Those hiking up Mount Fuji will soon be able to share pictures of their journey and stay in touch with their friends and family at all times, with officials in local prefectures installing free Wi-Fi hotspots aimed at spurring tourism.
Specifically, officials want hikers from Europe and the U.S. to share their experiences atop the largest mountain in Japan. There will be eight Wi-Fi hotspots in the area.
"We hope people will use the service not only to tell about the attractions of Mount Fuji to people abroad but also to obtain weather and other information to ensure their safety," said a spokesperson for the Yamanashi prefectural government's tourism division.
The Wi-Fi stations will be available at the fifth station on Mount Fuji between July 10 and September 14. It will also be available between July 10 and September 10 on the summit of the mountain. Of course, those taking their time to hike the mountain will need to be aware of the 72-hour time limit for Wi-Fi connections.
Of course, the Wi-Fi stations will serve as more than just ways to log into Facebook. They will also help in offering climbers things like weather information and to ensure the safety of climbers.
Visitors to the 12,388-foot mountain have been increasing quite a bit over the past few years, with between 40,000 and 50,000 hikers reportedly making their way along the Yoshidaguchi course last year. Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures reportedly plan on distributing around 70,000 brochures at the fifth and sixth stations of the mountain showing tourists login information for Wi-Fi services.
The decision to implement the Wi-Fi stations wasn't just based on speculation, however. American and European tourists have reportedly wanted to have Internet access on the mountain in order to better share their experiences.
Some, however, are not so sure that people should have access to their smartphones while climbing large mountains.
"I don't think that Fuji san is the right place for people to be walking and looking at their phones instead of looking where they are going," said one commenter on a post from Japan Today. "It's bad enough on the street but climbing a mountain; one down and they all fall down like dominoes."
The news comes as people are expecting Wi-Fi connectivity from an increasing number of places, from public train stations to restaurants. It also begs the question, how far is too far? Is Internet access taking over our lives?
