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Lake Saiko, one of the Fuji Five Lakes, offers a beautiful campground that’s accessible by bus. Here’s how to get there:
It’s that simple to reach Lake Saiko Campground using public transportation!
This guide will explain how to travel to Lake Saiko Campground by bus, including grocery shopping. We’ll provide actual travel times to help you plan your journey.
🕛 7:00 am
Our journey begins at Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal.
From here, we’ll take an express bus to Kawaguchiko Station.
Don’t worry if you arrive early; you can wait comfortably in the lobby until departure time. It’s best to book your bus ticket online in advance for a smooth boarding process. We’ll be taking the Fuji Five Lakes Line.
The lobby has vending machines and a convenience store, perfect for grabbing drinks or snacks while you wait.
When it’s time, head to the bus platform to board.
The bus terminal is spacious, but there’s a clear map in the lobby to help you find your boarding location.
🕐 7:40 am
Time to board the bus. Store your backpack in the luggage compartment and find your seat.
The Fuji Five Lakes Line bus is equipped with a restroom for your convenience. The bus size is similar to typical tour buses.
🕐 7:45 am
We’re off to Kawaguchiko Station!
The express bus travels along the Metropolitan Expressway and Chuo Expressway towards Yamanashi Prefecture. On the right, you’ll see Fuji-Q Highland.
Before reaching Kawaguchiko Station, the bus makes a stop at Fuji-Q Highland.
🕐 9:30 am
We’ve arrived at Fuji-Q Highland. Many passengers disembark here, as the Fuji Five Lakes Line also serves visitors to the amusement park.
On my trip, everyone except me got off at Fuji-Q Highland, leaving me alone in the bus.
From here, it’s about 10 minutes to Kawaguchiko Station.
🕛 9:40 am
We’ve arrived at Kawaguchiko Station.
Before catching our next bus, we need to go grocery shopping. Since it’s a bit of a walk from the station to the supermarket, you might want to use a coin locker if you have a lot of luggage.
Coin lockers are located on the west side of Kawaguchiko Station.
Note that my 55L backpack was too large for the coin lockers.
We’ll walk to Supermarket Takadaya near Kawaguchiko Station for our grocery shopping.
Address: 3860 Funatsu, Fujikawaguchiko, Minamitsuru District, Yamanashi 401-0301
It’s about a 10-minute walk each way from Kawaguchiko Station, downhill on the way there and uphill on the return trip.
🕐 9:53 am
We’ve arrived at Takadaya. Time to shop for food and drinks.
The store offers a wide variety of products to meet all your camping needs.
Produce section
Meat section
Condiments section
There’s a great selection of canned goods and processed foods.
Snack section
Fresh fish section
Yamanashi is famous for wine! Check out this impressive selection.
Alcohol section
It’s great to see chilled sake available for purchase.
They also stock local Yamanashi sake.
🕐 10:30 am
Grocery shopping complete.
The store owner was very kind. Seeing my camping gear, he said, “Camping is great!” When I mentioned I was heading to Lake Saiko, he generously provided extra ice packs.
Thank you, store owner!
🕛 10:45 am
We’re back at Kawaguchiko Station.
Our next bus is at 11:10 am, so we have some time to enjoy the onigiri (rice balls) we bought at Takadaya for breakfast.
We arrived at Kawaguchiko Station around 9:40, and our next bus departs at 11:10. The 1.5-hour buffer for grocery shopping was perfect, allowing us to shop without rushing and take our time with the uphill walk back to the station. I’d recommend allocating about an hour for the round trip and shopping.
From Kawaguchiko Station, we’ll take the “Lake Saiko Loop Bus,” also known as the “Green Line,” to reach Lake Saiko and our campground.
As its name suggests, this tourist bus starts from Kawaguchiko Station, loops around Lake Saiko, and returns to Kawaguchiko Station.
There are also the Lake Kawaguchi Loop Bus (Red Line) and the Narusawa-Shojiko-Motosuko Loop Bus (Blue Line).
To reach Lake Saiko Campground, we’ll depart from Kawaguchiko Station and get off at the Saiko Higashiguchi bus stop.
The journey takes about 30 minutes and costs 450 yen.
🕛 11:10
We’re on the Lake Saiko Loop Bus, heading for the Saiko Higashiguchi bus stop.
The bus ride offers stunning views as it travels along Lake Kawaguchi.
The bus makes several stops around Lake Kawaguchi, giving you a mini sightseeing tour as well.
🕛 11:38 am
We’ve arrived at the Saiko Higashiguchi bus stop, the closest stop to Lake Saiko Campground.
Here’s the location of the Saiko Higashiguchi bus stop:
The campground is very close, just a 3-minute walk from the bus stop. This proximity is one of the main advantages of using the bus to access the campground.
Follow the arrow, and you’ll quickly arrive at the campground.
After a 3-minute walk, we’ve reached Lake Saiko Campground.
🕐 11:45 am
For more detailed information about Lake Saiko Campground, please check out this article:
Read more about Lake Saiko Campground
🕛 10:15 am
Leaving the campground behind, we head to the Saiko Higashiguchi bus stop for our return journey.
🕐 10:50 am
We’re back at Kawaguchiko Station.
We’ll board the express bus to Shinjuku from platform 3.
🕛 1:56 pm
We’ve arrived at Shinjuku Station South Exit. Despite getting caught in a traffic jam due to an accident, we made it back to Shinjuku in less than 3 hours (about 1 hour later than scheduled).
Let’s recap the entire journey:
Including grocery shopping, you can reach Lake Saiko Campground from Shinjuku in just under 4 hours.
Traveling to Lake Saiko Campground by bus is surprisingly convenient and appealing. Even if you don’t own a car or prefer not to drive, the route described in this article allows you to access the campground comfortably.
The main attraction of bus travel is its simplicity. You can relax and enjoy the scenery without worrying about driving. The views of Mount Fuji and the Fuji Five Lakes are particularly stunning. Moreover, express and loop buses are easy to book, and timetables are straightforward, making trip planning a breeze.
Bus travel is also an environmentally friendly option. By sharing a vehicle with others, you can reduce CO2 emissions compared to individual car travel. This is an important consideration for nature-loving campers.
While there are limitations on luggage, this can be an opportunity to return to the essence of camping - enjoying nature with minimal equipment.
Using the bus route described in this article, you can reach Lake Saiko Campground from Shinjuku in about 4 hours. This isn’t much different from driving time, and the benefit of not having to worry about driving is significant.
A camping trip by bus opens up new adventures. Whether you don’t own a car or usually drive, why not try a bus journey? You’re sure to make new discoveries and have a great time.
