Mount Fuji, Japan

Mount Fuji (Fuji-san), Japan's most famous landmark, is also the country's largest mountain peak. This magnificent peak can be viewed from Tokyo, which is more than 100 kilometers distant. Mount Fuji has long been celebrated in art and literature, and it is now considered such an iconic symbol that UNESCO recognized its universal cultural value in 2013. Mount Fuji is part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, and over a million people climb it each summer as part of a pilgrimage that ends in a sunrise vista from its peak.

While some climbers still begin at the bottom, the majority now begin their ascent after the halfway point, at the 5th Station, resulting in a more manageable six-hour excursion. Those planning to complete the climb should leave in the afternoon, breaking it up with an overnight stay at one of the "mountain huts" created specifically for this purpose. You can go to the summit at dawn the next day if you get up early.