Mount Fuji's main crater is 780 metres in diameter and 240 metres deep. The mountain stands near a triple junction where the Eurasian Plate, North American Plate, and Philippine Sea Plate meet, with the subducting Pacific Plate driving its volcanic formation. Scientists identify four distinct phases of volcanic activity in the mountain's development: the deep Sen-komitake andesite core, the Komitake Fuji basalt layer formed several hundred thousand years ago, Old Fuji formed approximately 100,000 years ago, and New Fuji formed around 10,000 years ago.
The last recorded eruption was the Hōei eruption, which began on 16 December 1707 and ended around 1 January 1708. That event created a new crater and a secondary peak, Mount Hōei, on the southeastern side. No eruption has been recorded since. In September 2012, mathematical models suggested the pressure in Fuji's magma chamber could be elevated relative to pre-1707 levels, though scientists noted the estimate remained speculative and unverifiable.
The mountain is surrounded by five lakes — Kawaguchi, Yamanaka, Sai, Motosu, and Shōji — and lies within Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. The Aokigahara forest sits at its northwest base, a dense woodland associated in Japanese folk tradition with ghosts and spirits.
The summit has been regarded as sacred since ancient times, and for centuries was forbidden to women. In 1872 the Japanese government issued an edict abolishing female exclusion from shrine and temple lands, including mountain climbing for worship. Tatsu Takayama is on record as the first woman to summit Mount Fuji, in the autumn of 1832. The first ascent by a foreigner was made by Sir Rutherford Alcock in September 1860, who climbed in eight hours and descended in three.
Ancient samurai used the base of the mountain as a remote training area near the present-day town of Gotemba. The shōgun Minamoto no Yoritomo held yabusame archery contests there in the early Kamakura period. The Edo-period Fuji-kō cult, founded by the ascetic Hasegawa Kakugyō, venerated the mountain as a female deity and encouraged members to climb it as an act of purification and rebirth.
Mount Fuji was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List as a Cultural Site on 22 June 2013. UNESCO recognises 25 sites of cultural interest within the Mount Fuji locality, including the mountain itself and the Shinto shrine Fujisan Hongū Sengen Taisha.
Approximately 300,000 people climbed Mount Fuji in 2009. Four major routes lead to the summit — Yoshida, Subashiri, Gotemba, and Fujinomiya — each divided into numbered stations. Most climbers begin at the fifth station, which is reachable by road. The Yoshida route is the most popular, offering the largest facilities and direct bus access. The ascent from the fifth station typically takes five to seven hours; descent takes three to four hours. Many Japanese climbers ascend at night to witness sunrise from the summit, a spectacle called goraikō, "arrival of light."
The optimal climbing season runs from July to August, when mountain huts operate and the weather is most favourable. Climbing from October to May is discouraged following high-profile deaths in cold conditions. In February 2024, Yamanashi prefecture imposed a mandatory 2,000 yen fee and a daily limit of 4,000 hikers on the Yoshida trail, citing overtourism concerns.
Mount Fuji has been a recurring subject in Japanese art for centuries, particularly after Edo became the capital in the seventeenth century and travellers on the Tōkaidō road saw it prominently. Hokusai's Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji from the 1830s cemented its global visual identity. A Japanese saying holds that a wise person climbs Fuji once in a lifetime, but only a fool would climb it twice.
In motorsport, the Fuji Speedway — a permanent circuit located at the mountain's base in Oyama, Shizuoka — carries the mountain's name and uses its silhouette as part of its visual identity. The mountain is visible from the circuit on clear days, making it one of the most photographed natural backdrops in international motorsport. Fuji Speedway has hosted the Japanese Grand Prix and the 6 Hours of Fuji as part of the FIA World Endurance Championship, among many other events.