Tateyama Cable Car, Murodo

Tateyama Cable Car travels nearly a mile and ascends to just shy of 1,650 feet above sea level. The short seven-minute ride passes by zaimokuseki, unusual pillar-shaped rocks formed when lava from the Tateyama volcano cooled millennia ago. At the top, buses follow the Kurobe Alpine sightseeing route in the Hida Mountains to the Murodo Plateau. 720 yen ($6.63) for a single ticket; 1290 yen ($11.88) for a return ticket.