Narusawa Ice Cave

Quick 10 min experience through a cave with a nicely set out path and stairs, and two shrines. The ceiling in some parts are really low so you'd have to crouch / bend to navigate through, but it's not too difficult. It's cold as well so do layer up before heading in. We didn't see too much ice, they may have melted over the years?

A unique and memorable stop near Mount Fuji. The Narusawa Ice Cave takes you through narrow lava-tube tunnels with impressive ice formations that stay frozen all year. It’s short (so take your time and make the most of it) but fascinating, about a 20-minute walk through chilly, dim passages that feel like an underground adventure. It can be slippery and tight in spots, even a section to almost crawl, so wear good shoes and a light jacket. The staff are friendly, and signs are available in English and Japanese. Great to pair with the nearby Fugaku Wind Cave for a full experience. Easy to access by car, plenty of parking onsite and leading into, or local bus, and well worth the visit if you’re exploring the Fuji Five Lakes area. There is a gift shop attached where you can also purchase food items. We also visited the Wind Cave, this experience was a little more comfortable, ticket entry can be purchased for both caves at each site.

Cheap but cheerful cave experience amongst beautiful naturescape. Visit during winter to see ice pillars. We visited in autumn & signs pre-warned ice pillars had melted, so we knew what to expect. Still went for the experience! Steep but short climb down 21m. Cold, so prepare accordingly. Watch your head for low hanging rocks. A short section where we had to pretty much crawl through - a unique experience! Take as long as you like, but approx 10min round trip. 1.4km trail walk (30min) to Wind Cave - can purchase combo tickets. Well worth it for something different and a bit of a nature walk. But you can also drive there.

Located in the Aokigahara Forest at the northwestern foot of Mt. Fuji, Narusawa Ice Cave is a small lava tube formed about 1,150 years ago during one of Fuji’s eruptions. The temperature inside remains around 0–3°C throughout the year, allowing impressive ice formations to persist even in summer. The walking path is short — about 150 meters — leading down a narrow, slippery tunnel with solidified lava walls and a distinct chill in the air. Two main chambers display preserved ice: one illuminated with soft blue light, the other protected behind metal bars. A full visit takes around 10–15 minutes, and while it’s interesting from a geological perspective, the experience can feel brief — essentially a short descent to view the ice and back. It’s best to buy a combined ticket that includes Fugaku Wind Cave nearby, for a more complete and rewarding visit to the Fuji Five Lakes Geopark area

Narusawa Ice Cave is another place I visited during my trip to Mt. Fuji. Visiting this ice cave offers a great opportunity for physical activity and exercise. I'm glad I can handle it. The Narusawa Ice Cave is not particularly impressive. However, it's fun if you have a whole group of friends who can go together.

Although short, the ice cave is a unique and refreshing experience. Even in summer, it’s cold inside, and the crouching and squeezing through narrow passages to go deeper makes it all the more fun.

An incredible experience visiting this place. I went during the summer, and although it was scorching hot outside, the temperature dropped drastically as soon as I entered. Even though the cave isn’t very deep, the difference in temperature was significant. The route wasn't very long either, but it was enough to make me shiver from the cold

Ice cave is wonderful to get away from the hot weather. I was worried by their maps that made it look like we could run into a room with water or fall down a tunnel, but the handrails kept us on path. It is a short 20 mins but be warned the stairs and passages are steep, wet, and can be slippery. There is one narrow and low ceiling passage of about 20 feet. There is a couple of places with low ceiling to duck down. I would not recommend this if you have mobility problems and a couple of sections gets dark. There are bars to hold onto but one bar seemed a little wobbly. You can use one of their free helmets but there were only 5 total helmets there— there was one other group of 3 people at the cave while we were there and they didn’t have helmets so not sure if the facility only has 5 helmets for all visitors. There is one section that has the ice to see on the left and right. When we went, there didn’t seem to be as much ice as other people’s pictures. It was cool to see the natural ice formation and not something I would go out of your way for, but if you are in the area and interested in geology then drop by. They also had clean restrooms.

A cool attraction to come visit if you're in the Fuji area. It was something we wanted to check out if we had time and it just so happens the tourist section at the Kawaguchiko Station has a list of attractions that the 4 bus lines go to. They had a day pass for ¥1500 that got you access to lots of attractions on the North or East side. (Separate day pass for north or east side routes) The cave was a short but interesting place to visit. We came during late February so it was already cold outside so I couldn't really tell how much colder it was down in the bottom of the cave. The cost was ¥350 for this cave or you could buy a combo ticket that includes the Lava/Wind cave about 1km away for ¥600.

We decided to do some touristy stuff today and the words ice cave caught my eye. It is as it sounds- an underground cave that is extremely cold. It served as a fridge back in the day where electronic fridges were not a thing. You follow a set of stairs down into the cave and it goes from hot (in the summer) to cold FAST. By one set of stairs I was reaching for my sweatshirt. It's an awesome, eerie, super out of the ordinary experience. As you take the stairs down, the cave will get small to a point where you have to crouch, then you just take the same set of stairs back up on the opposite side of the railing. Be careful when you walk because it is very slippery and dark. I tried to take photos as I went down but i almost slipped trying to multitask. Maybe I'm clumsy, or maybe it's true that multitasking doesn't work (lol science), but walking and tryna use your phone is not a recommended. It's a really *cool* experience! Get it??

2nd favorite cave. Not really worth a trip specifically for it, but if you're in the area it's a nice stop. After the Saiko Bat Cave we decided to explore all the scenic caves. Nothing really topped the Bat Cave, I think, however, the Fugaku and Narusawa ice/lava caves are very similar to eachother. I preferred the Narusawa visit over the Fugaku one. Narasawa cave & Fugaku cave are both natural refrigerators and were used as such for centuries. Inside were large blocks of Ice and mud. It was also extremely wet. I believe the floors are covered in brine since in some parts of the cave, if you step off of it you'll find a thick covering of ice along the cave floor. This cave was less 'spelunk-y' than the bat cave, but they still provided you a helmet since the ceiling was narrow in some parts. I did bump my helmet a few times at the beginning. In regards to the ice formations inside, I think the Fugaku cave has more of the showstoppers. The ice was barred off from getting a good view and not as lit up in the Narusawa cave on our visit. It's also much colder in this cave vs. the bat cave. The bat cave was rather balmy in comparison. I was very much ill-prepared for venturing in cold caves, however, outside it was 80 something Fahrenheit (27C). Overall, really neat geological spot. Not exactly worth a planned trip for. Prep with closed toed shoes and maybe a light cardigan. There is also a small entrance fee of ¥300. The gift shop also has a stamp map for the Narusawa cave and the Fugaku cave for free.

Easily worth the 300 yen investment after your hike through the forest. Pretty amazing to feel the temperature drop by the second as you descend. It's especially entertaining to watch my 6 foot 5 ass maneuver through that small passage in the middle part of the cave. I swear I almost got stuck :D

Fantastic experience, loved these caves! Perhaps the bat cave is better, but I didn't get to go-- and as such, I most highly recommend the ice cave! There were some bars restricting access to areas, which was less cool-- but crawling about the caves unsupervised and experiencing the incredible temperature drops was great!