Mount Mitake Autumn Leaves 2026 Confirmed

御岳山の紅葉 — Ome, Tokyo (Kanto)

Mount Mitake is a 929-metre peak in Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park, reached by a cable car that climbs 424 metres in six minutes on one of the steepest gradients in eastern Japan. A village of pilgrim lodges sits on the ridge below Musashi-Mitake Shrine. The colour here peaks in the middle of November, roughly two weeks ahead of central Tokyo, and the best of it is on the Rock Garden loop — a stream walk between moss-covered boulders that passes the Ayahiro waterfall.

Background

Musashi-Mitake Shrine has been a centre of mountain worship since at least the Heian period and served as the guardian shrine of the Musashi plain. It is unusual for its wolf worship: the messenger deity Oinu-sama is said to have guided the legendary prince Yamato Takeru out of the mountains, and the shrine still draws dog owners who bring their animals up the cable car to be blessed. The lodges on the ridge are run by oshi, hereditary priest-innkeepers who once guided pilgrims.

Getting there

Take the JR Ome Line to Mitake Station, about 1 hour 40 minutes from Shinjuku with a change at Ome, then a ten-minute bus to Takimoto and the Mitake Tozan Cable Car six minutes to the top. The shrine is a further 25-minute uphill walk through the lodge village.

Tips

• Peak here is mid-November, two weeks before central Tokyo — do not plan this for the first week of December.
• The Rock Garden loop takes about two and a half hours from the cable car and is where the colour actually is; the shrine approach alone is not worth the trip.
• It runs about ten degrees cooler than the city on the ridge, and the stream path is wet — bring layers and shoes with grip.
• During the evening momiji festival the cable car runs later than usual; check the last descent before you commit to staying for the lighting.

Last verified against the official source: Sun, September 13, 2026