Fuji-Q Highland

An amusement park built at the foot of Mount Fuji whose speciality is roller coasters that have held world records, and whose real selling point is the backdrop: on a clear day the mountain fills the sky directly behind the track.

Fujiyama opened in 1996 as the tallest and fastest coaster in the world, and at 79 metres and 130 km/h it still holds up. Eejanaika is a fourth-dimension coaster whose seats rotate independently, so riders are flipped forwards and backwards through the layout and lose track of which way is up. Takabisha has a drop of 121 degrees, steeper than vertical. Do-Dodonpa, which launched from zero to 180 km/h in under two seconds, has been closed since 2021 after a run of neck and back injuries.

For anyone who does not want to be thrown around, Thomas Land is a large area for small children, and the Haunted Hospital is a walkthrough attraction with a reputation as one of the most frightening in the world; it takes up to an hour and people do give up partway.

Entry to the park is free. You pay per ride or buy a day pass, and on busy days a priority ticket for individual rides is the difference between four coasters and one. Weekend queues run from one to three hours.

Come on a weekday, arrive at opening, and check the wind: the tall rides close when it blows. Highway buses from Shinjuku take about an hour and forty minutes, or take the Fujikyuko line to Fujikyu Highland station, which is at the gate.