, and ¥53500 for a minivan taxi for 9. The capacity of taxis excludes the driver. Depending on our itinerary, we may catch cruising taxis on the streets or use public transportation.
Toll for expressways (Tomei Toll Road between Shimizu and Fuji is ¥880) and parking fees
Admission fees: Kunozan Toshogu Shrine ¥500, Access ropeway to Kunozan ¥1250, Tokaido Hiroshige Museum ¥520, Sumpu Castle Park ¥360, Mt. Fuji World Heritage Center ¥300;
Lunch (if you wish to have one) for you and the guide: around ¥1000 to 2000 depending on your choice. You may wish to enjoy the best sushi in Japan (around 6,000 yen)! Shimizu is the biggest port to land tuna in Japan.
I will present to you estimated expenses in the course of our discussion. I can also take care of your local expenses during the tour, make a calculation sheet to sum up, and ask you to pay the total amount at the end of the tour (if you like, to make your life easier).
The above sample itinerary is a 7-hour tour to the NORTH-EAST of Shimizu (#1).
Other destinations are...
#2. Traveling to the WEST of Shimizu, with the Kunozan Toshogu Shrine as the main attraction, adding some other places in the vicinity (Observation Deck Yume-Terrace, a green tea farm, the tavern of Shimizu Jirocho and/or the Miho Pine Grove)
#3. Traveling NORTH-WEST to the central Shizuoka City, visiting Sumpu Castle Park, Sengen Shrine, green tea merchants and/or a green tea farm.
#4. Traveling SOUTH-WEST to Toro, visiting Serizawa Keisuke Museum and historical ruins (and a museum) of Toro village about 2000 years ago.
View of Mt. Fuji is weather dependent. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
Please let me know in advance your areas of interest and how much you wish to walk during your excursion. It will help me plan your itinerary better.
It is expensive, but chartering a car allows you to spend more time at each spot, or visit 1 more place, and it is more comfortable, of course. Public transportation is punctual in Japan, but not be frequent outside of major cities, including the areas around Shimizu. Please ask your guide for detail.
Yes, I can. A half-day tour (shorter than 5 hours) is 40,000 yen, and a full-day tour (5-7 hours), 60,000 yen.
Yes, I can make necessary arrangement for you. I can look for local bus companies and make reservations on your behalf. They usually ask you to make payment in cash. I will translate and relay their messages to you.
Five stars to Fumie. She is very kind and very knowledgeable about the area. We were a big group and she happily helped all of us with a smile on her face.
Thank you Jorge san, for using me yesterday. Your group was fantastic. It was my great pleasure to be a part of your special vacation.
Wonderful tour and Fumie was able to change everything when we realized that the day of the tour would be rainy. She moved everything up a day earlier and did a great job of planning a fun day and allowing us to see all the highlights. Highly recommend Fumie!
Thank you, Rebecca, for using me and writing a good review. I am glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with me. I am also grateful that everything worked out quite well despite change of the date.
Fumie helped us navigate a complex application and scheduling process for us to obtain the FISCO license in order to race on the Fuji Speedway track. She was very detail oriented and proactive in helping us coordinate with the management company as well as the race car supplier. She did a fantastic job translating on-site, and was very responsive and punctual. We will definitely be using Fumie’s services in the future when we come back to race!
Thank you, Keith san, for using my service and writing a good review. I am glad you enjoyed the day at Fuji Speedway. I hope to see your wife and kids in Japan in the future, too! Thanks!
Fumie is an incredible guide and extremely professional. From the start, she planned a fabulous day to maximize our sightseeing for the day. We arrived from Tokyo and she let us know the best train to start our day and was waiting for us as we exited the station. We beat the crowds!!! Our day started with a ropeway ride, a pirate ship on Lake Ashi geological tour, eating black eggs , a lovely udon shop, a parquetry shop,, a lovely walk on the old cedar line road. We were fortunate to see Mt Fuji ! It was a day we will always remember! And yes…Fumie made sure we got to all these spots seamlessly.
Thank you, Hope-san, for letting me work for your wonderful family, and for a great review! I hope you will bring the best memories of Hakone home and come back to Japan someday.