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• The Best and Worst Months to Visit Tokyo Disney Resort

Planning a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort can be an overwhelming task. Traveling halfway around the world can be scary in its own right but trying to plan a perfect trip adds some unneeded pressure. The first decision to make is when you would like to go to Japan and Tokyo Disney Resort. That’s where this post comes in! We’ll be ranking the months from worst to first on when you should visit Tokyo Disney Resort and Japan.

Obviously, everyone’s tastes are different so taking my rankings of these months as a hard and fast rule isn’t the way to go. Instead, I’d take these rankings as groupings and recommendations. What I mean by groupings is that you should probably stay away from the bottom of the list, the middle months would be fine and the top 4 or 5 would all be excellent times to make this incredible trip. Of course, a trip to Japan and Tokyo Disney Resort during the worst month is still better than no trip at all and I know some people don’t have the flexibility to travel any month of the year. Having said that, we do think there is a gigantic benefit to traveling during the months at the top of this list relative to the lowest ranked. It’d be dumb to write this post if that wasn’t true and I try to keep the amount of dumb things I do to a minimum.

These rankings are largely based on Tokyo Disney Resort and not the entire country of Japan. We do recommend traveling throughout the country using the JR Rail Pass though, specifically in Kyoto. The times we’d be most interested in that regard are April and May for Sakura season and November and early December for autumn colors.

There are a few factors I considered while ranking when to travel to Tokyo Disney Resort – crowd levels, temperature, events, etc. We consulted this crowd calendar (and Google Translate) to help see what crowds are like during the whole year. If you are looking for a crowd calendar then follow that link. In regards to crowds, visit Tokyo Disney Resort during weekdays regardless of what month you go. Both Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea see much larger crowds on the weekends thanks to a large local presence. I’ll list a few reasons why the months land where they do as we go. Let’s get to it!

12. August 

Crowds and extreme heat put August at the very bottom of this list. Japan sees temperatures crawl into the 100’s during the summer months and has extreme humidity to go along with that. Both parks usually have summer events going which involve a lot of water being sprayed at guests(!) but those events don’t move the needle enough to pull August out of last place. While not the busiest month overall, the heat moves August to last place.

Take away the heat of August but add in extreme crowds for Tokyo Disney Resort in March. Like the American Parks, Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea see spring break crowds come in droves during March. In 2024, March will signify the end of Tokyo Disney Resort’s 40th anniversary celebration. Across Japan, Sakura (cherry blossom) season starts so that will add some interest to the country as a whole. Try to hold off on Tokyo Disney Resort until April if you are in Japan for cherry blossom season.

While the crowds are fairly low compared to some months, the heat is nearly unbearable and the summer events aren’t as intriguing as other months. If you have to do a summer trip, going in early July is a better option than August but be prepared to take lots of indoor breaks, to alleviate the puddles of sweat on you. Maybe that’s just me…

9. February

I should say that there is a giant leap from the bottom three on this list to February and all of the other months. February has moderate crowds that aren’t low enough to offset the cold temperatures. 2024 offers a Minnie Mouse Festival Event which is cute but not anything to plan a trip around. Whether you think February will be a good month to visit will largely depend on what you think of cold temperatures. There’s a decent chance that the high won’t be above 50 degrees (Fahrenheit) throughout the month. It sounds nice to me but I know others prefer it warmer.

October is enticing thanks to the weather and Halloween festivities. Both Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea celebrate Halloween with decorations, entertainment, ride overlays and merchandise. Along with that, temperatures are moderate (although it is typhoon season). In exchange for the excellent Halloween entertainment, you have to deal with much higher crowd levels. If you like Halloween, visiting this month may be worth it.

7. September

September takes all of October’s positives and with slightly smaller crowds. We do recommend the end of the month as that’s when Halloween and cooler temperatures are in full swing. Crowds are slightly unpredictable but visiting during the weekdays in September should be a safe bet.

June has fairly low crowds but the temperature begins to rise and Tokyo is in the midst of rainy season. Tanabata Days (Japanese Star Festival) go on throughout the month and have generally been celebrated at both parks, while it’s a pretty small and short event, there are special menus, décor and other items to celebrate. Really June is a great time to visit if you get lucky with the weather. With the weather being a wildcard, June generally ends up a little bit lower on the list. For 2024, I’m bumping it up a spot or two thanks to the addition of Tokyo DisneySea’s inaugural Food & Wine Festival as well as the opening of Fantasy Springs. That may cause more crowds but will add an extreme excitement to the parks. 

April is mostly a beautiful month weather wise with low crowd levels. The one downside is that the first and last week of the month can be very crowded with spring break and then Golden Week (Japanese holiday) drawing extreme crowds. Both parks have Easter celebrations with shows and décor as well as DisneySea having a Food & Wine Festival. There is also beautiful colors throughout with it being Sakura season in the early part of the month and spring time in full bloom the rest of April. If you can avoid the busy weeks, April is a great month to visit.

Many people would have a few months that I’ve already listed above this one. But, what can I say? I’m a sucker for really low crowd levels and January is the very best time to visit in that regard. Just stay away from the week after New Year’s and you’ll experience Tokyo Disney Resort at its emptiest. The thought of snow at the Disney Parks is intriguing to me but I can certainly understand people wanting to stay away from the coldest month of the year. Whatever you think of that will likely decide what to do in regards to visiting in January.

3. November

If you are a long time reader then you likely know that we adore Christmas in the Disney Parks. That is no exception here and November is when Christmas begins at Tokyo Disney Resort (in both parks). The temperature is nice this time of year, crowd levels are moderate, and Japan is in the midst of fall color season. There are a few holidays to look out for but otherwise November is an enjoyable month to visit.

2. December

Just like November, December sports Christmas festivities and that’s enough to land it in the top 3. December also has some of the lowest crowds of the year up until the week between Christmas and New Years. Yes, the temperature does get cold but that kind of comes along with the ‘Christmas magic’. Depending on how much you love Christmas festivities in the park, December might be the best month to visit Tokyo Disney Resort.

May has everything guests could want – low crowds, beautiful colors, Easter festivities, and nearly perfect temperatures. As long as you can avoid the first week (Golden Week) of May then it’s a perfect time to visit. No, the events aren’t quite as exciting as Christmas or Halloween, but the beauty of springtime make up for that. All in all, May has a perfect combination of crowds, weather and beauty. In 2024, it might be wise to push off a trip until June to enjoy the new massive expansion opening at DisneySea.

What month do you want to visit Tokyo Disney Resort? Let us know in the comments! If you are planning a trip to the resort then check out our Tokyo Disney Resort Planning Guide . If you enjoy what you are reading here on Wandering in Disney please share this post with your friends, as well as like our social media pages. You can also subscribe to the blog via WordPress or email.  All of those links are on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!

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20 Best Tokyo Disneyland Rides You Shouldn’t Skip for All

All Tokyo Disneyland rides make it one of the happiest destinations on earth. There are plenty of iconic indoor and outdoor rides for you to play , along with different interactive attractions.

I’ve explored this amazing theme park with my wife at least 3 times , and each visit was truly enjoyable . In fact, it is high on my list of top things to do in Tokyo that you shouldn’t miss.

So, let me share the 20 best rides and attractions in Tokyo Disneyland that will surely make you want to try them more than once ! 😊

Tokyo Disneyland’s Exclusive List of Must-Experience Rides

1. splash mountain, 2. space mountain, 3. big thunder mountain, 4. star tours: the adventures continue, 5. monsters, inc. ride & go seek, 6. pooh’s hunny hunt.

• 7. “it’s a small world”

8. Cinderella’s Fairy Tale Hall

9. buzz lightyear’s astro blasters, 10. haunted mansion, 11. peter pan’s flight, 12. pirates of the caribbean, 13. western river railroad, 14. dumbo the flying elephant, 15. minnie’s house, 16. enchanted tale of beauty and the beast.

• 17. Mickey’s PhilharMagic
• 18. Gadget’s Go Coaster
• 19. The Enchanted Tiki Room: Stitch Presents “Aloha E Komo Mai!”

20. The Happy Ride with Baymax

The best tokyo disneyland rides and attractions (summary), must-watch shows at tokyo disneyland, meet up with disney characters, tokyo disneyland: priority pass and premier access, recommended hotels, related posts.

Among the standout rides during your adventure in Tokyo Disneyland, Splash Mountain is a top pick .

This splashing water ride comes with audio-animatronics and 45-degree high-speed drops to entertain you .

Hop aboard the log boat that can cater up to 8 persons . The entire journey lasts for up to 10 minutes.

During your trip, you’ll come across incredible sights that are actually based on the animated Disney film, Song of the South .

Space Mountain is one of Tokyo Disneyland’s most scary rides that should be part of your must-try list.

This thrilling rocket ride is like an indoor roller coaster . It travels you through a galaxy scene at a shockingly high speed .

So, make sure to prepare yourself as the 12-passenger seat ride takes you to the ends of outer space .

Along the way, there will be sharp curves and even sudden falls to hype up the fun .

It might be a challenge to keep your eyes open, but try your best to catch the remarkable scenery.

Big Thunder Mountain is a classic train roller coaster at Tokyo Disneyland that can accommodate 30 people per train.

This high-speed train ride takes you on an electrifying cave adventure .

Enjoy the thrill while watching the spectacular landscape of the 19th century California gold rush era.

Throughout the ride, there will be a lot of thrilling tilts, drops, and even a 180-degree turn .

If you’re a Star Wars fan, don’t miss the Star Tours: The Adventures Continue . This amazing ride lets you experience a realistic Star Wars battle .

Get entertained by the epic galactic adventure filled with incredible tech designs. You’ll even find yourself in the middle of an action-filled setting .

So, if you want to unleash your Star Wars fantasy, this 3D motion simulator attraction is top-notch.

The entire ride runs for 4 minutes and caters up to 40 people per vehicle.

The Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek is a 4-minute fun ride that is unique in Tokyo Disneyland.

It is a dark yet interactive attraction that is packed with sound effects and fuller-than-life animations .

Once you sit on the tram, you will be transported to the set of the famous movie, Monsters Inc .

Each car accommodates 2 persons. And since this ride-and-go-seek game is dark, you’ll be using flashlights to capture the adorable movie characters .

Tokyo Disneyland rides cover a variety of attractions, but Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is one attraction you shouldn’t skip . It’s a trackless dark ride that rotates for about 4.5 minutes .

Uniquely, what you’ll be sitting here is a honey pot that accommodates up to 5 persons .

Along the trip, there will be a fun story-telling that complements well with the 3D fine arts .

Relish the ride that transports you from one scene to another before reaching Pooh’s most-awaited Honey Tree!

7. “it’s a small world”

“it’s a small world” is a water-based boat ride that is bursting with highly-animated designs .

Catch the audio-animatronic dolls dancing, spinning, waving, and even flying around. These adorable miniature statues add more color to the place.

Throughout the 10-minute cruise , the playful chant of the song “It’s a small world” is being played .

This definitely makes the ambience more entertaining . Each boat can take up to 20 people only.

Step into the magical Cinderella’s Fairy Tale Hall and get mesmerized by its sophisticated designs .

Inside this beautiful structure are pieces from Cinderella‘s life story. These include some dazzling chandeliers and intricate ceilings.

Along with that, you’ll love the painting gallery that highlights different Cinderella scenes .

The walkthrough exhibit is also surrounded by stunning miniature statues . And of course, the famous glass slipper is also on display .

Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters is an interactive shooting attraction available within Tokyo Disneyland. This slow ride is very popular among tourists travelling with kids .

Here, you will go on board a space cruiser that can fit up to 3 persons.

Each vehicle comes with laser pistols and a joystick, which you can use along the way.

Experience a 360-degree rotation with the help of the joystick.

And then, shoot Emperor Zurg and his robots using the laser shooters .

If you want a spooky, dark ride , try the Haunted Mansion . As soon as you enter this ominous gothic mansion , you can already feel the eerie vibes.

There are plenty of ghosts, ghouls, and goblins lurking around . Some of the scary characters are even dancing and hanging , so never let your guard down.

And since this is a slow-moving ride with creepy effects, lighting, and sounds, you won’t get disappointed with the 15-minute adventure .

A total of 2 persons can seat on the Omnimover-style vehicle.

Peter Pan’s Flight is also part of the must-visit Tokyo Disneyland attractions , so make sure to ride it.

This place captivates you with its flying ship , which will serve as your transportation to Neverland, London, and Captain Hook’s pirate ship.

Come and see the many wonders of this rail-suspended dark ride that can fit 2 guests per vehicle.

Your adventure begins at the humble home of the Darling family and jumps next to the old, quiet London streets . Thereafter, you will meet Wendy Darling and Captain Hook .

Pirates of the Caribbean is another dark boat ride that you shouldn’t miss. Each boat can cater to 20 passengers.

From the name itself, this indoor cruise mimics the popular Disney movie, Pirates of the Caribbean .

You will travel through the world of pirates that is filled with realistic designs and incredible sounds .

Along the way, you will see a lot of creepy-looking characters as well as jolly figures . For sure, you will enjoy this classic water adventure.

Western River Railroad is a steam train that can accommodate 140 persons.

Unlike other rides, this 15-minute outdoor expedition passes right through other areas in the park . These include Critter Country, Adventureland, Thunder Mountain, and Westernland.

While onboard, you’ll catch a glimpse of the daily lives of the Native Americans . The scenic views are also worth-capturing.

And near the end part of the adventure, you will enter a dark area with a lot of dinosaur figures .

Marvel at the blue sky above you as you settle on top of Dumbo The Flying Elephant .

Not too slow and not too fast, this carousel-style ride is definitely a fun way to enjoy the outdoors .

Each Dumbo vehicle can accommodate 2 persons only.

So, whether you’re with your partner or with your kid, you’ll love this steady yet exhilarating trip.

Has it crossed your mind to live in a cute, tiny Disney house?

It’s time to make your dreams into reality and enter Minnie’s House .

This gorgeous home is too cute to go unnoticed! Even from afar, you can feel the charm of this small structure.

Go inside the house and be transported into the world of Minnie Mouse!

In the living room, you’ll see pretty things like pink telephone, green sofa, and colourful stack of books . There’s also a kitchen area, a bedroom, and a fireplace.

No list of top rides at Tokyo Disneyland will be complete without Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast . This new attraction caters to visitors of all ages .

Hop aboard the magical cups and enjoy the realistic acts from the famous movie, Beauty and the Beast.

Throughout the ride, you’ll be enthralled by majestic scenes and magical music . Truly, this is like dream come true for die-hard fans of the animated film.

17. Mickey’s PhilharMagic

Watch Mickey’s PhilharMagic and get a chance to see the fun-filled world of Disney .

This 12-minute show fascinates its audience with realistic scenes and animated effects .

It gathers some of the best animated Disney movies like Mickey Mouse , Coco , the Donald Duck , and more!

And during the 4D performance , you can sing along with your favorite characters. So, don’t miss this spot and have a marvelous time with your family and friends.

18. Gadget’s Go Coaster

Gadget’s Go Coaster is another fun spot for families . Adorned with vibrant colors, this ride may appear to be all mild and cheerful.

But don’t underestimate the charming designs because this one is quite electrifying!

Get on a fantastic roller coaster journey and prepare yourself for a thrilling experience.

While aboard the seat, enjoy the twists and turns along with the colorful scenes around you .

19. The Enchanted Tiki Room: Stitch Presents “Aloha E Komo Mai!”

Drop by The Enchanted Tiki Room: Stitch Presents “Aloha E Komo Mai! and revel in this lively show .

Here, you get to see the four talented Birds of Paradise namely Manu, Mahina, Hau’oli, and Waha Nui .

Follow the entire performance, which is filled with remarkable audio-animatronics.

And of course, enjoy the act of the mischievous yet adorable Stitch from the famous Lilo & Stitch movie !

The Happy Ride with Baymax offers you the opportunity to get dragged by Baymax! This is such a rare chance of having this fluffy character as your driver.

And you’ll love the ride even more because of the lively music. Be entertained by the enthralling loops while enjoying the musical vibes!

Thrill Rides:

• Splash Mountain – Water-based thrill ride
• Space Mountain – Indoor roller coaster set in space
• Big Thunder Mountain – Outdoor roller coaster with a mine train theme

Sci-Fi/Futuristic Attractions:

• Star Tours: The Adventures Continue – Space-themed motion simulator ride
• Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters – Interactive shooting gallery ride set in space
• The Happy Ride with Baymax – Whirling ride themed after the character Baymax from Big Hero 6

Fantasy and Fairy Tales:

• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt – Dark ride based on Winnie the Pooh
• “it’s a small world” – Boat ride featuring various cultures in a whimsical style
• Cinderella’s Fairy Tale Hall – Walk-through attraction exploring Cinderella’s story
• Peter Pan’s Flight – Flying boat ride through scenes from Peter Pan
• Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast – A ride that brings the “Beauty and the Beast” story to life with scenes from the movie.
• Mickey’s PhilharMagic – 3D film attraction featuring Disney characters

Adventure and Exploration:

• Pirates of the Caribbean – Boat ride with a pirate theme
• Western River Railroad – Train ride offering park views
• Dumbo The Flying Elephant – Aerial carousel ride

Character-Themed Attractions:

• Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek – Interactive dark ride based on Monsters, Inc
• Haunted Mansion – Dark ride through a haunted estate
• Minnie’s House – Walk-through attraction of Minnie Mouse’s house
• Gadget’s Go Coaster – Roller coaster themed around the character Gadget
• The Enchanted Tiki Room: Stitch Presents “Aloha E Komo Mai!” – A musical animatronic show featuring Stitch

Something to Take Note Of:

For non-thrill seekers , give priority to Pooh’s Hunny Hunt and Monsters, Inc. Rider & Go Seek because these rides easily run out.

And for thrill-seekers , then Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain should be your top choices.

Friendly Reminder:

There is no ticketing counter available at Disneyland for purchasing tickets .

You need to book your Disneyland tickets online here before your visit.

After the purchase, you’ll receive an e-ticket in your email. Just scan this e-ticket from your smartphone at the entry gate to access the park.

Remember to secure your park tickets early , as they sell out quickly , especially during peak season.

My Recommendations:

Option 1: DisneySea

If you have more time in Tokyo, it’s recommended that you also go to DisneySea . This is a super beautiful theme park that is located next to Disneyland.

However, I encourage you to allocate another day here because this is quite big and has a lot of attractions to visit .

Go check out my guide to the best Tokyo DisneySea rides to know all the rides and shows that you should try there.

Option 2: Sanrio Puroland

Another suggested place to visit is Hello Kitty Land . Though this is a bit smaller compared to DisneySea, it’s a great place to meet Hello Kitty and Sanrio characters .

Plus, it comes with fun parades and performances that are very suitable for those travelling with kids. You can read my Sanrio Puroland article for more information.

Visiting Singapore soon? Don’t miss the Universal Studios there and consult this guide to the top Universal Studios Singapore rides .

Tokyo Disneyland isn’t just about thrilling and fun rides; there’s a whole world of excitement waiting for you!

So, let me introduce the 4 must-see shows and parades that you should catch while you’re in the park.

1. Mickey’s Magical Music World

Mickey’s Magical Music World welcomes you to a dazzling performance by Mickey Mouse and his friends .

Take joy in the fantastic live show filled with beautiful music and lively dances .

And of course, the magical stage sets make the show more memorable . So, make sure to add this attraction to your plan and be captivated by their brilliant charms.

2. Club Mouse Beat

Club Mouse Beat is also an entertaining avenue for Disney lovers . Groove to the beat of the music while your beloved characters dance their hearts out.

Here, you can catch them showcasing their talents like there’s no tomorrow .

See them highlight their dancing skills in hip-hop, pop, Latin, and more!

The show runs for around 25 minutes, so better prepare yourselves for a remarkable show!

3. Disney Harmony in Color

Disney Harmony in Color is a vibrant daytime parade showcasing beloved Disney characters and celebrating themes of adventure, courage, family bonds, and friendship.

The parade features colorful flower petals and lively music, making it a joyous and exciting experience for all ages .

It lasts 45 minutes and starts at the Park Entrance, goes through World Bazaar, passes Cinderella Castle, and stops at the Plaza.

When you watch, look for Tinker Bell . She is at the front with a colorful costume and rainbow wings.

You will also see characters from movies like Zootopia, Moana, Wreck-It Ralph, and Coco . They ride on bright, fun floats.

At the end of the parade, Mickey Mouse and his friends come out . They end the parade with lots of colors and happiness, creating a heartwarming and cheerful finale .

4. Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade Dreamlights

Cap off the adventure by watching the Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade Dreamlights . This night parade lights up the entire park with vibrant colours and beams .

Here, you’ll meet the Blue Fairy, together with the Knights of Light . The Casey Junior Train, on the other hand, is occupied by Mickey Mouse and Goofy .

Also crowd favourites are Alice in the Wonderland , Pete’s Dragon , Toy Story , Genie , Cinderella , and Pinocchio .

All these floats are not just mesmerizing but also nostalgic.

While wandering around the park, you might come across your favourite Disney characters. Here are some spots to meet these adorable figures.

1. Mickey’s House and Meet Mickey

How about you spend time inside Mickey’s House?

This is another renowned spot in Tokyo Disneyland because it allows you to see the life of Mickey Mouse.

Enjoy the walkthrough tour and learn more about this mischievous and jolly character.

Check out his classic collectibles and bunch of treasured possessions!

After that, take a look inside his Movie Barn and watch some of his well-known movie scenes. Then, you’re free to share a photo with Mickey Mouse!

Tigger is very easy to spot because of his orange and black stripes. And of course, just like in the movies, he is also very energetic.

So, don’t be surprised to catch him bouncing all over the place.

Don’t get intimated with Eeyore’s gloomy appearance.

His worry-eyed face may suggest sadness but he is actually very friendly. That’s why many want to take a photo of him.

Oftentimes, you’ll find him surrounded by a lot of people.

Interact with Rabbit and strike a pose before the crowd gets bigger. This adorable character is such a joy to watch as he entertains visitors with his charms.

Another cute character that is always ready to brighten up your day is Piglet. His vibrant color makes him a standout even in a crowd of visitors.

So, admire his presence and don’t forget to capture his delightful smile.

There are 6 important things about this park that you should know in advance . These tips will help you make the most out of your visit .

So, let me highlight the key insights through the list below.

Take Note : Remember to purchase your Disneyland tickets online , as there are no ticketing counters available on-site. This is important, so please take note.

1. Know the open and unavailable rides beforehand

There are times when some rides in the park are close for maintenance. So better check Disneyland’s ride closure date in advance so you won’t miss the rides that you want to try on that day.

2. Be informed of the schedule

You can also visit this Disney parade and show schedule website to know the exact showtimes. This will help you plan your trip ahead of time and maximize your tour.

3. Check the waiting time every now and then

To get the updated waiting time of the rides, download the Tokyo Disney Resort App . Using this app, you can prioritize rides with shorter lines and save time.

4. Assess the crowd level

To avoid crowds, consider going to the park on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday. These three days are often less crowded than others.

5. Allot 1 day for your trip

To make your visit more efficient, allocate 1 day for Tokyo Disneyland because there are too many things to see and do there.

I personally spent the entire day in the park with my wife because of the abundant entertainment options.

More so, Disneyland is just part of my Tokyo trip. See here for my personal 7-day Tokyo itinerary, which will show you all the places that you should visit. I will also share here the suggested time duration for each place.

6. Transportation

There are 2 best ways to reach the theme park, either by bus or train.

Sometimes, taking the bus is the most convenient option. However, this depends on where you depart.

So, make sure to see this detailed article on how to go to Tokyo Disneyland to assist you in choosing the best transport mode.

Tokyo Disneyland offers two types of passes to help you access fast lanes for popular rides, reducing your wait time .

1. Priority Pass

The Priority Pass is available free of charge . It allows you to book access to certain rides or attractions ahead of time . This way, you bypass the standard queue . It’s like making a reservation for a ride.

To book, use the Tokyo Disney Resort App. The app lets you select eligible rides. However, you can’t choose the time to access the ride . The time will be allocated by the app.

You can get another Priority Pass in two ways . Either after using the previous one , or after a 2-hour period , whichever comes earlier.

Refer to the Priority Pass guide here for usage instructions.

2. Premier Access

Similar to the Priority Pass, Premier Access is typically a paid service that grants immediate or expedited access to attractions .

This pass allows you to choose a specific time for your favorite ride .

You can purchase a Premier Access pass for another ride after 60 minutes of your initial purchase.

Read the Disney Premier Access information to learn more about it.

There are 2 nearby hotels that are the best to stay while in Tokyo Disneyland.

• Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel : This hotel offering spacious rooms is just a 2-minute walk to Bayside Station. From there, you can ride the monorail going to Tokyo Disneyland in 9 minutes. It is also directly accessible from both Narita and Haneda Airports via the Airport Limousine bus.
• Hilton Tokyo Bay : This is located beside Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel.

17 Best Tokyo DisneySea Rides You Can’t Miss Now

Tokyo Itinerary: The Best 7-Day Guide for a Fantastic Trip

15 Best Universal Studios Japan Rides to Win Your Heart

2 thoughts on “20 best tokyo disneyland rides you shouldn’t skip for all”.

Excellent articles Josh! My family just took our first trip to Disney World in Orlando, Florida and we loved it so much that we want to go back! But we also want to visit Japan, learn about the culture and experience some traditional Japanese activities. We didn’t know how many things at Disney Tokyo are so different and unique from Disney Orlando! Now we are talking about adding a couple days to our trip just for Disney Tokyo thanks to your posts! Thank you so much.

Hi Erah McMullen,

You’re most welcome. 🙂

I hope that my guide and sharing tips in here can help you to maximize your trip to Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea .

These 2 attractions are truly amazing and beautiful. Worth to visit!

Wish you have an enjoyable and great holiday in Tokyo. 🙂

Regards, Josh

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Truly Tokyo

A Tokyo Travel Guide

A Visit To Tokyo Disneyland

Tokyo Disneyland is everything you'd expect from the Disney empire, and a great treat for children if you're travelling as a family. Mario Leto provides a personal view of what to expect.

Yes, there is a Disneyland in Japan. It’s called Tokyo Disneyland, but it’s actually in Chiba, which is a suburb of Tokyo. Should you go there? Well, do you have kids? Then yes, you should go. Are you a big Disney fan? Then yes, you should go. Do you enjoy flawless service, highly choreographed performances, and white people dressed up as animation characters? Yes? You should go!

You can see our comprehensive guide to Tokyo Disneyland with ticket information, maps and explanations of what to expect from each zone in our Tokyo Disneyland guide along with our Tokyo DisneySea guide which is right next door to Tokyo Disneyland.

Note that you can purchase Tokyo Disneyland tickets online with verified Disneyland partners, which means you can skip the ticket queues at Disneyland itself.

Check Hotel Availability

Destination, check-in date, check-out date.

To be exact, Tokyo Disneyland is in the district of Maihama in the city of Urayasu in Chiba Prefecture. It can be reached from Tokyo Station in 15 minutes using either the JR Keiyo Line or the JR Musashino Line (both ￥220). Your destination is Maihama Station, and the park is a short ten-minute walk from there. It opens any time from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. depending on the day, so be sure to check the schedule before leaving your lodgings. Weekday mornings and evenings see heavy commuting traffic throughout the metropolitan city, so plan accordingly.

Arriving at Maihama Station, navigating your way to the park shouldn't be too difficult. You'll see Disneyland in the distance from the train windows, and then from the train platform, so direction should be obvious. But just in case your vision is a bit blurry from too much sake the night before, make this your plan: Exit the south gate, turn right, go up and over the pedestrian bridge, and follow the crowds to the park entrance. And try not to giggle and skip the whole way.

We arrived at the park around 9:00 a.m. on a Wednesday and bought our tickets at the gate. A one-day pass for adults over 18 years of age is ￥7,400; for juniors between the ages of 12 and 17, the price is ￥6,400; and for children ages 4 to 11, the price is ￥4,800. Two-day, three-day and four-day passports can also be bought, as can annual passports and a few other creative time-slot and dual-park options (Disneyland plus DisneySea).

You can purchase Tokyo Disneyland tickets online , which means you can skip the ticket queues at Disneyland itself.

Wednesday was a strategic day to visit. We of course had to consider the kids' schools, but weighing most heavily on our minds was the crowd factor. There are plenty of crowd calendars online that show every day of the year labeled somewhere from very busy to not so busy and everything in between, but common sense should serve you well enough: Weekends and holidays are very busy, Fridays and Mondays slightly less so, Tuesdays through Thursdays the least. Magical Wednesday it was.

Arriving inside the park is always slight madness. Where to begin? And how to discuss it with everyone chattering about and a band playing near the entrance? The answer: Fastpass. Fastpass is authorized queue jumping. You get a special pass for a specified time to walk past everyone waiting in the queue so that you can ride that popular ride without waiting for hours. You can get one Fastpass at a time, and after you use it, you can get another. So make a break for that attraction that you know will have a monstrous queue by mid-morning and get your Fastpass.

My family's own day started in Tomorrowland, the section of the park with a science fiction theme. On previous visits, our kids had been too young to express interest in rides like Space Mountain and Star Tours, but the passing of time offered new opportunities for our growing children. We made a beeline for Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters to get a Fastpass, but alas, it was under construction. We instead stopped by Space Mountain for the Fastpass and then made the short walk to Star Tours, which had a mere five-minute wait. Good choice. By the end of the long day, Star Tours was declared the best ride of the day by my seven-year-old daughter. If you like the movie Star Wars, then Star Tours is a must.

After Star Tours, we walked over to Fantasyland and got in line for the Haunted Mansion, which has a Nightmare Before Christmas theme. During the 20-minute wait in line, daddy irritated everyone by singing This is Halloween and pointing out all the decor from Tim Burton's blockbuster animation. The ride itself is a slow tour through the movie's various themes and the kids, having seen the movie several hundred times, loved it (when they had their eyes open). Afterwards, my oldest daughter and I made our way back to Tomorrowland to use our Fastpass on Space Mountain, and my wife and the youngest went to It's a Small World.

Space Mountain is a twisting high-speed roller-coaster ride in the dark. Period. There's not much by way of visuals and so isn't really suitable for young kids. My seven-year-old, while amazed by the new sensations of having her body jerked in unexpected directions at high speeds, didn't really have much to say about it later. I doubt she'll choose to ride it again the next time we're in Walt's neighborhood. It's a Small World would have been a better choice. Luckily for my oldest, it is such a beloved attraction that my wife and youngest rode it again with us later in the day.

It's a Small World is a boat ride through different parts of the world. The kids' enjoyment is riding in a boat and looking at colorful scenes with robotic midgets dancing on either side of water. The adults' enjoyment is trying to accurately identify the different countries on display by associating known cultural attributes. There are always a few stumpers, but I blame it on the outdated decor and the lack of any attempt at realistic depictions of the robotic inhabitants. My personal favorite moment of the experience was pointing out the Japanese section of the ride to my Japanese wife and yelling, "China!"

Tokyo Disneyland opened in 1983 and was the first Disneyland built outside of the United States. It is styled after the original two Disney parks and, not surprisingly, cleared its initial debt in a mere four years. The whole Japanese Disney shebang is actually owned and operated by The Oriental Land Company, a Japanese recreation company established in 1960. Oriental Land pays royalties to Disney for character licenses and such and hires and trains many of the workers in the park. It's more complicated than that, but not really interesting enough to document in this blog. If you are in fact interested, check out the seven-part history on the Oriental Land website .

After using our Space Mountain Fastpass, we should have made a quick move to get another one for another attraction, but we didn't. We dawdled for a bit. We bought some honey popcorn (more on this later) and strolled over to Westernland. We took a Tom Sawyer raft over to Tom Sawyer Island where we walked through a cave, climbed a tree house, ate some snacks in a Western frontier fort, and poked around an American Indian village. It was the least busy area of the entire park (happy adults) but the kids got bored after a while and whined about "getting back to the park." Yes, we were indeed still in the park, but their reaction to the contrast was understandable. Besides, everyone was getting hungry.

The lesson to be learned from the previous paragraph is this: Get your Fastpasses as soon as possible. Failure to do so will result in either waiting in line for hours or forfeiting certain park experiences. I'm a forty-five-year-old academic living in Tokyo and happily opt for attraction forfeiture, but if you're seven years old or from out of the country, it's certainly something to consider. By the time we did make a move for another Fastpass around noon, the available times for queue skipping were around 19:00 and for us that was too late. We had planned to be on the way home by then. Kids had school the next day and would be tired and crabby.

Another lesson to learn before arriving at the park is that a decent meal can be hard to find without long waits. There are several nice sit-down restaurants but several is not enough with over 30 million visitors per year as of 2013. Solution: make a reservation prior to your arrival at the park. From our experience, that's a great idea. With our family's dietary needs, we had hoped to eat at the Japanese restaurant Hokusai, but that would have meant a two-hour wait, and that doesn't fly with kids. We ended up at Center Street Coffeehouse and only had to wait for 30 minutes, but still, for hungry kids, 30 minutes is an eternity.

At Center Street Coffeehouse, I got the vegetable plate set which included a baguette filled with stir-fried vegetables and a fresh veggie salad (￥1,680). My wife and the kids got the seafood plate which included an assortment of deep-fried seafood, rice, baked potato, and salad (￥1,980). Overall, the food was fresh, crispy, succulent, and satisfying. Disney does things right, and the food is no exception. Yes, everything is overpriced, but that's the cost of Disneyland. If you're picky about your finances, stay home or risk making yourself miserable. There is also the option of bringing your own food, but how much can you bring for an entire 12-hour day of Mickey madness?

If you have special dietary needs, Disney Japan is sort of on the ball. Some of the sit-down restaurants explicitly state the availability of "special dietary menus", but in our experience, that doesn't amount to much. Vegetarian? Yes. Vegan? Not without forfeiting part of your meal. Gluten intolerant? Lol. The bright side is that all food in the park, be it seven-course meals or snacks from vendor shacks along the parade route, comes with multi-lingual ingredient lists that you can inspect. Just ask the waiter or vendor to have a look. That's how, out of the six popcorn flavors available, we ended up with the honey popcorn. Don't be afraid to ask. Disney employees aim to please, and that, dear reader, is from the horse's mouth.

After lunch, the kids wanted to head over to Toontown. It is the ultimate playground for kids under ten. You can walk through Mickey's house (crowded!) or clamber through Donald's boat. You can play a pointless Paint-n-Play game at Goofy's (pictured above), or indoctrinate your kids at Minnie's house where she "loves to cook and bake". It's all low-key amusement for the young ones but lacks the child-adult interest balance. For me, it's one big yawn and I try desperately to redirect the kids to other parts of the park as much as I can. Despite its own particular challenges, I pray for adolescence.

In addition to the standard attractions at Disneyland, there are other forms of entertainment to endure. One of these is the sit-down shows in most sections of the park. These shows usually include a stage and limited audience space requiring reservations or lottery tickets. Some of the most popular are Lilo's Luau and Fun in Adventureland, Mickey and Company at the Diamond Horseshoe in Westernland, Once Upon a Time in Fantasyland, and One Man's Dream II—Tomorrow Lives On in Tomorrowland.

Another form of entertainment is the park-wide parade which occurs three times a day, twice in the daytime and once after dark. One of the daytime parades is a themed parade which changes according to the season, and the other daytime parade a general Disney character celebration. The nighttime parade is a light-show, strangely but aptly called the "Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade Dreamlights". All of them are stellar productions (some of them years in the making), and are worth watching if you're a first-time visitor. My wife and I generally try to avoid them now, though, because they are crowded and require wasting attraction time for staking a spot for optimal viewing pleasure. That's especially important for kids under 130 cm tall who can't see above the crowds.

One last form of entertainment worth mentioning is the shopping. Nobody can go to Disneyland without purchasing some kind of souvenir, especially if you are a tourist from outside the country. You will feel compelled to possess something with the words "Tokyo Disneyland" on it and only years later, when you find that souvenir on some shelf in the back of your closet, will you question the wisdom of that original compulsion. The entrance to the park, the section called World Bazaar, has the most concentrated number of shops to indulge your purchasing pleasure, but every section of the park offers some sort of shopping opportunities with its own thematic flair.

Not surprisingly, I have an adult male pet peeve that prevents me from personal purchasing overindulgence: Everything for sale at Disneyland displays the name of the park, and most have some visage of one of the major Disney characters in prominent display. Do you want a hat? It'll have ears or the word Disneyland in sparkles or Goofy's silly face on it. Want a coffee mug? Same. How about a pencil, a notebook, a t-shirt, or a box of chocolates? Same, same, same, same. There is no escape from the branding wonder that is Disneyland. Well, almost.

There is one shop at Tokyo Disneyland that I cannot resist, and once inside, a purchase or two is always inevitable. That shop is the Magic Shop. There are dozens of magic tricks for sale in the Magic Shop, and, more importantly, a magician on hand to demonstrate them all. I have seriously spent hours there, watching the magician's small performances and browsing the tricks on display, asking for demonstrations, and then repeating the entire routine. On this particular occasion, my older daughter joined me in this ritual and my wife had to physically remove us from the premises.

Overall, we had a rather relaxing day. We rode a couple rides in Tomorrowland and a few in Fantasyland. The kids enjoyed a couple attractions in Toontown, and then there was our respite on Tom Sawyer Island in Westernland. We, of course, have the advantage of living in Tokyo, so there is no need to rush around the park trying to cover all the attractions. Besides, that would be nearly impossible. If you are visiting from outside the country and have an interest in experiencing the park to its fullest, I highly recommend, at the very least, two days in the park. And don't forget, there is also DisneySea next door, which would require at least another two days. The four-day pass now starts to make sense. Disney: Always on the ball.

Before I sign off, I think it's worth the time to review a few things that will make your Tokyo Disneyland trip more rewarding: 1) Make restaurant reservations before arriving if you want a nice sit-down meal, 2) Use the Fastpass option as soon as possible to ease your wait times, 3) Bring some of your own snacks to ease the burden on your wallet and to fend off frustrations about dietary restrictions, 4) Young kids will love Toontown and Fantasyland the most, 5) Stake your land claims early for prime seating along the parade route, and 6) Don't forget to make early reservations for any performances you may want to see. A bit of planning will go a long way for everyone. In the words of Mickey himself, "Hot diggity dog!"

About Mario Leto Mario Leto is assistant professor in the School of Global Japanese Studies at Meiji University in Tokyo. His research and writing interests include travel, literature, and media discourse on food and dietary alternatives.

Where Is This Place Located?

• Open the Tokyo map
• You will see the list of places on the left hand side. (Click the 3-line icon in the top left corner if not). Scroll down or use the map search (the magnifying glass icon) to find the place you want.
• Click the name of the place in the list. Its location pin will be highlighted on the map.
• Map pins are color coded - BLUE: Hotels / Ryokan / Guesthouses | VIOLET: Ryokan | PINK: Places to Eat | GREEN: Shops | YELLOW: Things to See and Do
• If you're using the map on your phone, open the map and then search for the name of the place. The map will then zoom in on its location.

Tokyo Vacation Checklist

• For all the essentials in a brief overview, see my First Time In Tokyo guide
• Check Tokyo accommodation availability and pricing on Booking.com and Agoda.com - often you can book with no upfront payment and free cancellation
• Need tips on where to stay? See my one page guide Where To Stay In Tokyo
• You can buy shinkansen (bullet train) tickets online from Klook - popular routes include Tokyo to Kyoto , Tokyo to Osaka and Tokyo to Hiroshima
• You can buy an eSim to activate in Japan or buy a Japan SIM card online for collection on arrival at Tokyo Narita or Haneda airports. Or rent an unlimited data pocket wifi router
• See my comprehensive Packing List For Japan
• Compare airline flight prices and timings for the best Japan flight deals . Check my guides to arriving at Narita Airport and at Haneda Airport .
• If you're visiting more than one city, you might save money with a Japan Rail Pass – see if it's worth it for you
• A prepaid Welcome Suica card makes travelling around Tokyo much easier - here's how
• World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Buy at home or while traveling and claim online from anywhere in the world
• Do you want help planning your trip? Chris Rowthorn and his team of Japan experts at Japan Travel Consulting can help

Tokyo District Map

• Imperial Palace Area
• Tokyo Station
• Shimbashi Shiodome Hamamatsucho Shinagawa
• Akihabara Kanda
• Roppongi Akasaka
• Harajuku Aoyama
• Ebisu Daikanyama Meguro

Disclosure: trulytokyo.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com and amazon.co.uk. World Nomads provides travel insurance for travellers in over 100 countries. As an affiliate, we receive a fee when you get a quote from World Nomads using this link. We do not represent World Nomads. This is information only and not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.

15 Need-to-know Tokyo Disneyland Tips, Tricks, and Hacks

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A visit to Tokyo Disneyland is always going to be an amazing adventure. It may have just turned 40 years old, but this Japanese theme park is one of the world’s best!

When you’re planning a trip to Tokyo Disneyland you’ll want to make sure you see and experience everything.

These 15 tried and trusted hacks will ensure that you have a stress-free visit that you can really enjoy!

Table of Contents

Planning a stress-free visit to Tokyo Disneyland is totally doable with a little bit of strategy, prep, and a chilled-out approach.

Just follow these simple and laid-back tips to make the most of your time there.

Take it easy and research the park’s layout and attractions beforehand to create a loose itinerary that suits your vibe.

Grab your tickets in advance to skip the lines and enjoy a carefree entry. Arriving early can give you a head start and snag FastPasses for the popular rides.

Don’t forget to pack essentials like sunscreen , comfy shoes, and snacks for a relaxed day. Lastly, brush up on park rules and etiquette to ensure a chill visit.

Now, follow these easy and accessible tips for a smooth visit.

1. Always buy your Tokyo Disneyland tickets online

Queues are an inescapable feature of a trip to Tokyo Disneyland Resorts.

So why put yourself through an additional frustrating queue before you even get through the entrance?

Save yourself the hassle – buy ahead online and turn up early to beat the queues.

2. Have a game plan for Wi-Fi coverage during your visit

If you were expecting to be able to access Wi-Fi, stream video, or listen to music while in the queues at Tokyo Disneyland, you’ll be disappointed.

Wi-Fi coverage in Tokyo Disneyland is super limited and only available around the Main Entrance and Main Street House.

If you must stay ‘connected’ during the day, make sure you hire a Mi-Fi mobile internet device.

3. Pick up your Disneyland Resorts Celebration sticker from Guest Relations or Main Street House!

If it’s your birthday when you visit Tokyo Disneyland, you can receive a special name sticker to wear all day long.

Cast members that see you will head over and greet you personally! Make sure you stick your sticker somewhere prominent so you can be the center of attention all day!

4. Visiting Tokyo Disneyland Resorts during the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th week in April is a smart move

Veteran visitors recommend booking your holiday between the second and fourth week in April.

By visiting TDR at this time, you’ll skip the manic Sakura (cherry blossom) week AND get your trip in before Golden Week starts. It’s worth it to skip the crowds!

Take a quick look

• 10 Best Golden Week Destinations In Japan

5. Opt for weekdays for a less congested Tokyo Disney Resort visit

Heading to Tokyo Disneyland during the weekend is asking for trouble. Every salaryman and his wife and kids will be ahead of you in the queue.

If you are determined to have a congestion-free trip to Tokyo Disneyland, book your tickets for Tuesday through Friday.

Of course, this does not apply to Spring break in March, Golden Week in April, Obon Week in October, or New Year. 

Read later – 10 Best New Year Celebrations In Japan

6. Keep a look out for Disney characters that you only see at Tokyo Disneyland (and have a chat)

Die-hard Disneyland fans will enjoy seeing characters that aren’t usually featured in the U.S. in Tokyo Disneyland.

American visitors have been charmed by meeting a super kawaii Marie from The Aristocats and the Three Little Pigs.

You can also talk to face characters in Japan which can be super exciting if you are an English speaker. Many of the character actors come from U.S. parks and will speak to you and your family in English!

7. If you’re planning on eating at a Tokyo Disneyland restaurant, book ahead

You can enjoy table-service meals with service at many of the restaurants in Tokyo Disneyland including: 

• Blue Bayou Restaurant (beef, pork, and seafood American cuisine)
• Restaurant Hokusai (Japanese cuisine)

Table service options are more limited at Tokyo Disneyland than at Tokyo DisneySea , so book well ahead of your trip. You can obtain priority seating for your meal via the Tokyo Disney website. 

If you leave it late, you can also make a same-day reservation by phone or online from 09:00 am, or go to the restaurant at 10:00 to see if you’ll be able to sit down.

8. Don’t eat at peak hours!

Everyone will want to head to the nearest restaurant at lunchtime.

By having your lunch or dinner outside of peak hours, you’ll escape the long waits of 30 minutes or more for seating or your order. Have your lunch or evening meal outside of peak hours.

9. Save cash at Tokyo Disneyland by buying these cheap and tasty snacks

Keep costs down on the big day by ensuring that you don’t splurge on big meals at the counter service or table-service restaurants.

Tokyo Disneyland has loads of cheap snacks that you can use to supplement a bento box you bring in. Look out for these super-cheap snacks:

• Mickey Castella cake – 350 yen
• Honey popcorn – 400 yn
• Mickey ice bar – 300 yen
• Cheesy spring rolls (available in pizza flavor and shrimp and egg) only – 350 yen
• Green Alien mochi (3 per serving) – 350 yen

10. Use the TDR Wait app!

Don’t wait around or wander on your Tokyo Disneyland trip. Use the official Tokyo Disney Resort App to coordinate your entire day, so you don’t miss anything you want to enjoy!

Use this dedicated smartphone app for Tokyo Disney to:

• Buy resort tickets online (Japanese app)
• Book slots for attractions in advance
• Make restaurant reservation
• Check and receive alerts for your wait time
• Track your location to help you get the best out of your visit

The Tokyo Disney Resort App is available for iOS and Android phones. 

11. Stay at one of the official Tokyo Disney Resort hotels!

Travelers who have made Tokyo Disneyland the center of their Tokyo trip should seriously think about booking their stay at one of the official Tokyo Disney Resort hotels.  

We’ve got to be honest. Staying on Tokyo Disney Resort property makes a massive difference to your experience at Tokyo Disneyland.

You won’t have to get up at 4 am to head over to the park early on public transport. The Disney monorail stops nearby each hotel, saving you time and energy for enjoying yourself!

Consider staying at one of these two leading Tokyo Disney Resort hotels.

Hilton Tokyo Bay

Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel

12. Target the right FASTPASSES

Having a FASTPASS makes waiting for rides so much easier if you want to go on the most popular rides like Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek! 

However, FASTPASS slots run out quickly, especially when the park is busy, so you need to be strategic and prioritize the rides you would like a FASTPASS for. 

Prioritize rides where using a FASTPASS will save you a wait time of 30 minutes or more. There are no tech shortcuts, the passes are paper passes so you’ll have to walk over to each ride.

Here are the key rides to target for FASTPASS access:

• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt
• Monsters Inc. Ride & Go Seek
• Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters
• Space Mountain
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

13. Grab a Tokyo Disney Resorts monorail pin

Tokyo Disney Resorts visitors with lots of monorail tickets can exchange them for an exclusive Tokyo Disney Resort Monorail Pin.

This enamel pin has become quite the collector’s item, with new designs released each year.

To get your hands on a Tokyo Disney Resort monorail pin, simply hand in at least three expired one-day or multi-day monorail passes to the ticket booth. Your limited edition pin awaits!

Also Read 📖

• Japanese Theme Park Rules You Should Follow
• 38 Japanese Theme Parks for You to Visit
• Tokyo Disneyland vs Tokyo DisneySea

14. If you want to stay outside Tokyo Disney Resort to save cash, book at a nearby hotel

As I said above, staying in an official Tokyo Disney Resort hotel will save you time, hassle and get you that much closer to all the Disney fun.

However, if you are looking to maximize your budget, staying at a non-TDR hotel that is nearby the park will save you money. 

One of the best picks for a cheaper hotel that is super close to Tokyo Disney Resorts is Hotel MyStays Maihama.

It is only a few minutes walk from Tokyo Disneyland and offers a complimentary shuttle to and from the park.

Hotel MyStays Maihama

15. Have a game plan for parades vs rides

A highlight of any Disneyland visit is the roster of wonderful parades featuring all your favorite characters.

Tokyo Disneyland has parades at the following times daily:

Now, it’s all about priorities. If rides are the most important thing for you, these are the times to hit your must-visit attractions. The queues will evaporate during parade times, so get your rides in then!

[BONUS] Remember to relax and have a good time!

If you’re anything like me, you’ll have downloaded and completed Tokyo Disneyland proformas, and scheduling apps and watched a zillion YouTube videos to coordinate the perfect TDR day for you and your crew.

However, with all the planning it’s easy to forget to enjoy a great day out at one of the world’s most amazing theme parks. Don’t worry if you don’t get everything on your checklist ticked. A visit to Tokyo Disney Resort is all about the amazing experience.

About the author

Renee Christian

Renée Christian is a writer and long-standing travel enthusiast who enjoys learning about other countries, cultures, and foods! When she’s not perfecting a ramen bowl or tempura recipe in the kitchen, you’ll find her in her permaculture garden or trekking the nearest coastal path!

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I have been going to Tokyo every year for the past decade, yet I never made it to Tokyo Disneyland… until this year! I am kicking myself for not going earlier. Disneyland in California was fun, but Disneyland in Tokyo? 1000x better! They have super cute food and merchandise that are available exclusively in Tokyo.

Since it’s such a magical place, it’s a popular choice for locals and tourists alike. You can’t avoid the crowd, but you can definitely optimize your trip by understanding how the park works .

I’ve visited Tokyo Disneyland twice now – once in 2019 before COVID, and once in December 2021 in the middle of COVID right before the Omicron wave hit Japan (which didn’t stop people from going to Disneyland!). I’ll try to impart as much of my knowledge as possible.

First, let’s understand the basics of visiting Tokyo Disneyland:

1. Buy Tokyo Disneyland Ticket Online

If there is ONE thing you take away from this blog, do this. Buy your tickets ahead of time! You don’t want to buy tickets on the day. You may not even get a ticket if you are visiting during the peak period.

You can buy Disneyland tickets 2 months before your intended visit date. Here are a few ways to obtain tickets:

• Buy through Klook, an authorized booking partner – When you buy Disney tickets from Klook, you don’t need to do anything else. You just scan the QR code at the entrance and off you go.
• Alternatively, the Tokyo Disneyland ticket can be purchased as an add-on to  Tokyo Pass ! If you plan to visit other attractions while in Tokyo, you might be able to save some money if you get this pass.
• Buy through the Official website

What is Klook? Klook is the leading travel and experiences booking website in Asia. And yes, they are legit! I personally always book my activities through them whenever I am traveling. See my review of Klook here .

2. Download the Tokyo Disneyland Resort App

The Tokyo Disney Resort App is your lifeline during the visit. It is where you can obtain Standby passes (if available for the day you’re visiting), buy the Disney Premier access, book restaurants, and get entry requests for certain events. So make sure you have it downloaded!

Find links to download the Tokyo Disney Resort App here

3. Understand the queueing systems in Tokyo Disney

When I visited in 2019, Disneyland was still using the FASTPASS (FP) system, a line-skipping system that comes with your Tokyo Disneyland ticket. FP allows you to book a 1-hour window to come back and go on an express lane at a later time.

However, when I came back in December 2021, they’d done away with the entire FP system. It has been replaced by a few different types of passes, all of which can only be obtained by using the Tokyo Disney Resort App after entering the park.

There are 4 passes available at Tokyo Disneyland:

• Entry Request
• Standby Pass
• Disney Premier Access
• Tokyo Disney Resort 40th Anniversary Priority Pass (NEW)

What is an Entry Request?

Certain experiences might require an entry request. Currently, it is mostly used for characters’ meet and greet (and not rides). These do sell out, so you’ll want to book as soon as you get to the park.

If this interests you, feel free to check out what experience is available through Entry Request here .

What is a Standby Pass?

A Standby Pass essentially means you are booking a time to join the queue at certain attractions and shops. When you grab a standby pass for an attraction, it will tell you the time you can return to join the queue for that attraction. This makes the queue much shorter and moves faster for those who were able to secure a standby pass.

Standby Pass is not a requirement . Not all of the rides will require a Standby Pass and there might be days when Standby Pass won’t even be released at all. However, for the days that it is released, there might also be a time when only those who have obtained a Standby ticket can join the queue.

You can hold only one Standby pass at a time during your visit. You can only book another standby pass for another attraction once you’ve utilized the standby pass, so make sure to use it wisely.

Check the steps on how to get a Standby Pass here and which attractions, if any, require a Standby Pass on that day. This list is updated daily so you can check it on the day you’re planning to visit the park.

As Standby Passes are limited, it does mean that some of the more popular rides could be booked out for the day and no more standby passes will be issued. In our case, we went during the peak period and despite entering the park shortly after it opened in the morning, we STILL couldn’t get a pass for Beauty and the Beast.

What is Disney Premier Access?

Disney Premier Access is effectively a paid FASTPASS that was launched in May 2022 at Tokyo Disneyland. It has an additional fee of 1,500-2,500 yen that you must pay on top of your entrance ticket to be able to join the express queue to some of the most popular rides, and even the parades.

You can only buy one Disney Premier Access per entrance ticket every hour. Of course, the highly coveted Beauty and the Beast is one of the rides on Disney Premier Access.

How is it different than the other passes? Aside from Premier Access being a paid pass, you’ll also be able to specify which time you want to access the attraction.

Click here for more information on Disney Premier Access

What is a Priority Pass?

Available from 26 July 2023 until further notice, this is the newest type of pass available at Tokyo Disney Resort. It is also branded as the Tokyo Disney Resort 40th Anniversary Priority Pass, which may insinuate that it is temporary.

From my experience, it works almost the same as the Fast Pass system they used to have. You’ll be able to reserve a time to come back for certain attractions to skip the queue, but you cannot choose the time. You can also only reserve one Priority Pass every 2 hours.

Take note that Priority Pass might sell out. On my last visit on Dec 2023, all the Priority Pass was sold out by 4pm.

Learn more about the Priority Pass here

4. How to check ride wait time, operating status, and current wait time

Again when I visited in 2019, the official Tokyo Disneyland website claimed to have all the ride wait times… but in my experience, the website did not work for me when I visited the park! The Tokyo Disneyland iOS App also was only available to Japanese iPhone users at that time. It was frustrating.

I’m happy to report that when I came back in 2021 and 2023, they fixed this issue. The Tokyo Disney Resort App will not only give you wait time for all of the rides in Tokyo Disneyland, but it lets you do pretty much everything you want to do in the park – getting priority passes, booking restaurant, etc. Definitely download this app before coming to the park!

If the app does not work for you, you can check this third-party website for the wait times.

How to get to Tokyo Disney Resort

1. by local train.

Tokyo Disney Resort can be reached via Maihama station on the JR line. So, staying somewhere around the area could help you get to the resort faster. I will elaborate more on this topic in the next section.

2. By Shuttle Bus from Shinjuku

If you don’t want to change hotel, there is a shuttle bus from Shinjuku that will get you to the resort around 9AM. Book the shuttle bus here . However it’s only a one-way transfer, so on the way back you can take the local train.

Where to stay when visiting Tokyo Disney Resort

If you are visiting both Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea, you might want to opt to stay closer to the resort. Or if you just don’t want to waste time on the train getting here. There is of course the option of staying at the resort itself, but it is quite pricey.

As I was saying before, Tokyo Disney Resort can be reached via Maihama station on the JR line. So, staying somewhere around the Maihama station or 1-5 stations away in Urayasu would help you cut down the travel time to the resorts.

Here are some recommendations:

• Hilton Tokyo Bay – This hotel is right next to the resort area
• Tokyo Bay Maihama – This hotel is right next to the resort area
• Hiyori Hotel Maihama – About 20 minutes by bus to Maihama station
• Oriental Tokyo Bay – Near Shin-Urayasu station, about 7 minutes away from Maihama station
• Bay Hotel Urayasu-Ekimae – Across from Urayasu station, about 22 minutes by train to Maihama station

How to Optimize Your Tokyo Disneyland Trip

Okay! Now that you’ve been updated to the current ride reservation system at Disneyland, let’s get tips on how to optimize your time in Tokyo Disneyland!

Here are the things you need to do as soon as you enter the park:

1. Download the Tokyo Disneyland Resort App and add your tickets to the app – This should be the VERY FIRST thing you do when you get to the park. This will allow you to manage the entire group’s premier access and priority pass allowance. It will also assist you with other admins during your visit such, as booking restaurants, looking up wait times for the rides, etc.

2. Buy the Disney Premier Access for Beauty and The Beast – This ride is extremely popular and you should purchase the access as soon as you get to the park. Unless, you are okay to queue for the ride, which might take 2-4 hours depending on the crowd on the day. This past December, I arrived pretty late to the park at 10:30 AM, and the premier access for this ride was already sold out for the day.

3. If Priority Pass is available, grab it for the most popular ride at the earliest time – For example, Space Mountain is one of the most popular rides at Tokyo Disneyland. If there is a Priority Pass available then immediately grab it. Then, get another Priority Pass 2 hours later for other attractions.

4. Check other rides’ wait times – Another thing you should do when you get to the park is to look at the map in the Disneyland app and check all the ride wait times – I’ve elaborated on how to do this above. Also, you should check the operating status as some rides might be closed for maintenance. Then, begin strategizing!

5. Know which ride is the most popular in Tokyo Disneyland – The following rides are more popular than the rest, so you should prioritize getting passes for them:

• Enchanted Tales of Beauty and the Beast
• Splash Mountain
• Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek
• Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters
• Space Mountain
• Big Thunder Mountain
• Haunted Mansion
• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt

6. Check for the park’s special parades – I’m not sure if it’s because I went during Easter, but there were at least 3 parades on the day I went. During these parades, the major streets in the park are closed, which makes it a bit hard to move around. So make sure to keep this in mind!

Tip: You can check the parade schedule in Tokyo Disneyland here

Also if you’re going during a special time like Christmas (which means there will be a Christmas parade), the park will be inaccessible while the parade is going on, as it’s extremely popular and people would “reserve” their spot since the morning.

7. Don’t forget about the daily fireworks ! This usually happens around 8 to 8:30 PM so try to stay at the park as long as you can to witness this fireworks show.

8. Don’t forget to have fun – Last but not least, I know this is a lot and optimizing your Disneyland visit is quite overwhelming. If you didn’t manage to get on the ride you wanted, that’s alright! I have gone to Tokyo Disneyland three times and still didn’t manage to get on Beauty and the Beast, but I still had a lot of fun. And honestly, that’s all that matters right?

What to eat in Tokyo Disneyland

Initially, I was worried about the food situation inside the park. What if all the food is expensive and not good? I was even thinking of packing some onigiri and snacks because I didn’t want to go hungry. But once inside the park, I realized my fears were unfounded.

The food in Tokyo Disneyland kicks butt in SO many ways – The reasonable price, the delicious taste, and the super creative concept! I really appreciate the folks at Tokyo Disneyland for making food such a delightful experience.

The only downtime would be the queue time if you came to Tokyo Disneyland during peak periods, such as summer or school holidays. It could get pretty long. During COVID, it was impossible to eat at a normal restaurant as they had been booked weeks in advance, so we had to resort to eating outside or at the food courts where seats are first-come-first-served. If any restaurants catch your eye, please book ahead!

Here are my favorite eats in Tokyo Disneyland:

1. Three Green Alien Mochi (300 Yen)

This is seriously THE CUTEST food ever! I squealed when I saw this in person. They are three mochis (rice cake) balls shaped like the little green men in Toy Story. The mochi each has different fillings – strawberry, chocolate, and custard. Such a genius concept! You can find this at the Plazma Ray’s Diner in Tomorrowland .

2. Mickey Gloves Chicken Sandwich (600 yen a la carte / 900 yen with a set meal)

Yet another item I squealed when I saw it in person. On the menu, it’s a pretty average-sounding grilled chicken and scrambled eggs sandwich. The kicker? It’s served inside a Chinese bun that is perfectly shaped like Mickey Mouse’s gloves! You can buy this sandwich at Huey, Dewey, and Louie’s Good Time Cafe in Toontown .

3. Mickey-shaped Churros (300 Yen)

The OG Disneyland in Los Angeles might have the most famous churros, but you can only find these Mickey-shaped ones in Tokyo Disneyland! I love the subtlety here. You can only see the Mickey shape if you look at the churros from the top down. I might have missed it myself if I didn’t know about it! You can find this all over Tokyo Disneyland Park. Just keep an eye out for the sweets stand – I got mine at Westernland .

4. Smoked Turkey Leg, a Disneyland Classic! (900 Yen)

This is a Disneyland classic and a must-have. I have been told the portion is not as massive as the ones in the original Disneyland, but it was just right for me! You can find this at the Cowboy Cookhouse in Westernland .

5. Mickey-shaped eggs!

I have no idea how they did this, but a few restaurants at Tokyo Disneyworld feature yolk shaped like that iconic mickey-shaped silhouette. Super cute! I call them the mickey-egg 😛

You can find Mickey-egg served with the Hungry Bear Curry at Hungry Bear Restaurant for 1200 yen.

There are also a few mains served with Mickey-egg at Plazma Ray’s Diner in Tomorrowland .

Getting a photo at The Cinderella Castle

Everyone must get a photo at the famous Cinderella Castle whenever they visit Disneyland, right?

Having taken a million photos of it during my visit, I can say the best time to take photos at the castle is right before sunset! So, google the sunset time at the time of your visit, and make sure you are at the castle 30 minutes before the sunset time. This ensures a nice soft pink light which makes it all the more magical.

By the way, if the front of the castle is under construction for whatever reason (like the day I visited), don’t worry: Try going around to the back – it’s just as beautiful too! The photo I have above was taken from the back of the castle, near the Dumbo ride.

Okay, that’s all I have on Tokyo Disneyland! If this guide helped you, please leave a comment below. I love reading your comments.

Need this guide for later? Save it to Pinterest!

18 Comments

• June 9, 2024

Hello, Thanks so much for your very helpful guide. When you arrived at 10:30am, did you find it was easy to get straight into the park or did you have a long wait?

Hey Laura, at 10:30AM i was able to just walk in. I think the queue only forms at opening hours.

• April 30, 2024

Great blog! Thanks for the awesome tips. I am looking forward to going in June!

• April 18, 2024

Thanks for this! ❤️

• March 26, 2024

Lots of great information. I would have liked it if you had compared the names of priority access passes and others with the US Disney Parks names to make it a little easier to understand.

• March 3, 2024

Thank you so much for this helpful and detailed guide! Visiting in March 2024 for my honeymoon. So excited!

• January 12, 2024

Such a helpful post, thank you! This will be our second time in Tokyo but our first going to Disneyland and I can’t wait. Are all the foods that you included here available as takeaway at stands or were some pre-booking only?

• January 16, 2024

Hi Jess, they’re all available as takeaways.

• November 17, 2023

Hi, Melissa, need some advice here. Upon entering the park, should I try getting a Priority Pass (for Attraction A) before getting a paid Premium Pass (for Attraction B), since the time for the Priority Pass is assigned. I can then select a time for the Premium Pass to make sure it doesn’t clash with the assigned timing of the Priority Pass. Is that how it works? Any insights is appreciated!

• November 16, 2023

hiya, i just wanted to say i like your blog a lot, no one makes guides this specific. i hope to use these for my trip next year!!

Seyoo, Thanks for your kind comment!

• September 30, 2023

Very very helpful! We will be visiting from Mexico and all this detailed information is super useful! Thank you!

• October 1, 2023

Have fun at Disneyland, Leslie!

• February 24, 2023

Very helpful and up to date info! Thank you!

• October 16, 2020

oh i miss tokyo disneyland

• June 3, 2019

Love your blog/instagram! Also absolutely LOVE that you visited one of my favorite places on earth, Tokyo Disney Resort!!

• June 2, 2019

Hi! I’m from Chile, and i’m planning a trip to Tokyo next year. I’m planning visiting Tokyo Disneyland too. ☺. Thank you for sharing this! It will be very useful ☺

have fun in Disneyland!!!

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JRailPass.com » Japan Travel Blog » Tokyo Disneyland: How to get there and make the most of it

Tokyo Disneyland: How to get there and make the most of it

July 3, 2023

In 1983, Tokyo Disney became the first Disney theme park to open outside of the United States . It is located alongside the Tokyo Disney Resort, just a 5-minute walk from Maihama Station.

The park stretches out across 7 distinct zones and includes a range of classic Disney rides such as Space Mountain , It’s a Small World , Star Tours , and the Haunted Mansion . An ideal destination for a family day out while in Japan’s capital.

How to get to Tokyo Disneyland

Traveling from Tokyo to Tokyo Disneyland by train is easy using your JR Pass . Tokyo Disney Resort (which includes Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea) is located five-minute walk from Maihama Station, in JR Keiyo line .

From Tokyo Station , take the JR Keiyo/Musashino Line to the JR Maihama Station (the 6th stop). The train traject is about 17 minutes and covered by Japan Rail Pass . The train ticket costs 220 yen without JR Pass.

Narita Airport to Tokyo Disneyland

If you want to go to Tokyo Disneyland directly from Narita Airport , you can take the Tokyo Disney Resort Bus , keep in mind the last bus departs from Narita Airport terminal 1 at 06:10 p.m. The trip takes about 75 minutes and costs 1.800 yen for adults and 900 yens for child. You can buy a ticket from the bus ticket counter at the airport.

If you have a JR Pass, you can use the Narita Express form Narita Airport to Tokyo Station , a 60 minutes trip, and from there, take the JR Keiyo line, as mentioned above, and arrive at Tokyo Disneyland in another 15 minutes. The whole trip is about 75 minutes . Narita Express and the trip by Keiyo line are full covered by your JR Pass.

Alternatively, you can take the Disney Resort Monorail to Tokyo Disneyland Station.

Book your Japan Rail Pass now

Entrance fees, tickets, and Fastpass

Tickets may be purchased up to two months in advance for a fixed date, or you may buy open date tickets, good for one year from the time of purchase.

• A 1-Day Passport costs 7,400 yen for adults, 6,400 yen for ages 12 to 17, or 4,800 yen for ages 4 to 11. It can be used at either Tokyo Disneyland or Tokyo DisneySea.
• The 2-Day Passport can be used in one park. Adult tickets are 13,200 yen, junior tickets 11,600 yen, and child tickets 8,600 yen.
• The 3-Day Passport can be used on both parks and costs 17,800 yen for adults, 15,500 yen for teens, and 11,500 yen for children. The similar 4-Day Passport costs 22,000 yen for adults, 19,400 yen for teens, and 14,400 yen for children.
• The After 6 Passport allows entry after 6 pm and costs 4,200 yen for all ages. The Starlight Passport allows entry after 3 pm on weekends or holidays. Its price ranges from 3,500 to 5,400 yen.

On high attendance days, only those with fixed date tickets (rather than open date tickets) will be permitted to enter the park. You can purchase fixed date tickets in advance. Disney hotel guests can purchase same-day tickets at a welcome center or at their hotel, and they will be guaranteed entry.

The Fastpass allows you to skip the line at a specific ride during your assigned one-hour period. You can get a Fastpass for free by inserting your Passport into a Fastpass machine, located in front of the attraction .

Opening Hours

Opening hours vary by season, but they typically encompass the hours of 8 am to 10 pm . Admission ends one hour prior to closing. The park is open 365 days a year .

Tokyo Disneyland Themed Areas

Tokyo Disney is home to seven distinct areas, including:

• The World Bazaar , a shopping and dining area modeled after a retro American town.
• Tomorrowland , a hive of futuristic and spacefaring technologies.
• Toontown , where characters such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck “live, work, and play.”
• Fantasyland , home to classic Disney characters and the famous Cinderella’s Castle.
• Critter Country , a haven for Bre’r Rabbit and his friends.
• Westernland , based on the American West.
• Adventureland , where you’ll find the Swiss Family Treehouse and the Pirates of the Caribbean.

Big Thunder Mountain

A mine and train-themed rollercoaster, modeled after its counterparts at Disneyland California, Disneyland Park in Paris, and Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

Splash Mountain

A global park staple that will cool you off on hot summer days.

It’s a Small World

A waterbased ride in Fantasyland, modeled after the inaugural Small World ride that premiered at the 1964 New York World’s Fair.

Pooh’s Hunny Hunt

This ride is unique to Tokyo Disney, not found in any other Disney parks.

Haunted Mansion

Are you brave enough to face the “999 happy haunts” that live there?

Star Tours: The Adventure Continues

This 3D motion simulator ride will take you to a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.

Space Mountain

A futuristic rollercoaster and a staple of Disney theme parks.

Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters

To infinity and beyond! This is an interactive shooting ride based on the Toy Story franchise.

Monsters, Inc. Ride and Go Seek!

A dark ride attraction based on the 2001 film.

Best Time to go: Crowd calendar

In order to select the best time to visit when the park is less crowded, avoid weekends, especially extended holiday weekends . Other busy times include national holidays and school holidays . In Japan, school holidays occur mid-March through early April, late July through August, and late December to early January.

The weather is especially pleasant in spring and fall , but these times are also the busiest.

Tokyo Disney Special Events

Decorations and parade events change seasonally . A favorite is the Dreamlights Electrical Parade , which features floats and performers decked in over 600,000 LED lights. Fireworks are a frequent nighttime attraction.

In January of each year, you can celebrate the traditional Japanese New Year with Mickey and Minnie . In June and July, check out Tanabata , a traditional Japanese Star Festival.

In the coming years, Tokyo Disney will also host the opening of two new themed areas , based on Big Hero 6 and Beauty and the Beast.

Cover image by   Gonzalo Pineda Zuniga  used under  CC .

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Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea Guide (2024) — Maximise your Tokyo Disney Day with these 12 Tips and Tricks

Here’s the Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea guide we wished we had before going to Japan.

First published: 27 Sep 2017

Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea are without a doubt one of the best in the world. The problem is, it’s also an incredibly crowded park all year round. And if you’re a huge theme park fan, you’d know if you want to hit all the best rides in one day, you’re gonna need a game plan.

Planning a trip to Japan? Check out our guides and itineraries across various parts of Japan — from the familiar favourites of Tokyo, Osaka, and Hokkaido, to the lesser-known Okinawa, Kyushu, and Matsumoto.

Tokyo Disneyland or DisneySea?

Obviously, both parks are incredibly magical and many swear by them being the best in the world. If you have the luxury of time, spending two days exploring both parks is a no-brainer. But if you only have a day to spare, here’s a brief crackdown on the two.

Photo credit: Tom Bricker

Tokyo Disneyland  is the classic of all classics. If you’re a fan of the immersive, magical experience unique to Disney Parks, this is the one. If you have young kids or are young at heart (aren’t we all? :P), Tokyo Disneyland is without a doubt the one. The shows and parades are also known to be more extravagant and spectacular here compared to DisneySea.

Photo credit: Alpha Coders

Tokyo DisneySea is totally different from any other Disney Park in the world. Many rides have a spooky theme and the intensity of the rides is generally designed for the older kids. We saw an 8-year-old bawling his eyes out at the end of a ride on Indiana Jones Adventure — he might have enjoyed Disneyland a lot more.

With star rides like Toy Story Mania! and Journey to the Centre of the Earth , even the most skeptical kid will be blown away. If you prioritise thrilling rides for your Disney experience, you’d probably enjoy DisneySea more.

Although we ended up picking DisneySea , these are tips you can apply to both parks and will set you up for a game-changing day at the Tokyo Disney Parks.

New attractions in Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea (2024)

Photo credit: Tokyo Disney Resort

From now till 31 March 2024, Tokyo Disney Resort is celebrating its 40th anniversary , which means you can buy themed merch and snacks, plus enjoy special attractions as well!

These include the Disney Harmony in Colour Day Parade (Disneyland), and the Sky Full of Colours firework display (Disneyland and DisneySea).

DisneySea also recently announced that the much-anticipated new land, Fantasy Springs , will open on 6 June 2024 ! It will be a mish-mash of Disney favourites: Frozen, Peter Pan & Tangled. Fantasy Spring will feature Frozen Kingdom (Arendelle), Rapunzel’s Forest, and Never Land… so if you think about it, it’s basically three new lands opening up 😂

Here are four new attractions you can expect:

1) Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey — a musical water boat ride depicting events from the original Frozen film 2) Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival — a water boat ride through the different locations seen in Tangled 3) Peter Pan’s Never Land Adventure — a 3D attraction where guests attempt to rescue John from Captain Hook 4) Fairy Tinker Bell’s Busy Buggies — a family-friendly attraction where guests help Tinker Bell deliver parcels

Plus, the upcoming Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel is available for reservations starting 8 Feb 2024 !

Before your trip

1) buy your tokyo disneyland/sea tickets online.

The counters at the Tokyo Disney Park only open 30 minutes before the park opens.

When you arrive, there will be two separate queues: one for parkgoers who already have their tickets and are waiting to enter the park. The other, to get the tickets. You don’t want to be stuck in the latter queue! Buy your tickets online — this will give you a head start for queueing for the best rides.

Our Tokyo Disney tickets via Klook didn’t even need printing. All we had to do was have our QR code scanned from our phones and we’re in!

Ticket prices vary depending on day of visit and can be purchased up to two months ahead.

*Note: Certain credit cards issued outside of Japan are not accepted when purchasing through the official Disney Resort website .

2) Ultra-crowded days to avoid

Weekends This is obvious but other than the weekends, Mondays and Fridays are sometimes equally as crowded. If you have the luxury to choose, Tuesdays and Wednesdays are your best bet. Check the Crowd Congestion Forecast Calendar and try to avoid the dates highlighted in red.

School   Holidays However, come school holidays, it probably doesn’t matter which day of the week you’re going. We visited DisneySea in the last week of the Summer Holidays and despite being there on a Thursday, the popular rides had queue times of up to 180 minutes 😱

Summer: Usually July to August

Winter:  December to January

Spring:  March to April

Japanese Public Holidays 

There are 16 different Japanese Holidays but because some of them happen in the same week, a lot of locals take the entire week off for an extended week-long break. Three of the busiest periods to avoid are:

Golden Week: 29 April to 6 May Obon: Mid-July or Mid-August (depending on the solar calendar) New Year:  31 December to 1 January

3) Download the Tokyo Disney Resort App

In 2024, most things can now be done from the Tokyo Disney Resort app :

– Check queue times – Book Premier Access for rides – Dining reservations – Entry requests for shows and character greetings

It has all the essential information you’ll need about the parks, and the map with your live location is pretty handy when navigating!

Just register your ticket in the app once you’re in the park and create a group for your party.

4) Updates to the FASTPASS System (Disney Premier Access, Standby Pass, 40th Anniversary Pass)

Tokyo Disney Resort veterans will probably remember the FASTPASS system where every ticket holder had a fair chance at one of the popular rides without much waiting time. Unfortunately, that service has been suspended. In its place now is the new Disney Premier Access (from ¥1,500/access) where you can buy express tickets for specific rides.

Purchasing Disney Premier Access: Premier Access is located under ‘My Plan’ in the Disney Resort app. From there you can select the experience and timeslot you want. The QR ticket code will appear 5 minutes before your designated time and you’ll need to scan it to enter via the Priority Access Entrance.

Tokyo DisneySea Disney Premier Access Rides

There’re currently four Disney Premier Access rides available, but since there are limited time slots, you should purchase the tickets on the app immediately after entering the park. These rides include Toy Story Mania! , Soaring: Fantastic Flight , Tower of Terror , and Journey to the Centre of the Earth .

Better seats for the Believe! Sea of Dreams parade are also available through Premier Access.

*Pro-tip: Try securing Premier Access slots for the afternoon as you’ll have more time to queue for other rides in the morning.

From experience, Toy Story Mania! and the Soaring: Fantastic Flight have the longest queues, and Premier Access timeslots also run out quickly.

(1) Toy Story Mania!  (American Waterfront)

Everyone raves about this unassuming carnival-themed ride and you’ll probably question yourself too while queuing.

The queuing area replicates the experience of being shrunken down to one of the characters of Toy Story, and the ride brings you through an interactive 3D course where you get to shoot digital balls at aliens to rack up points. Okay, perhaps this description doesn’t do it justice but trust us on this one, getting Premier Access for this will be well worth it.

(2) Soaring: Fantastic Flight (Mediterranean Harbor)

Opened during the pandemic, Soaring: Fantastic Flight is the newest addition to DisneySea and is exclusive to Tokyo. The ride has a consistently long wait time (~180 minutes) which made us skeptical given that it’s not a roller coaster but we quickly understood why. The experience was so realistic that we forgot for a moment we were on a ride. Also trust us on this one #worth.

Tokyo Disneyland Disney Premier Access Rides

The Disney Premier Access for Tokyo Disneyland works similarly to Tokyo DisneySea. Here are the attractions and parades you can use it on:

Attractions: Splash Mountain , The Happy Ride with Baymax , Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast Shows: Minnie @Funderland (till 19 March), Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade Dreamlights , Disney Harmony in Color

Standby Pass Rides

Certain character greetings and shops might require a Standby Pass to enter but the period and availability for passes are constantly being updated so we suggest checking online in advance. FYI, standby passes give you the right to wait in the regular queue for the attraction at the specified time. So if you don’t have it, you may not be able to go on the ride at all!

*Note: Standby Passes will be available for the new Fantasy Springs attractions on 6 June 2024 .

40th Anniversary Priority Pass Rides

The special 40th Anniversary Priority Pass is similar to the Premier Access, such that it will give you line-skipping powers! But the rides you can use them on are different. Check online for availability on your visit date.

Tokyo Disneyland/Sea Day Guide

5) bring a bento box for lunch.

Food is allowed in the Disney Resort Parks and you can eat them at the designated picnic area — outside the main entrance on the left. To save money, purchase a bento box or a couple of onigiris before heading in. There’s a New Days convenience store just outside Maihama station .

Re-entry is also allowed here (just remember to get your hand stamped) so you can head out to the convenience store at New Days for a quick bite.

6) Arrive at least 1 hour before the park opens

Park opening hours vary by season, so check the Tokyo Disney Park Operations Calendar  before visiting.

Queues get quite crazy 30 minutes ahead of opening, so it’s best to arrive an hour before the park opens. Hopefully, you’d already have your pre-booked Tokyo Disney Tickets  so you can skip the ticket queue and join the entrance queue instead.

7) Start by queueing for popular rides

When the park first opens, head straight for one of the following rides as queues can go up to as long as 3 hours by mid-afternoon.

(1) Journey to the Center of the Earth   (Mysterious Island)

The Mysterious Island is another very well-themed area. One of my favourite areas of the park in fact! Since the tracks for this ride are hidden inside the mountain, there was no way we could prepare ourselves for what to expect but it turned out to be a close second favourite ride for all of us.

We enjoyed the whole experience even starting from the queuing area, to the many surprise elements paced cleverly throughout the ride.

(2) Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull   (Lost River Delta)

Another roller coaster in the dark, this ride was laced with many unexpected surprises. The narration for this ride (as with all the rides in Tokyo) was in Japanese but despite this, we could follow the story because of the well-designed track. The detail in the design here is truly unbelievable!

(3) Tower of Terror (American Waterfront)

Twilight Zone fan (or not), you’ll love the Tower of Terror. The exterior is one of the most iconic sights in Tokyo DisneySea, but the interior is just as beautiful, with a hint of creepiness. It’s possibly also one of the most adrenaline-inducing and hair-raising rides — both literally and metaphorically.

8) Entry Requests for shows

Previously, you’d have to catch the first show or win lottery tickets in person at the Biglietteria to get a seat. Now, Disney Resort has shifted everything online to their app so you’ll need to submit an Entry Request to secure a reservation. You only get to try once for each show, so it all comes down to luck!

Popular shows at DisneySea: Get your tickets from the Disney Resort app!

Jamboree Mickey! Let’s Dance !  — A dance-along program for kids with Mickey Mouse and friends.

Big Band Beat : A Special Treat  — Broadway performance with a live jazz band and Mickey on the drums.

Duffy and Friends’ Wonderful Friendship  — A show at Cape Cod Cook-Off you can enjoy as you dine

Seasonal Shows — DisneySea hosts holiday-themed shows throughout the year. Right now, the Sky Full of Colors firework show is ongoing (also available at Disneyland).

Fortunately, seasonal greetings and night shows are still happening on the Mediterranean Harbor and do not require any Entry Requests.

Check the official Tokyo Disney Website for the latest parades and shows.

Photo credit: Duy Phan

Popular shows at Tokyo Disneyland: Get Entry Requests for shows on the Tokyo Disney Resort app.

Disney Harmony in Color — A colourful flower petal-themed day parade featuring Mickey Mouse and Disney friends

Mickey’s Magical Music World   — Catch Mickey Mouse and your favourite characters in a live stage performance in the majestic Fantasyland Forest Theatre.

Club Mouse Beat — A dynamic live song and dance show by Mickey Mouse and his Friends

Minnie @Funderland — See Minnie Mouse and her friends on a glittery float, complete with pop music!

9) Catch the mid-day greeting if you don’t win lottery tickets

Entry Request tickets for shows don’t come easy and if you miss the opportunity for shows, save a seat on the Mediterranean Harbor near the railings at least half an hour before the show to secure a good spot for the seasonal greeting.

We caught the Halloween Greeting where Mickey Mouse and Friends sailed around and waved from a giant ship.

10) Escape the afternoon heat and head to Triton’s Kingdom at the Mermaid Lagoon (DisneySea)

Photo credit: Wing1990hk

In the summer, afternoons can get a little overwhelming. Being stuck in outdoor queues surrounded by lots of people might hinder your experience. The best-kept secret really is at the underground area of Mermaid Lagoon — Triton’s Kingdom.

This area is specially catered for little kids so it’s usually not too crowded. Enjoy the aircon as well as a walk through this spectacular underwater-themed area. It’s the perfect refuge from the prickly afternoon sun.

11) Visit Magellan’s for a midday drink (DisneySea)

If dining in a themed restaurant sounds like your cup of tea, we’d highly recommend DisneySea’s Magellan’s — especially if you’re craving a midday alcoholic beverage (Disneyland doesn’t serve alcohol at all).

The decor is an attraction itself with its giant globe at the entrance and hidden dining rooms behind doors disguised as bookshelves. This place gets filled up during the day so definitely get Priority Seating for this restaurant.

*Pro-tip:  From 9AM onwards, you can book Priority Seating with your preferred time later in the day on the app — the other way is to book online the day before but the site is only in Japanese.

Recommended DisneySea Restaurants with Priority seating:  Magellan’s , Horizon Bay Restaurant , Restaurant Sakura , S.S Columbia   Dining Room .

12) Catch the night-time entertainment before the park closes

If you’re still in the park after sunset, catch the stunning firework display at Tokyo DisneySea which happens daily at 8:30PM. We suggest saving a spot at the Mediterranean Waterfront in advance so you get an unobstructed view of the light show.

At Tokyo Disneyland, the Electrical Parade Dreamlights is a night parade you wouldn’t want to miss. With lit-up floats and classic Disney music, the atmosphere is pretty magical.

*Pro-tip: Save a spot for the night parade 45 minutes before it starts!

Bonus: Tokyo DisneySea Itinerary

This is best for fellow kiasu people who want to prioritise the three most exciting rides and the two most popular shows! *assuming the park opens at 9AM.

8AM: Arrive at Maihama Station Stock up on lunch at New Days (convenience store) before taking the Tokyo Disney Line to DisneySea. The queue to enter starts piling up by 7:30AM so it really doesn’t hurt to arrive an hour early.

#1: 9AM — Gates open

9:05AM: Book Disney Premier Access Rides for Toy Story Mania! and Soaring Fantastic Flight Right after uploading your ticket in the app, select your desired time slots for Premier Access so you can plan the rest of the rides around it.

#2: Run to Journey to the Center of the Earth Queues can get a little long in the afternoon as this is one of the few roller coasters in the park, located inside the iconic volcano.

#3: 10:55AM* —  Catch Big Band Beat at Broadway Music Theatre Use the Tokyo Disney Resort app and submit an Entry Request for Big Band Beat.

#4: Queue for Tower of Terror

#5: 1PM* — Catch one of the Seasonal Shows If you didn’t manage to secure an Entry Request for this, we recommend exploring the Arabian section of the park and doing some souvenir shopping.

#6: 2PM — Take a breather and enjoy a picnic lunch Explore the different sections of DisneySea, have your packed lunch at the designated picnic area and book Entry Requests for the Meet & Greet Disney Character sessions.

#7: Make way for Indiana Jones Adventure

#8: Cool off at Magellan’s If it’s too crowded that day, ask the Disney staff for a Priority seat and you will get a timed ticket to come back later.

#9: If you don’t get a seat at Magellan’s, head to Mermaid Lagoon Character Greetings that don’t require an Entry Request are constantly happening within the theatre so you can snap a quick photo with one of the Disney Characters.

4:30PM – 7:15PM: Enjoy skipping the queues with your Premier Access Once you’ve caught the first two shows, take note of the timing on your Premier Access tickets and make your way to the rides within the time period. Fill up the time in between by looking for rides with the shortest wait times on the app.

#10: 8PM — Get ready for the Fireworks show by the Mediterranean Harbor at 8:30PM Double-check the entertainment schedule but it’s good to get seated 30 minutes before the show begins.

*Showtimes may vary across different months.

Getting to Tokyo Disney Resort Parks

If you’re holding on to a JR Pass , the best way to get to Tokyo Disney Resort is via the JR Keiyo Line to Maihama Station — 15 minutes from Tokyo Station. From there, you can board the Disney Resort Line to get to the park (¥260/one-way).

By Bus from Shinjuku Station

If you’re staying in the Shinjuku area, the most direct way is to take the bus from Shinjuku Express Bus Terminal which arrives directly at both Disneyland and DisneySea in 40-50 minutes. You can pre-book your tickets online via Klook .

Hope you found the tips and tricks in this Tokyo Disney Guide helpful! Don’t forget to order your Tokyo Disneyland/Sea Pass before getting there!

Been to Tokyo Disneyland or DisneySea and discovered new tips? Share with us in the comments!

This post was brought to you by Klook .

View this post on Instagram A post shared by thetravelintern.com 🇸🇬 (@thetravelintern)

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28 comments.

which one is better? disneysea? or universal studio?

It’s really dependent on you! Between Disneyland and Disneysea, Disneysea has more rides while Disneyland has more interesting shows and characters.

USJ is totally different with their other rides and trademark brands. You can check out this guide! https://thetravelintern.com/ultimate-usj-guide-universal-studios-japan-planning/

Are the shows in English or in Japanese?

Is it still worth watching the shows even if it is Japanese?

We’ve been to both parks the last couple of days and we don’t speak Japanese (from the UK) and the language didn’t spoil the enjoyment at all for us.

just a quick update: klook has increased prices for the one day pass at disneyland/sea. it is now SGD 92.90.

Hi xindy, it’s probably due to currency fluctuations. It’s SGD91.2 now!

This is the most helpful post ever!! Can’t wait to go in 2 weeks! Thank you!

hi there, may I know is 1 fast pass can be use by 2 person? meaning I draw 1 fast pass so me and my friend can get into the fast pass lane together. Thank you!

Hi Law, the fast pass is only usable by one person and is tagged to your ticket!

Hi. Does the park have VIP tour guides available like the parks in the US?

Hi Tien Pham,

There are guided tours for sure, though we’re unsure of the VIP ones!

Hi there, the information is really helpful. But I’d like to ask few questions 1. When we are in the queue in fastpass, Is it possible the fasspast running out before our turn? 2. We have 4 persons in a group, can we separate into two groups? For instance, 2 persons queue for ride A regular lane, and 2 persons queue to get the fastpass for ride B. Are they allowed to join the queue in ride A after they got the fastpass for ride B?

Hey Sean, yes! It’s entirely possible for the Fast passes to run out, especially on the really popular rides (mentioned above!). (2) is a great strategy but you’ll have to be a little thick skin and walk through the queue to look for your friends. We only did this for rides with mainly outdoor queues.

hi, the rides that your reccomended, are they suitable for young children below 8?

Toy Story Mania is ok. But the other 2 rides probably not!

Hello! Do you know where are the other FastPass kiosks at DisneySea?

All the FastPast kiosks are near the actual entrance of the rides!

My wife and I went there in 2017 and I produced two vlog episodes out of the entire experience by following some of the tips listed on this page. Feel free to drop a subscribe on my YouTube channel (MervTV) if you like my content. (trying to get to 100 subscribers).

Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oys46aVXGao Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Samf6dG0X2E

thanks for sharing!

Hello. We’ll be visiting in two weeks. Do you know if they give military discount? Is it better to purchase the tickets online from the states or does it not make any difference? Thank you so much!

Hi Mikukia, nope I believe there isn’t a military discount as it isn’t a US company. It’s better to purchase your tickets online as you save time and money! https://www.klook.com/activity/589-tokyo-disneyland-japan/?aid=312

Hi, I’m going on a school trip and we only have a half day to go there. Do you know if we can go to both parks with the ticket (like a park hopper) or would we have to pick one only?

Hi Katy, if i’m not wrong, park hopper tickets are only available for 3/4 day passes. So you might have to get two separate entrance tickets. To be very honest though, you definitely would not have time to visit both parks in one day. My suggestion would be to just stick to one!

Wow! This is such a comprehensive and super helpful guide. It is very good and very informative. There is a useful information in it.Thanks for posting.

Hello! I was wondering what are the most popular rides in Tokyo Disneyland and what are their wait time? Also, what rides in Tokyo Disneyland would you recommend? Thanks!

Hey Hailey. Wait times vary wildly from 30mins to 3+hrs depending on the day that you go. Avoid weekends and public holidays for sure. You can get the wait times off the app and website! My suggestion is to perhaps use a proxy to get a sense of the time. For example if you plan to visit on a weekday next month, find a similar weekday before your trip and compare the times.

Personally, I loved Star Wars & Space Mountain.

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Travel for Theme Park Fans

TDR Explorer

Tokyo Disneyland Trip Planning Guide 2024

Planning your trip to Tokyo Disney Resort and its two parks, Tokyo Disneyland & Tokyo DisneySea, is overwhelming. Not only are you planning a trip overseas, but you are also travelling to the beautiful country of Japan.

In this guide, I’ll help you plan your travel to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea. I’ve lived in Japan for a decade and have been visiting these Parks for much longer. I use my experience to help you get the most out of the Disney Parks in Japan I’ve called home for years.

In addition, take your planning further with our Tokyo Disney Resort digital guidebook . It’ll help you plan your vacation from start to finish.

A lot has changed at Tokyo Disney Resort since COVID, so I recommend reading our in-depth article on the changes. Also, the Tokyo Disney Resort 40th anniversary event is on until March 31, 2024!

Table of Contents

What to know about tokyo disney resort, when should you visit, how many days to spend, how to buy park tickets, what does tokyo disneyland cost, flights to japan, transportation to tokyo disney resort, disney hotels, what to bring, how to pay for things, sim cards, wi-fi, and pocket wi-fi, japanese language, cultural differences, attractions, entertainment.

Tokyo Disney Resort has two parks: Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea. The resort is not in Tokyo but in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo. These are the only Disney Parks that are not owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company but instead owned by the Oriental Land Company, which licenses the brand from The Walt Disney Company.

Since the Walt Disney Company doesn’t own and operate Tokyo Disney Resort, it’s best to throw away almost everything you know about planning a trip to a Disney Park as much of it won’t apply here. This guide makes sure you learn everything you need to know. I tell you this to save you frustration and confusion.

Tokyo Disneyland Park is the first Disney Park built outside the US, opening on April 15, 1983. Modelled after the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and Disneyland Park in California, this park is most familiar to those who’ve visited American resorts. The most noticeable difference is the World Bazaar, which is essentially a covered Main Street USA.

Tokyo DisneySea is the second park at the resort. It opened on September 4, 2001, for 335 billion yen (approx US$2.7 billion). Often referred to as the crown jewel of Disney Parks , Tokyo DisneySea is the world’s 4th most visited theme park. Consisting of seven themed ports of call (or lands), this ambitious theme park displays what is possible when Imagineers are free to explore their creativity.

The biggest challenge is deciding when you want to visit the resort. You’ll need to consider many factors: Japanese Holidays, weather, and the school calendar. Public holidays in Japan are vastly different from other parts of the world.

Our updated guide tells you the best and worst times to visit , along with my recommendations for 2024 based on refurbishments, celebrations, and construction.

Here’s a quick summary:

• Fantasy Springs opens on June 6, 2024; expect high crowds from June through the summer.
• The best time to visit is the end of May and October into November for ideal weather and crowds.
• The worst times are Golden Week (the Beginning of May), New Year, and the month of March (Spring Break) into April (cherry blossoms).
• The best days to visit, in general, are Tuesday through Thursday.
• Use the Tokyo Disneyland Crowd Calendar to check your dates.
• Check ride closures to see if you need to change your dates.

You may have heard the stories about weekends at Tokyo Disney Resort — that the parks are busy and crowded, and you wait for everything. The majority of this is true. Generally, you are best off avoiding the weekends. Not all hope is lost if you find yourself visiting on the weekend.

• Our Weekend Survival Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort
• What I Learned Visiting Tokyo Disneyland on the Weekend
• 4 Reasons to Visit on the Weekend

Seasonal Events

The resort is a local park, resulting in OLC constantly offering guests something new (or updated). Events at Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea change with the seasons and sometimes in between. Visiting in December versus May gives you a different experience. All the more reason to visit multiple times! Here’s a list of events at the resort over a given year.

• New Year  (First week of January)
• Winter Events (January to March)
• Easter (March to June)
• Summer (July to August)
• Halloween (September to October)
• Christmas  (November to December)

These limited-time events bring a variety of offerings for guests to enjoy. Live shows, parades, merchandise , and seasonal menus. Check the event calendar for 2024.

If it’s your first time, I recommend three days to take everything the parks and hotels offer. You can get away with two days, one day for each park. Since only one-day tickets are sold currently, you’ll have to buy multiple one-day tickets for your visit.

Please read our full blog post to help decide how many days are best for you.

If you only have one day for Tokyo Disney Resort, I recommend choosing Tokyo DisneySea over Tokyo Disneyland, but that’s a personal preference. I have an in-depth article to help you decide what’s best for you!

After deciding how many days you wish to visit, purchasing your park tickets is next! Park tickets start at ¥7,900 for a 1-day adult passport (about $55). Tickets are available 60 days in advance, and I always recommend buying them in advance so you don’t waste time or potentially have them sell out.

If you’re staying at the Disney Hotels, you have guaranteed park admission — even if the park is at capacity — and you can buy them at the hotel. The quickest and easiest way to buy Tokyo Disneyland & DisneySea tickets is through our trusted affiliate, Klook .

For more details on park tickets for Tokyo Disneyland, read our comprehensive ticket guide . 

Coming to Japan is pricey, depending on where you live. You must consider flights, hotels, food, transportation, and how many more suitcases you must buy to hold all your exclusive Disney merchandise!

• What does a Tokyo Disney Resort Vacation cost?

Here’s a list of average costs for various items at the resort. Keep in mind that prices do vary and are subject to change. Use xe.com to convert into your currency:

• Small Soft Drink or Coffee – ¥240
• Set Meal at Counter Service Restaurant (Entree, drink, dessert) – ¥920 to ¥1500
• Entree Only Meal – ¥600 to ¥900
• Children’s Meal – ¥900
• Snack (Churro, Popcorn, etc.) – ¥310

Merchandise

• Character Stuffed Keychain (Badge) – ¥2000
• Pins – ¥1000
• T-Shirt – ¥2000
• Duffy the Disney Bear Outfit – ¥5000
• Character Plush – ¥3800

Transportation

• One-Day Monorail Pass (on Resort) – ¥650
• One-way JR Ticket from Tokyo Station – ¥220
• One-Day Car Parking – ¥2,500 (weekdays) and ¥3000 (weekends)

This is one of your most significant expenses when travelling to Japan, no matter where you are. There are some ways to cut this cost. Follow our detailed guide for more details. I also recommend setting up alerts with Google Flights with your dates. On average, the best time to book a flight is about 3 months in advance.

There are two airports you can fly to:

• Narita Airport (just outside of Tokyo)
• Haneda Airport (within Tokyo)

Each airport has shuttle buses that will get you to Tokyo Disney Resort if you stay there. If Tokyo Disney Resort is part of a more extensive trip and you stay off-site, you can get to the resort. Japan is well-known for its world-renowned public transportation.

As mentioned, Japan is world-famous for its excellent transportation system. English-language information is readily available at most major stations in Tokyo, so figuring out where to go is not impossible. Getting to the resort from Narita or Haneda Airport is intimidating, though.

Our complete guide gives you all the details on how to get to Tokyo Disney Resort from the airport by various means and budgets.

JR Rail Pass

If you’re staying in Japan longer than seven days and plan on visiting other parts of the country, I recommend buying the JR Rail Pass. Which gives you unlimited use of certain trains in Japan for different periods. For example, the cost of a bullet train (shinkansen) ride round-trip to Tokyo is just under the cost of a 7-day pass. To see if this is right for you, our  informative blog post gives you a price breakdown .

You have a variety of choices for hotels. All of these depend on your budget and time in Japan. A list of hotels in and near the resort is available in English on the official Tokyo Disney Resort website .

Read our Tokyo Disney Resort Hotel reviews and recommendations to help you decide what’s best. We cover both Disney and non-Disney hotels. Be sure to read our complete guide to Disney Hotels for further details. We also have a guide on how to book Disney and Non-Disney Hotels .

Here is a summary of your hotel options (in order of cheapest to most expensive):

• Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel (Discover & Wish)
• Toy Story Hotel
• Disney Ambassador Hotel
• Tokyo Disneyland Hotel
• Hotel MiraCosta

Guests staying at the Disney Hotels receive the following benefits:

• You can buy your tickets in person instead of online.
• This is currently the only way to get a physical ticket with a cute design.
• This means that even if park tickets are sold out online, you can buy tickets for everyone on your reservation while staying at the Disney Hotel.
• Entrance to the parks 15 minutes before regular guests with the Happy Entry

Tokyo Disney Resort Official Hotels

These hotels are right on the monorail loop at Tokyo Disney Resort. This gives you quick access to the Parks. The two most popular non-Disney hotels are the Hilton Tokyo Bay and the Sheraton Grande Hotel .

Note: As of 2020, the Official Hotels require reservations for Tokyo Disney Park tickets. Each hotel does them differently, so check the hotels directly.

Tokyo Disney Resort Partner Hotels

These hotels are located in and around the Tokyo Disney Resort area. These include park ticket sales and free shuttle service to and from the Resort.

Tokyo Disney Resort Good Neighbor Hotels

If Tokyo Disney Resort is part of a more significant trip to Japan, staying at one of these hotels is an option. All of which include shuttle services to and from the Resort. Note that they do not offer park ticket sales nor guarantee admission into the park. It is best to buy tickets ahead of time.

Japan has four distinct seasons, which means what you bring to the parks will vary depending on the weather. Do not worry if you think you are bringing too much. Lockers are available at various locations throughout the resort for use.

As a general rule, the following items are essential for you to bring:

• Battery Charger
• Comfortable Walking Shoes
• Tote Bag or Backpack
• Refillable Water Bottle
• Duffy , ShellieMay , or Gelatoni

Please read our full article on what to pack for Tokyo Disney Resort !

A concern for many overseas guests is what to expect from food offerings at the resort. While the focus is on local tastes, there are plenty of food choices for those who are not as adventurous. Burgers, fried chicken, and chicken nuggets are options.

There is no shortage of options for those who want to try something different. Japan takes its cuisine seriously, and Tokyo Disney Resort does everything to cater to local tastes and expectations. All menu items are displayed as plastic food near the front of the restaurant to help you decide your choice.  (How convenient is that?!)

Seasonal menu items are rotated yearly as a “special set.” We recommend trying these dishes, which usually offer an entrée, dessert, and drink. Another option is the Souvenir Set, which includes merchandise only available by purchasing that set. Check the food display cases to see these!

Counter Service

These are the “fast food” restaurants where you order at the counter. Your typical burgers, fries, and pizza are found at some of these locations. Other locations also serve more than your fast food, such as sandwiches, curry, Japanese udon, and seafood. The quality of most counter service restaurants at both parks outshines that of other Disney Parks in terms of both theming and quality. Read my top 10 counter service restaurants for more details.

Table Service

Looking for an experience that goes beyond simple counter service? Table service restaurants range from mid-end (¥3000 per plate) to high-end (¥8000 per plate). Disney Hotel guests may book their reservations online ahead of time. If you are not a Disney Hotel guest, you can book a table in the park for that day. We recommend getting your reservation early in the day to guarantee your table.

As mentioned earlier, Tokyo Disney Resort caters primarily to local Japanese guests, and the service at these restaurants is second to none. No other Disney Park comes close to Japanese hospitality. While there can be language difficulties (see our section on language), the experience is lovely and crucial to your experience at Tokyo Disney Resort.

• Top 7 Table Service Restaurants

You have seen the photos on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Photos of the various cute, adorable, and ever-changing snacks at the Resort. One could easily survive off snacks alone during their entire visit! While we do not recommend trying that, trying some delectable choices is fun.  With all the cute, delicious, and Instagram-worthy deliciousness, it is hard not to open your wallet.

While some snacks are available year-round, some are seasonal (much like the special sets at Counter Service restaurants). Grab a Japanese Park map and take a look inside. They list all the seasonal snacks (with pictures) and their locations. While it is in Japanese, take it to a Cast Member, and they will point you in the right direction.

• “Where is this?”
• ko-re wa doh-ko de-su-ka?

Use that simple Japanese above, and the Cast Members will know precisely what you are discussing. Just make sure you are pointing to the item on the map.

• Top 10 Awesome Snacks

Technically, it’s a snack, but it deserves its section. Popcorn is one of the most popular snacks at the resort. Given the number of flavours (limited and regular) and the many souvenir buckets to buy, it is no secret that everyone loves it. If you only have one snack, ensure it is the delicious popcorn from Tokyo Disney Resort. See our guide to popcorn and popcorn buckets for more .

Hotel Restaurants

Each of the Disney Hotels has a variety of restaurants to choose from. From table service to buffets to character dining.

Character Dining

A few character dining options are available to guests—one at each park and one at the Disney Ambassador Hotel.

• Chef Mickey at Disney Ambassador Hotel
• Duffy and Friend’s Wonderful Friendship at Cape Cod Cook-Off in Tokyo DisneySea
• The Diamond Variety Master at the Diamond Horseshoe in Tokyo Disneyland
• Mickey’s Rainbow Luau at the Polynesian Terrace Restaurant in Tokyo Disneyland

Japan is a cash-based society, and by always having Japanese yen on hand, you guarantee not running into problems. However, sometimes having to use your credit card is unavoidable. Tokyo Disney Resort accepts major credit cards. There are a few points to keep in mind:

• Most locations at the resort take credit cards, including snack carts.
• Your card must have a signature on the back.
• If your credit card is a debit card, they may or may not take it even though it may be a credit card with debit functionality.
• Bring a backup credit card for when yours does not swipe or work.
• Some purchases (hotel charges, etc.) have taken up to one month to appear on your statement.
• Call your bank to tell them you use it in Japan to avoid locking your card.
• Cast Members ask you how many payments you want your purchase split across, which is not something done in North America. They will default to asking if you wish to do it as one payment. They will make the hand motion for one. Say “Yes.”

Now, what about cash? 7-11 ATMs are your best option for taking Japanese yen directly from your home bank account. Only one 7-11 ATM exists in the Resort and is in Ikspiari (Tokyo Disney Resort’s version of Downtown Disney). Menus are available in English and other languages. Remember to tell your bank before you head on your trip.

How much money should you take out? It would depend on your banking fees – the higher the fees per transaction, the more you should take out to avoid paying more fees.

• Budget at least ¥10,000 per person (about $100) for one full day at the parks. This includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, drinks, and merchandise. ¥10,000 is one note, which makes it easier to carry around.

In May 2019, Tokyo Disneyland & Tokyo DisneySea began to offer free Wi-Fi in the Parks. Recently, Japan has made it easier for visitors to get SIM cards and mobile hotspots. Wi-Fi is free at Disney Hotels (for the other hotels, you need to check their website).

A SIM card is your best choice if you have an unlocked phone. For those with a carrier-locked phone, there are mobile hotspots for rental.

• Recommended: Mobal Japan Unlimited 4G Data SIM Card  ( Review )
• Recommended : Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspot (7GB)
• Guide to Staying Connected in Japan
• Best SIM Cards for Japan

While out and about in Japan, various locations offer free Wi-Fi hotspots:

• Starbucks Japan
• Family Mart (Japanese Only)

You do not have to speak Japanese to enjoy your time at the parks. All the essential signs and food menus are in English; if you need assistance in English, a Cast Member will find someone for you. Someone who speaks a level of English is always available in the hotels and guest relations.

While many shows have English lyrics, many of the story elements are in Japanese. The stories are simple enough that you can get the gist of what’s happening. Shows in the Mediterranean Harbour are more challenging to follow story-wise for non-Japanese-speaking guests, but they look fantastic, so sit back and enjoy!

Knowing the basics and key phrases in Japanese will help you immensely. Cast Members and people generally appreciate you attempting to speak their language. We have two simple guides which give you some basic Japanese phrases specific to the parks. If you are uncomfortable speaking, you can print out the sheet too!

• 17 Basic Japanese Phrases
• 20 Japanese Phrases for Dining
• 50 Easy Japanese Words to Learn in a Day

Travelling to a foreign country comes with experiencing first-hand cultural differences. Even if you are a Disney veteran, some things are done differently at Tokyo Disney Resort. Here are a few cultural differences you will notice immediately:

• Smaller portion sizes for most food items. Overall, the Japanese eat smaller portions than Western countries. You may find yourself eating more often simply because of this.
• Guests are typically quiet at attractions. This includes thrill rides. While guests will scream out in laughter and enjoyment, do not be alarmed if most guests in your car are as quiet as a mouse.
• Sitting for parades is the norm; you must sit for the entire show for some spots. Bring your leisure sheet, snacks, and favourite distractions, and get cozy while you wait for the next parade!
• When paying for an item or after a meal, do not hand the cash (or credit card) over directly to the cashier unless they put their hand out. There is a small dish to place your cash or credit card in. The cashier will put your change, card, and receipt into the dish for you to pick up. This not only applies to the resort but also to Japan.
• Customizing your food is uncommon at the resort and around Japan. If the cheeseburger comes with tomato, that is what you will receive. Asking for customization can cause unneeded confusion. Unless you have an allergy, it is easier to alter your order yourself after sitting at your table.

Both parks offer unique attractions not found at any other Disney Park, along with slightly altered versions of their US counterparts. Make it a priority to ride these attractions to experience the best of Tokyo Disney Resort! The following lists include unique and popular attractions at the parks.

Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea no longer offer FastPass. Instead, FastPass has been changed to Disney Premier Access , StandbyPass, and Entry Request. Learn how to download the official Tokyo Disney Resort App to make your day easier.

Please read our complete attractions guide for Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea , where we thoroughly explain which attractions to ride.

Remember to check ride closures to see if any attractions on your list are closed for refurbishment.

Tokyo Disneyland Must Ride Attractions

• Enchanted Tales of Beauty and the Beast
• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt
• Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek!
• Jungle Cruise: Wildlife Expeditions
• The Enchanted Tiki Room: Stitch Presents “Aloha E Komo Mai!”
• Stitch Encounter
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Splash Mountain
• Haunted Mansion
• Space Mountain (closing in 2024 )

Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast is the most popular attraction at Tokyo Disneyland. Make this ride the first one you do in the morning. Afterward, head to Pooh’s Hunny Hunt. These are both trackless dark rides and are worth your time.

Tokyo DisneySea Must Ride Attractions

• Journey to the Center of the Earth
• Soaring: Fantastic Flight
• Sindbad’s Storybook Voyage
• Nemo & Friends SeaRider
• Toy Story Mania!
• Tower of Terror
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Raging Spirits
• Indiana Jones® Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull
• Venetian Gondolas
• DisneySea Transit Steamer Line

While not unique to Tokyo DisneySea, Toy Story Mania! is the most popular attraction at the park. Wait times quickly go over 3 hours on weekends and busy days. FastPasses run out relatively fast. If you have experienced this attraction at other Disney Parks, you can easily skip this and not miss too much if you have never had the pleasure of experiencing Toy Story Mania! Then make this your first attraction in the morning.

Journey to the Center of the Earth is the best thrill ride at the park. The meticulous detail in the queue and the attraction make it worth waiting for. The waits get long on this one, so if you skip Toy Story Mania! Make this your first choice of the day.

Not all rides have thrilling drops and over-the-top special effects. If you want to take it easy and relax, the Venetian Gondolas and the DisneySea Transit Steamer Line are the tickets. Experience it for yourself to see what we mean.

Spending your entire day riding attractions and waiting in lines is easy. Jot down which attractions you must ride ahead of time and make your day that much easier.

Arguably, Tokyo Disney Resort has some of the best live entertainment ranging from an over-the-top swinging jazz show to seasonal entertainment in which Mickey Mouse hoses down guests. If you are a parade and live entertainment fan, you have no shortage of options. Here are our recommendations for entertainment at Tokyo Disney Resort!

Please read our complete entertainment guides for Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea .

Tokyo Disneyland

• Disney Harmony in Color
• Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade Dreamlights

Tokyo DisneySea

• Believe! Sea of Dreams
• Big Band Beat

This is a living, breathing guide to offer the best and most up-to-date information on planning for Tokyo Disney Resort. Please let us know in the comments if you have any suggestions or comments!

Select photos provided by  Duy Phan Photography .

Plan Your Trip to Japan Easier!

Tokyo disney resort guidebook.

Are you planning a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort? If so, you need our digital guidebook! Our guidebook is the most comprehensive resource available, covering everything you need to know about the park, including tickets, hotels, restaurants, attractions, shows, seasonal events, and more! With our guidebook, you’ll be an expert on Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea before you even set foot in the Parks. You’ll know what to expect, where to go, and what to do. You’ll also be able to avoid the crowds and make the most of your time.

Get tickets for Tokyo Disney Resort

Buying your tickets for Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea ahead of time is vital. Read our comprehensive guide on tickets to learn how to purchase tickets. Our travel resources page offers recommendations on SIM cards, portable Wi-Fi devices, travel insurance, cheap flights, and hotel bookings.

Learn more about Tokyo Disney Resort

Want more Tokyo Disney content? Browse our dedicated page for everything about Tokyo Disney Resort !

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215 Comments

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[…] Check out our full guide for when to visit specific for events happening in 2016. Afterwards, read our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. […]

Let me start by saying how much I love the site and this guide! I read all the parts that apply to me (since I live in Japan ?).

I would like to ask though, since you’ve been there more than I have. I’m going to DisneySea in a couple of weeks. The Indiana Jones ride is closed and I don’t really enjoy Tower of Terror or Journey 🙁 I’ll be doing Toy story instead and definitely Stormrider (while it’s not my favorite, it’ll be closed soon). Besides that, what do you recommend doing? 🙂 I’m looking forward to reading your suggestions! 🙂

Thanks in advance!

[…] Resort Guide […]

Hello Keicchan! That sounds like a really solid plan. I would add Big Band Beat to the list too, before it goes away for a renewal. Also Sindbad is always a fun ride with almost no wait time!

Also, as always try and have a drink at the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge. I love that place!

Great advice. As far as hotels go there is a slight correction. The Ambassador no longer offers a Monorail Ticket with your stay. ( http://www.tokyodisneyresort.jp/en/hotel/compare.html ). Also a great way to save on resorts is using Disney Vacation Club. You can use your membership to stay at any of the 3 resorts and make reservations with Disney Vacation Club Member Services.

[…] Tokyo Disneyland […]

Hi TDR explorer! Do you have a character guide on this site? I see photos of rare characters we do not get in the states all the time on instagram etc, but on the official website it does not seem to show many meet and greets. If you do not have a character guide can you recommend a site that does? Thank you!!! Characters are very very important to me and my favorite park experience next to parades =) =)

Also, my sister and I are both vegetarians and are nervous about the food. Is it easy to eat veggie there? TIA !!!! Love your site !

[…] you planning a trip to Tokyo Disneyland in 2017? Then you will want to read/bookmark The Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort by […]

My partner is Vegan so like you but a bit more extreme. Most places will have fries, salads and fruit salads. Bread rolls and croissants are a good alternative for breakfast to mix up the selection. East side Cafe at Tokyo Disneyland offers a vegan 3 course option that is amazing if you are feeling underwhelmed by the other options ( you have to ask for the allergy set). Food options are similar at DisneySea with “Ristorante di Canaletto” also doing a vegetarian and Vegan selection, although a bit on the pricey side. You shouldn’t have too much trouble. Besides the options above its easy to make vegetarian meals buy ordering all the different sides if you get stuck in a place that doesn’t offer full vegetarian meals. I’m not from TDR but if you count all the days I have spent in either park I’ve been there almost two months. PS – SIDE NOTE: All flavours of popcorn are VEGAN! Including butter or chocolate 🙂

[…] credits: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, […]

how did you find out about the popcorn! I’ve been trying to confirm that this is vegan and it’s been so hard!

Man, it would be NICE if the face characters speak Japanese at Tokyo Disney Resort…Don’t you agree?

Another awesome post, thank you so much for helping me plan my trip to Tokyo Disney! ^.^ I was wondering regarding the disney monorail, I’m planning on using my suica card. Do we have to use the machines at the monorail station to get the monorail tickets on our suica cards? Or can we top up our cards beforehand at any general station in Tokyo, and still get through the monorail gates? Thank you!

IIRC just tap your card on the Monorail gates and the proper fare is deducted from the cash balance on the card

Awesome, thank you very much!

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[…] planning your trip to Tokyo Disneyland with our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. It covers everything from tickets, hotels, and how to score […]

Thank you so much for all the information you put in your posts! It was so nice going into the parks knowing a lot of tips and tricks from all your pages. My husband and I had a wonderful trip!

I went with my grand children, and they really enjoyed the little green dumplings. I have to say, I enjoyed them too! ha ha ha

[…] Get started with your trip planning to Tokyo Disneyland with our best articles. Decide where to stay with our hotel reviews and recommendations. Figure out what and where to eat with our list of restaurant reviews. Learn how to buy your park tickets (see how you can save $4USD), then sink your teeth into our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. […]

My partner and I are going to visit Tokyo Disneyland on April 2018, but the time schedule for the parades and shows are only available for December. Now we are struggling with the restaurant reservations. Do you recommend us to wait and check the timetable for the parades, or should we book the restaurants now? Do you have any strategic time for reserving a restaurant table?

Best Regards,

I would check what the current times are and go based off that. They usually follow the same pattern. Seasonal shows are usually around the same time (not always the case but a good idea). Then the normal shows are almost always at the same time (or close to it).

Check out our dining guide for how to make reservations 🙂

https://tdrexplorer.com/dining-guide-to-tokyo-disney-resort/

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[…] Get started with your trip planning to Tokyo Disneyland with our best articles. Decide where to stay with our hotel reviews and recommendations. Figure out what and where to eat with our list of restaurant reviews. Learn how to buy your park tickets (see how you can save $4 USD), then sink your teeth into our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. […]

I’m so excited! Thanks for sharing all these great tips! This is my first time going to Japan so your site has been very helpful. We’re going from May 2 to May 11, 2018 and of course we didn’t know we booked during golden week. Oh well, we’ll just have to deal with it.

[…] Get started with your trip planning to Tokyo Disneyland with our best articles. Decide where to stay with our hotel reviews and recommendations. Figure out what and where to eat with our list of restaurant reviews. Learn how to buy your park tickets (see how you can save $4 USD), then sink your teeth into our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. […]

[…] Learn how to buy your park tickets (see how you can save $4 USD), then sink your teeth into our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || […]

[…] Get started with your trip planning to Tokyo Disneyland with our best articles. Decide where to stay with our hotel reviews and recommendations. Figure out what and where to eat with our list of restaurant reviews. Learn how to buy your Park tickets (see how you can save $4 USD), then sink your teeth into our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. […]

[…] Get started with your trip planning to Tokyo Disneyland with our best articles. Decide where to stay with our hotel reviews and recommendations. Figure out what and where to eat with our list of restaurant reviews. Learn how to buy your park tickets (see how you can save $5 USD), then sink your teeth into our Ultimate Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort. […]

I am finding TDR EXPLORER to be a super resource while we plan our trip for April 2019. One question; I know the resort takes major credit cards, does that include Discover? It’s my best travel rewards card…

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Thank you so much for your helpful tips.. i have been watching your YouTube channel as well.. One question though, does the disney hotel or park give complimentary thingie if you visit the park or check in on one of the hotels on your birthday? (Well not mine, it’s for our littleman) i know Disneyland in hongkong have complimentary cakes balloons et al when we visited on a birthday. Thank you in advance.

[…] tdrexplorer.com […]

[…] Tokyo DisneySea is a park which is unique to Japan and is a must-visit. It’s referred to by some as the best Disney Park in the world. With that type of recognition, then it needs to be on your list. There’s a lot to know about these two parks, so it’s best to plan ahead of time. […]

[…] you’re a long time reader (aka Explorer) you’re familiar with my muses on Tokyo Disney Resort, Hong Kong Disneyland, Shanghai Disneyland, and Universal Studios […]

[…] but I would be remiss to skip this entirely because it is as much fun as the shows and attractions. TDR Explorer does a great job covering the resort but does an especially great job with the food and the […]

now that there’s no fast pass anymore, do we have to queue for every single ride?

Those haven’t reopened the last time I checked.

Can you stay in a Disney hotel like Tokyo Disneyland Hotel or Hotel MiraCosta without park tickets for that day?

Hello, I’m looking at booking a Disney Vacation Package at Miracosts for 2 nights, 3 days.

The package allows for Attraction Tickets (basically Fast Pass) for 3 days.

I understand you can use those tickets with timed entry (which means you book your timeslot) or untimed entry – I think you show your ticket at the line.

Unfortunately, due to timing of flights, I will not be able to enter the Parks on the 3rd day.

Are the Attraction Tickets time stamped? Or are you given a bundle of paper tickets which you can use all on Days 1 and 2 if you want to?

Appreciate any help.

Love your site! Another cultural difference you might note on your site is clothing sizes. My wife was just visiting Tokyo Disney Sea and bought me a Hawaiian shirt in my typical size Large (for the U.S.) However, when I tried it on here in Colorado, it doesn’t fit and I probably need an XL. If you have any ideas on how I could get the XL version of this shirt, please contact me. My wife is really bummed that this carefully selected gift won’t ever get worn. Thx! (Tokyo Disney Resort 2023 Hawaiian Aloha Shirt Park Icon Motif XL)

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Beginner’s Guide to Visiting Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea

In this post, I’ll talk about the logistics of planning a trip; from which airport to fly into and how to get around to which hotels to stay at depending on your budget. I’ll also add a few other tips and tricks you need to know to get the most out of your vacation. But to be clear, this isn’t a review of the parks, rides, or food. There are plenty of YouTube videos and reviews of the parks already. This post is simply to help you prepare for your trip and make the most out of your time in Tokyo. I hope you find it useful.

Tokyo Disney Resort Location

The Tokyo Disney Resort , which refers to both Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea , is not actually located in Tokyo proper. The resort and its surrounding hotels are actually located in the city of Chiba, which is southeast of Tokyo center. This area is also referred to as “Tokyo Bay.” This is important to note as the two major airports have agreements with the airport taxi companies to provide a fixed rate from the airport to your hotel in Tokyo but this won’t apply to hotels in the Chiba area.

Additionally, you should know that once you’re in Tokyo Bay, it’s not exactly convenient to get to “downtown” Tokyo. By train, it will take you approximately 50 minutes to get from the Tokyo Disney Resort area to Shinjuku, and cost you 420 Japanese Yen ($2.82 USD). Or you could hire a taxi, which will take about 30 minutes and cost you about 10,000 to 11,000 JY ($67 – $73 USD).

As a point of reference, the exchange rate for today’s date (October 17, 2022) is 148 Japanese Yen to $1 US Dollar.

Which Airport to Fly into?

There are two major airports that serve the Tokyo area: Tokyo Narita and Tokyo Haneda. Narita is a huge airport with plenty of connections to almost every major city in the world. Flights to Narita tend to be cheaper than flights to Haneda as there are significantly more options. Whereas Haneda is a smaller airport with fewer connections, but it’s more manageable and closer to the center of Tokyo than Narita. If you’re debating between flights, I would take the one that gets in the earliest. For example, if flying into Narita will save you $100 but gets you in at 9:00 PM, as opposed to 4:00 PM in Haneda, I would take the Haneda flight.

Transportation To/From the Airport to the Tokyo Disney Resort

The easiest way to get to/from Haneda or Narita Airport to the Tokyo Disney Resort area is with the airport limousine. It’s called the airport limousine but it’s really just a shuttle bus so don’t expect anything fancy. The airport limousine from Narita will take about an hour and cost 2000 JY whereas the airport limousine from Haneda will take about 30 minutes and cost you 1000 JY. Both airport limousines from Haneda and Narita will drop you off at Mahaima Station, which is the main train station for the Tokyo Disney Resort area. Some airport limousine routes will also drop you off at one of the major hotels but you need to check their specific schedules and routes for more information.

However, keep in mind that the airport limousine doesn’t run all night. Depending on the day, it may stop running as early at 4:00 PM. So if you’re getting in later than that, you may have to find alternative transportation such as a train or taxi. Trains run till about midnight daily and Taxis run 24/7. A taxi from Haneda to the Tokyo Disney Resort area will take 30 minutes and cost you about 10,000 JY ($67 USD). A taxi from Narita will take an hour and cost you about 20,000 JY. You can check the timetable and routes for the airport limousine here .

Mahaima Station is located right next to Ikspiari, which is Tokyo Disney’s version of Downtown Disney in California or Disney Springs in Florida. To get from Ikspiari to Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo DisneySea or other Disney hotels, you need to take the monorail aka “Disney Resort Line.” However, unlike the monorail at the other Disney parks, this monorail is considered public transportation and you have to pay for it. It’s not much, only 260 JY per adult (12 Y/O and older), per trip, but it does add up if you’re going back and forth a lot. The monorail runs on a continuous loop from the Resort Gateway Station at Ikspiari to Tokyo Disneyland Station to Bayside Station (where the majority of hotels are) and finally to Tokyo DisneySea Station and back.

If you’re going directly to the parks and need a place to store your luggage, there are plenty of public storage lockers to rent at any train station, including Maihama.

Pro tip: the Disney Resort Line monorail ticket booth is cash only so make sure to bring small bills or change with you.

Where to Stay for Tokyo Disney Resort

Where you stay at will largely depend on your budget. If money is no object, then you can stay at the Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta, which is the only Tokyo Disney Resort hotel that is located in one of the parks. The other Tokyo Disney Resorts hotels are all located outside of the parks. The Tokyo Disneyland Hotel is the next best hotel and it’s located right outside the gates to Tokyo Disneyland. The Disney Ambassador Hotel is located next to Ikspiari and the Toy Story Hotel is located next to Bayside Station. The Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel is located in a separate part of Tokyo Bay, about 20 minutes away by bus.

As a point of reference, the Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta, Tokyo Disneyland Hotel, and the Disney Ambassador Hotel are all considered Deluxe Hotel types. The Toy Story Hotel is considered a moderate hotel and the Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel is considered a value hotel.

There are many benefits to staying at one of the five Disney Resort Hotels but the most significant perk is the “Happy Entry,” which will grant guests early admission to the parks. This perk only lets you in 15 minutes prior to the general public but this allows you to hit one, maybe two, of the major attractions before everyone else.

If you want to save some money, I would recommend staying at one of the official Tokyo Disney Resort Partner Hotels instead. These hotels are much cheaper than the Disney hotels but they don’t offer any real perks other than a shuttle ride to the parks. However, some of them are conveniently located near the Disney Resort Line monorail so transportation will be much easier than staying outside of Tokyo Bay. These official Tokyo Disney Resort Partner Hotels include the Grand Nikko Tokyo Bay, Hotel Okura Tokyo Bay, Hilton Tokyo Bay, and others.

On this trip, I stayed at both the Disney Ambassador Hotel and the Hilton Tokyo Bay and they were both great. I will have my hotel reviews up within the next couple of weeks.

Other tips and tricks

Fastpasses – Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea got rid of their Fastpass machines and replaced them with a “Disney Premier Access” virtual queue. Just like the Lightening Lane passes at Disneyland and Disney World, you now have to pay to bypass the standby line at certain attractions such as Toy Story Mania and Soaring: Fantastic Flight at Tokyo DisneySea and the Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast at Tokyo Disneyland.

However, there is one ride that will still give you a free “Fastpass” and that is the Haunted Mansion. To get your free Fastpass, you must use the Tokyo Disney Resort app to click on the Haunted Mansion ride. Select “Standby Pass” and it will assign you a time to return later on in the day. You can grab this free Fastpass as soon as the park officially opens for the day.

Tokyo Disney Resort App – Speaking of the app, you really should download it and link your tickets to the app. This will allow you to get the Haunted Mansion Fastpass, purchase Disney Premier Access passes and view ride wait times. But more importantly, you will need the app to watch one of the big shows such as Jamboree Mickey! Let’s Dance!, Mickey’s Magical Music World and Club Mouse Beat at Tokyo Disneyland, and Big Band Beat at Tokyo DisneySea.

Now, here is the one thing I don’t like. These shows are so popular that they can’t let everyone in and they don’t offer standby lines for them. In order to watch one of these shows, you have to “request entry” in the app and select the show and time you want. Once you make your selection, it will automatically put you in a lottery system. If you are selected for the show, you will be automatically assigned seats. If you are not selected for the show, you are not allowed to try again for the rest of the day. You can try for other shows but you can only try once per show. On my trip, I was only able to get one of the three shows I wanted to watch and there was no standby option to get a “second” chance at catching the shows.

Cash and credit cards – For such a developed country, Japan is really behind on cashless payments. Cash is still king and you will definitely need cash with you when exploring Japan. However, credit cards and “tap to pay” is widely accepted at the Tokyo Disney Resort and the only thing I needed to pay with cash was the Disney Resort Line monorail ticket. I was able to pay for almost everything else with my Apple pay or my Suica Card.

Suica Card – This is a metro card to pay for train/subway/bus rides in Japan. But surprisingly, you can actually use it to pay for more things than just transportation. You can use it at convenience stores in Japan and all the restaurants/shops at the Tokyo Disney Resort. This is convenient as you can load your Suica card with however much money you want from a credit card and then use the Suica card to make your daily purchases. This is handy if your credit card charges a foreign transaction fee as your credit card will only be charged each time you load your card and not each time your Suica card is used.

If you’re an iPhone user, you can add a Suica card to your wallet very easily. Just go to your wallet, press the plus sign in the top right-hand corner and click on transit card. Scroll down to Japan and add the Suica card. Then use Apply Pay to add funds to your Suica card. Simple.

And that’s all the info I have for you right now. I hope you found it useful. Feel free to ask me any questions you want in the comments section below and I’ll try to answer them in a timely manner. Thanks for reading!

The other posts in this series include:

• Japan is open for visa-free tourism! Here’s what you need to know before going.
• American Express Centurion Lounge at LAX
• Review: ANA Economy Class, Los Angeles to Tokyo Haneda
• Review: Hilton Tokyo Bay, an official Tokyo Disney Resort hotel
• Review: Disney Ambassador Hotel, an official Tokyo Disney Hotel
• Beginner’s guide to visiting Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea
• Review: ANA Lounge Tokyo Haneda
• Review: ANA Economy Class, Tokyo Haneda to Los Angeles

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About James Dozer

Aviation geek, fitness dork and overall nerd. Giving you the best information on miles and points so you can take better trips and live better stories.

9 things to know before visiting Tokyo Disney in 2024

If you like the U.S. Disney parks, the odds are high that you'll love the two theme parks at the Tokyo Disney Resort.

Tokyo Disneyland opened in 1983 with a high standard, even by Disney's notoriously high theme park standards. That commitment didn't break, even as the construction budget ballooned past expectations. In 2001, Tokyo Disneyland was joined by the Tokyo DisneySea park, home to many ports and adventures set around the 189-foot Mount Prometheus volcano.

Along with the two Tokyo Disney theme parks are six Tokyo Disney Resort hotels and a monorail with access to many other nearby hotels. From can't-miss rides and snacks to how to get tickets, where to stay and how to get around, here is what you need to know before visiting Tokyo Disney.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by The Points Guy (@thepointsguy)

Tokyo Disney basics

Tokyo Disneyland is the original park in Tokyo Disney. It is a traditional Disney "castle park" with themed lands that may strike you as quite familiar, including Adventureland, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Toontown and more. The castle itself will likely look familiar as it is modeled after Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World.

Don't write it off as a replica of Disney World, though. It's inspired by, but certainly not a copy of, the Florida park.

Two monorail stops away is the newer park, Tokyo DisneySea. This park is the most original of the two, and it's unlike any Disney park you've seen before.

It's also home to never-before-seen rides, such as Journey to the Center of the Earth and Sindbad's Storybook Voyage, not to mention all the new rides in the new Fantasy Springs portion of the park.

There's even an entire steam-powered ocean liner in the park. You can actually go inside to explore, eat, take selfies and make TikToks (which seem to be a very common pastime here).

How to get Tokyo Disney tickets

One of the best things about Tokyo Disney is that the tickets are much cheaper than Disney tickets in the U.S. Based on the current exchange rates, adult Tokyo Disney tickets start around $50 per day while teen and tween tickets are $42 and child tickets are just $30 per day.

There are also evening tickets that start at $30 for adults. These tickets can be used from 5 p.m. onward during the week and 3 p.m. onward during the weekends and holidays.

Related: How to use miles to fly to Japan

You can purchase Tokyo Disney tickets online at the official Tokyo Disney Resort starting at 2 p.m., two months before your desired visit.

Note that tickets sometimes sell out. However, if you stay at a Tokyo Disney hotel, you are guaranteed access to tickets, which eliminates some stress. Additionally, don't be surprised if the Tokyo Disney website (and many websites in Japan, frankly) is persnickety about accepting some U.S. credit cards.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve ® and The Platinum Card® from American Express were pretty reliable in our experience, but you may have to try various cards to get the purchase to work as there's not a fully consistent pattern of what will go through. If all else fails, the Klook app or website has Tokyo Disney tickets, among many other popular attractions in Japan; it is pretty reliable with U.S. credit cards. The downsides of booking with a third party are prices can be a bit higher, and dates can't be changed once purchased.

Regardless of how you purchase your Tokyo Disney tickets, know that all tickets are single-day tickets; multi-day tickets aren't currently available. Tickets are also limited to just a single park per day as well, with no park hopping offered.

How many days to spend at Tokyo Disney

Naturally, how much time someone wants to devote to visiting Tokyo Disney — especially when there is so much to see and do in Japan — will vary based on a long list of factors. However, if you really want to experience a good amount of what Tokyo Disney has to offer, you need at least one full day devoted to each park. Plan to stay from open to close.

But now that Fantasy Springs has opened in Tokyo DisneySea , you may very well need at least a half-day more than that to feel like you had enough time to do most of the unique rides and experiences there. So, we'd recommend at least two full days for Tokyo Disney and, ideally, three days if you want the luxury of time on your side.

That said, if you just want to take the train in and have one Tokyo Disney-themed day, you will still have fun. Instead of cramming everything in, just try to enjoy what you have time for on your trip. If you only have one day, we highly recommend arriving at least an hour before opening time to get in line and be ready to make the most of your time.

Just know that if all you get is a taste of Tokyo Disney, you may immediately start planning your next visit.

Getting to Tokyo Disney

If you are arriving at Tokyo Disney from Tokyo proper, taking the train is an inexpensive and efficient option. Two Japan Rail lines, JR Keiyo and JR Musashino, run from Tokyo Station at the city center to Maihama Station, right by Tokyo Disney.

The ride from Tokyo Station to Maihama Station takes 15 to 20 minutes. Guests traveling from other central areas of Tokyo will likely have a 10- to 30-minute train ride on other JR or subway lines to reach Tokyo Station first. Transiting the enormous Tokyo Station can be intimidating at first, as there are long walks, lots of escalators and moving sidewalks between connecting trains.

Trains also connect Tokyo Disney to Tokyo's two major airports, Narita International Airport (NRT) and Haneda Airport (HND), but other transportation methods may be preferable with luggage and tired kiddos. The connections to Tokyo Disney from NRT, particularly, are far from ideal; it'll be a long journey that requires backtracking.

Both of our families booked a private 45-60 minute van ride with Tokyo Airporter between our resort hotel and NRT — a pricey but convenient option with jet-lagged kids.

A more budget-friendly option at 1,300 Japanese yen (about $8) per person is the Airport Limousine bus. Service is more frequent from HND than NRT, but it drops off at many hotels near Tokyo Disney. Check schedules online (searching "Disney" in the destination filter will display most hotels near Tokyo Disney) to see if this option might work for you. Wait until you land in Tokyo to buy tickets for a specific departure.

Related: Beginner's guide to visiting Tokyo

Where to stay at Tokyo Disney

If you are a big Disney fan (and you have the budget to stay at one of the Tokyo Disney hotels), we recommend one of the six official hotels. The 15-minute Happy Entry headstart it gets you each morning into the parks is a bigger deal than it sounds when it comes to knocking out one or two attractions before the crowds descend. Importantly, it also allows you to purchase Premier Access rides a bit earlier than most of the crowd, as you must be in the park to do that.

Of course, other options are nearby, too, if you're not all-in on Disney or want to use traditional hotel points for this part of your trip.

If you want to stay at an official Tokyo Disney hotel, bookings open four months in advance for a hotel room and between five and six months in advance for a vacation package. Packages can make sense if you plan to use all of the inclusions — such as tickets, rides and popcorn — especially with the Fantasy Springs passport, which can help you enjoy that part of the park.

Tokyo Disneyland Hotel

The Tokyo Disneyland Hotel is classified in the deluxe tier of hotels (second only to the luxury tier, which is home to just a portion of the new Fantasy Springs Hotel). It's so close to Tokyo Disneyland that you can almost smell the popcorn from within the park. This Victorian-style hotel gives off strong Walt Disney World Grand Floridian vibes. However, it offers some interesting themed rooms (Beauty and the Beast, Tinker Bell and Alice in Wonderland) that are very much worth it in our view.

Prices here start around around $400 per night.

Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta

Also in the deluxe hotel tier, Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta has its own entrance into the connected DisneySea park. Plus, its rooms offer a view of the park — you can sleep with one eye on the magic all night if you want. It's a Roman-style hotel that carries mythical stories of the sea into the lobby and rooms.

Rooms with a view into the park are worth it if you can book one, but these sell out very quickly; don't miss the booking window when it opens. Note: Aside from a very small selection of packaged items in the market, there are no real grab-and-go food options in the hotel.

Tokyo Disney Fantasy Springs Hotel

Tokyo Disney Fantasy Springs Hotel is Tokyo Disney's newest hotel and the only one with some of its offerings in the highest luxury tier.

This hotel offers deluxe and luxury rooms, and the luxury rooms offer balconies with views over the new Fantasy Springs port. Hotel guests will enjoy the feeling of checking into Fantasy Springs upon arrival at the hotel; it offers beautiful theming and some rockwork views that are only accessible to hotel guests. Once the sun sets and the guests leave DisneySea, look over Fantasy Springs from your balcony or one of the hotel's many public areas to enjoy the sparkle of the now-empty Fantasy Springs.

The bad news about Tokyo Disney Fantasy Springs Hotel is that, at least for now, this is the hottest ticket in town. Snagging a reservation here is harder than getting a face-value Taylor Swift ticket in the U.S.

Other Official Tokyo Disney hotels

In addition to those three official hotels, there is also the Disney Ambassador Hotel (deluxe tier), Tokyo Disney Resort Toy Story Hotel (moderate tier) and Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel (value tier). These are generally less expensive than the three above, especially the Toy Story- and Celebration-themed properties. However, none are super close to the parks, so factor that into your decision-making.

You'll likely take the Disney monorail to visit the parks for the first two hotels, and you'll likely take a shuttle bus to the Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel.

Other nearby hotels

If none of the official Disney hotels is the right choice for your trip, 19 other Good Neighbor and Partner hotels offer amenities such as shuttle buses to the parks or resort monorail. Such options include Hilton Tokyo Bay Hotel (which is right next to Tokyo Disney's Toy Story-themed hotel) and the Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay .

How to get around Tokyo Disney

Once you arrive at the Tokyo Disney property, it's quite easy and efficient to get around.

Tokyo Disney has its own monorail, which makes a loop and has four stations, bringing you to the two theme parks and the resort hotels. This loop is roughly the same size and scale as the Magic Kingdom monorail loop at Disney World in Florida, but it has an additional theme park and more hotels on the same loop.

Unlike Disneyland and Disney World in the U.S., the monorail is not free. It is highly affordable at 300 yen (less than $2) per ride, but you'll need to purchase tickets or daypasses at one of the stations to ride. You can't use a credit card to purchase your tickets, so you'll need an alternate way to pay, such as yen or a Suica card.

Daypasses are generally more economical if you plan to take the monorail more than twice in a single day. Transit cards like Suica and PASMO (valid on Japan's other public transit services like trains and subways) also work to pay monorail fares.

While most guests will likely need to take the monorail some of the time, some resort destinations are within walking distance of each other. For example, it's a relatively easy 10-minute walk between Maihama Station and both Tokyo Disneyland Park and the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel. Reaching DisneySea or many other hotels from any of these locations, however, requires a monorail ride.

Tokyo Disney crowds — and how to minimize your time in line

Tokyo Disney has developed a bit of a reputation for crushing crowds and extraordinarily long lines. Located in the world's largest metropolitan area, the resort undoubtedly draws a jaw-dropping number of people on any given day.

Despite what some posted wait times might suggest, you don't need to resign yourself to standing in two-hour queues. With some research and strategy preparation, our families never waited more than 30 minutes in like for any single attraction.

The key to avoiding long attraction queues is maximizing Tokyo Disney's two cut-the-line options: Premier Access (available for a per-ride fee) and 40th Anniversary Priority Pass (free). Premier Access functions similarly to paid Lightning Lanes in the U.S. parks, and the 40th Anniversary Priority Pass works like a free version of Disney Genie+ .

Free 40th Anniversary Priority Pass

The 40th Anniversary Priority Pass works much like Genie+, but this version is free. You can get one ride pass upon entering the park in the morning. Then, you can get subsequent ones 120 minutes after the last one or when the return time opens for the last one you've obtained. With these, you cannot choose the return time and simply get the next available slot for your chosen attraction.

It's reasonable to assume that if you start right at the park opening, you'll be able to probably get two of these in a day — three if you are lucky. Be sure to prioritize the one you want the most as they do "sell out."

Eligible 40th Anniversary Priority Pass attractions include:

• Tokyo Disneyland: Space Mountain
• Tokyo Disneyland: Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters
• Tokyo Disneyland: Star Tours: The Adventure Continues
• Tokyo Disneyland: Haunted Mansion
• Tokyo Disneyland: Pooh's Honey Hunt
• Tokyo Disneyland: Big Thunder Mountain
• Tokyo Disneyland: Monsters, Inc. Ride Go & Seek
• Tokyo DisneySea: Nemo & Friends SeaRider
• Tokyo DisneySea: Aquatopia (from July 2 through Sept. 18, 2024, only)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Raging Spirits
• Tokyo DisneySea: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Tokyo DisneySea: The Magic Lamp Theater
• Tokyo DisneySea: Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull
• Tokyo DisneySea: Turtle Talk

There are also character meet and greets available with the Priority Pass, so don't forget to get one of those if you're dreaming of that photo with Mickey, Minnie or friends.

Premier Access (paid)

Then there's the paid Premier Access system, which works a lot like individual Lightning Lanes for the most popular rides in the U.S. If you are coming all the way to Japan and want to ride some top rides, you want to buy Premier Access.

You can purchase your first one as soon as you enter the park and then can continue buying more (to the same or different rides) either 60 minutes after your last purchase or after the start time of your last purchased Premier Access Pass, whichever is earlier. You can also have a Premier Access Pass at the same time as an attraction for a parade or show. You can have them at the same time as the free 40th-Anniversary Priority Passes.

Here are the eligible rides and shows for Premier Access:

• Tokyo Disneyland: Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast (2,000 yen, which is about $13)
• Tokyo Disneyland: The Happy Ride with Baymax (1,500 yen, which is about $10)
• Tokyo Disneyland: Splash Mountain (1,500 yen, which is about $10)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Anna and Elsa's Frozen Journey (2,000 yen, which is about $13)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Rapunzel's Lantern Festival (2,000 yen, which is about $13)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Peter Pan's Never Land Adventure (2,000 yen, which is about $13)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Soaring: Fantastic Flight (2,000 yen, which is about $13)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Toy Story Mania! (2,000 yen, which is about $13)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Tower of Terror(1,500 yen, which is about $10)
• Tokyo DisneySea: Journey to the Center of the Earth (1,500 yen, which is about $10)

In our experience, if you start purchasing Premier Access passes right at park opening and continue to do so once per hour (or sooner, if your start time is sooner), you'll likely be able to purchase about three in one day before they sell out. This was true before the opening of Fantasy Springs, so it could change now that the number available at DisneySea has almost doubled. However, start for sure with the one or two rides you want to prioritize for that day.

Early Happy Entry

Another way to avoid some of the most notorious crowds is to stay at one of the deluxe Disney-branded hotels and use the Happy Entry perk.

Depending on the hotel you stay in and the date of your visit, you can get early access to one or both parks via "Happy Entry." Check the fine print carefully as the opening of Fantasy Springs is changing what hotels offer this benefit for each park on different days.

The head start is only 15 extra minutes, but it can make a world of difference. Happy Entry guests enter through separate checkpoints and can dash to one popular attraction to start the morning with a short standby wait. Additionally, Happy Entry guests can begin making ride reservations with Premier Access and 40th Anniversary Priority Pass upon entry, getting an important jump on other guests.

That means you can get a short wait for one ride while you get the first pick on two other rides with the paid and free passes — all in the first few minutes before the official opening time.

If you're not eligible for the Happy Entry benefit, you should expect a massive crowd outside the parks before the gates open each day. If you want to be at the front of those crowds, it's necessary to arrive up to several hours before park opening. Thankfully, Tokyo Disney Resort is highly efficient at processing what may appear to be an intimidating number of guests, even if you arrive closer to opening time.

Of course, there are times when the crowds can be unbearable. The Golden Week holidays in late April and early May have historically been the most crowded. The opening of Fantasy Springs in early June 2024 will also likely lead to an unprecedented surge in demand at Tokyo DisneySea through the summer and beyond. Regardless of which season you visit, we highly recommend avoiding weekend days.

Must-do Tokyo Disney rides and shows

Quite a few of the attractions in Tokyo Disneyland will look familiar to guests who know the U.S. parks well. There are classics like It's a Small World, Peter Pan and Pirates of the Caribbean.

However, most guests visit to experience Tokyo Disney's more interesting attractions , and the two parks boast an impressive list of rides and experiences available nowhere else. Not surprisingly, these attractions tend to have the longest lines. A smart strategy to get aboard most of them without long waits is essential.

One of Tokyo Disneyland's newest and most popular attractions is Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast. It's within Beast's Castle (a 2020 expansion to Fantasyland), and guests glide along in a trackless teacup ride vehicle through scenes from the movie populated with realistic Audio-Animatronic characters.

Also popular is Pooh's Hunny Hunt, which was the first Disney attraction ever to use trackless technology. Guests will also want to make time for the Happy Ride with Baymax (similar to Alien Swirling Saucers or Mater's Junkyard Jamboree) and Monsters, Inc. Hide and Go Seek (a substantial improvement on Disneyland's Monster's, Inc. dark ride). It's not a particularly amazing ride, but it's an amazing atmosphere, so go watch others ride if you don't have time to do so yourself.

In Tokyo DisneySea, the top thrill ride is Journey to the Center of the Earth, a dark ride and coaster that winds through Mount Prometheus before its thrilling drop ends.

Milder but still cool DisneySea rides include 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Sindbad's Storybook Voyage, Nemo & Friends: SeaRider and Aquatopia. Tokyo DisneySea also has its own Tower of Terror complete with a totally different theme and storyline that shouldn't be missed.

Within Fantasy Springs, there are four new attractions — Peter Pan's Never Land Adventure, Rapunzel's Lantern Festival, Fairy Tinker Bell's Busy Buggies, and Anna and Elsa's Frozen Journey — that you'll want to include in your itinerary.

While many guests to Disney parks prioritize rides, they shouldn't overlook Tokyo Disney's shows and entertainment. These offerings are far more substantial than those in the U.S. parks.

The most talked-about show is Big Band Beat in Tokyo DisneySea, which uses a lottery-style "Entry Request" system to distribute seats. Yes, that's separate from the Premier Access and 40th Anniversary Priority Pass we've been talking about.

Some shows, such as the popular Duffy and Friends' Wonderful Friendship, are only available to guests who book a dining reservation at the associated restaurant (more on dining below).

Tokyo Disneyland Park traditionally has a daytime and evening parade as well as evening fireworks. Tokyo DisneySea also features a nighttime spectacular on the water. You can purchase Premier Access reserved "seating" for either of those.

Thankfully, attending parades is a very organized process in Tokyo Disney. In the hour or two before the show, it is quite common to see families sitting along the parade route.

Best meals and snacks in Tokyo Disney

Tokyo Disney Resort offers a somewhat overwhelming array of dining options, and most non-local guests won't have time to sample more than a couple of the many dozens of restaurants.

Like the U.S. parks, Tokyo Disney has quick- and table-service restaurants. The resort also offers a few entertainment dining restaurants that combine a meal with a stage show featuring character performers.

Getting dining reservations for the most popular table-service and show-dining restaurants is at least as competitive as for Disney World or Disneyland.

Show dining reservations open at 9 a.m. local time exactly one month in advance. All other table service restaurant reservations open one hour later at 10 a.m. The demand regularly crashes the Tokyo Disney website and app. Be prepared not to get your first (or maybe even your second or third) choice.

If this process doesn't sound like your idea of fun vacation planning, know that it's not necessary to make dining reservations at all. There are plenty of tasty, quick-service meals and snacks to enjoy. One of us battled the website and snagged some (but not all) of the more competitive table service restaurants like Magellan's, Teddy Roosevelt Lounge, Blue Bayou and Mickey's Rainbow Luau.

But one of us opted out of this rat race and ate only quick service and snacks in the park instead; this led to more flexibility, lower prices and still some pretty solid food.

For some of the quick-service options, you can use the mobile ordering option in the app, which works somewhat similarly to the U.S. Disney parks. This isn't available at every quick-service restaurant; still, it's available at enough of them to keep you happy and avoid wasting precious time in line. We used it to receive this quick order from Plasma Ray's Diner in Tokyo Disneyland.

When it comes to snacks, Tokyo Disney has a fair number of reasonably priced and adorable snacks for dining on the go. The most visible and beloved snack is undoubtedly popcorn. Popcorn carts are in nearly every land in both parks, and queues often rival the lines for popular attractions.

Each cart offers a different flavor, from the sweet to the savory. Some of the flavors available in 2024 include curry, caramel, chocolate, black pepper, garlic shrimp and matcha white chocolate. You can afford to sample a few at 400 yen (about $3) per box.

Tokyo Disney also offers several other snacks that will be familiar to guests who have visited the U.S. Disney parks. These options include churros and turkey legs. (Insider tip we learned the hard way: Skip the potato churro and opt for the traditional cinnamon-sugar one instead. Along with many other snacks here, it comes in a Mickey shape.)

Unique to Tokyo Disney are the often-Instagrammed Toy Story Green Alien Mochi dumplings.

Is it worth it to visit Tokyo Disney?

Japan has more to offer than you could ever enjoy all in one visit, so it can be tough to decide whether it's worth devoting some of your precious time there to a theme park visit. Nothing is right for everyone, but if you even remotely like the U.S. Disney parks, then Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea are worth the time.

Some things will feel very familiar if you are used to the U.S. Disney parks (which can be a nice break while in a part of the world that is so distinct from home). However, many other things are unique to Tokyo Disney, and both of our Disney-loving families found the visit very much worth the time and money.

Visitors can sit on the ground to watch the shows and parades, capitalize on the affordable prices, sample interesting snacks, enjoy high-quality and original rides, meet the adorable Duffy and friends characters, and stay in interesting hotels. So, even after devoting multiple days to Tokyo Disney, we all left wishing we could stay for more.

Related reading:

• Best ways to use your points and miles to visit Japan
• Review of the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel
• Review of Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta
• Look inside Tokyo Disney Fantasy Springs

When to Visit Tokyo Disneyland in 2024

There are good & bad times to visit Tokyo Disneyland & DisneySea for the rest of this year and in 2024. Some days have low crowds, while others have 45 minute wait times just for popcorn! Extremes in weather and seasonal entertainment are other important factors to consider when planning your Japan trip. ( Updated December 11, 2023 .)

In our latest update to this guide to the best times to visit Tokyo Disney Resort, we’re looking forward to 2024. This follows quite a bit of news and changes, including that Fantasy Springs will open in June 2024 . That blockbuster new $2 billion expansion is the eighth themed port of call at Tokyo Disneysea, and is sure to draw massive crowds upon opening. As we explain below, it could even disrupt attendance patterns even before it debuts, during the first ~5 months of 2024!

For now, there’s still a huge amount of pent-up demand among domestic visitors in Japan. The downgrading of COVID earlier in 2023 “removed psychological barriers” to travel for the Japanese, according to economists. On top of that, inbound tourists who been shut out of Japan for the last two-plus years have returned in full force. All of this is hardly surprising, as Walt Disney World and Disneyland have seen this exact scenario play out in the U.S. parks. The only difference is the timeline being delayed due to Japan’s slower and more cautious approach to reopening.

With that said, it’s possible that pent-up demand is starting to turn a corner in Japan as a whole. According to government data, Japan’s real wages just declined for a 17th straight month due to persistent price hikes and inflation outpacing salary gains. The result of this has been slowing consumer spending, which has now decreased for several consecutive months as consumers’ purchasing power is squeezed.

Economists at the Bank of Japan are now forecasting that economic growth is “highly likely to decelerate” due to a slow-down of pent-up demand spending, as well as to a waning of the effects of the government’s economic measures. However, that’s the big-picture economic outlook from the Bank of Japan. Oddly enough, they don’t have a specific section about guest spending at Tokyo Disney Resort. Just because there’s a broader pullback does not mean the parks will experience the same.

How ‘revenge travel’ continues among the Japanese is the biggest variable on 2024 crowd levels at Tokyo Disney Resort. Despite the existence of English-language sites like this one, Japanese visitors make up the vast majority of visitors to TDR in normal years. In 2019, international visitors only accounted for 9.6% of all guests at Tokyo Disney Resort. While that was the fastest-growing demographic, it was still a small percentage of all park attendees.

As mentioned above, the other big wildcard is whether Japanese guests postpone trips while waiting for Fantasy Springs. In normal times, we’d view this as pretty close to a non-factor, as the ubiquity of Annual Passes and seasonal events used to maintain relatively stable attendance throughout the year.

Obviously, there was seasonality to attendance–if not, a guide like this would be practically pointless. Annual Passholders didn’t make up a majority of visitors at Tokyo Disney Resort on the vast majority of days. But they did help buoy attendance at times when tourism was slow, and helped establish a floor of sorts for crowd levels.

With Annual Pass sales still paused–and highly unlikely to resume until after Fantasy Springs opens (unless there are  significant blockout dates)–that dynamic is different. Pair that with slowing pent-up demand and more cautious consumer spending, and our view is that it’s highly likely that tourists and even local diehard Japanese Disney fans will postpone visits to Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea in the first 5 months of 2024.

Right now, it seems like a very safe bet that attendance numbers in April and May 2024 will be lower than they were this year. To a lesser extent, the same should be true for January through March 2024. (We far less confident about those months, as a grand finale for Tokyo Disneyland’s 40th Anniversary and/or a surprise seasonal event could spike crowds.)

Of course, there will be exceptions to this. Golden Week will still be bonkers. Weekends and other holidays will likewise see healthy crowds. But barring a brand-new seasonal event or parade (which honestly seems possible or probable given this potential pre-Fantasy Springs slump), it’s likely that a lot of Japanese guests will wait until the new Peter Pan, Tangled and Frozen port-of-call opens.

One final, less significant wild card is that park capacity is still below 2019 levels. We experienced this first hand with our last trip to Tokyo Disney Resort. The parks were packed with some of the worst ‘feels like’ crowds we’ve ever encountered. This was for a handful of reasons, including pent-up demand and travel subsidies.

It was also due to the closed restaurants and retail that still have not reopened in the past ~3 years following the closure of the parks. While individually minor, these significantly impact retail and restaurant capacity in aggregate. The end result is crowded shops and very long lines for dining options, especially at peak times. There are also a number of entertainment options that have yet to reopen, which also reduced available park capacity. (Again, a very similar dynamic to the U.S. parks in 2020 and 2021.)

Our sincere hope is that this capacity is restored in short order, as it will be needed if attendance continues to increase. Already, large strides have been made in the last year or so, with the debut of “Believe! Sea of Dreams” nighttime spectacular at Tokyo DisneySea and start of Tokyo Disneyland’s 40th Anniversary celebration. This is a step in the right direction, but it’s just a start. More is needed before Fantasy Springs opens in Summer 2024.

Suffice to say, if you’re visiting after June 6, 2024, hopefully this won’t be an issue at all. However, it’s possible staffing shortages and other woes will persist, and exacerbate how crowded the parks feel.

With that rather significant preface out of the way, we’ll do our best to predict crowd trends here based on past precedent in a normal year. All things being equal, these general patterns should repeat themselves again in 2024 and beyond.

Narrowing things down to the season during which you want to visit is a crucial first step from our perspective. This isn’t California or even Florida. The differences between January and April, for example, are significant. In January, you will certainly find cold weather and might even be greeted by snow in different parts of Japan, including Tokyo Disneyland . In April, weather is mild, the cherry blossoms start blooming, and the parks are celebrating spring.

To that end, let’s start by taking a month-by-month look at what you can encounter in terms of seasonal offerings, crowds, and weather. Let’s start with the special events, which are shaping up to be different in 2024 than previous years…

2024 Special Events at Tokyo Disney Resort

• 40th Anniversary “Dream-Go-Round” (Tokyo Disneyland)  – Now to March 31, 2024
• New Year’s at Tokyo Disney Resort (Both Parks) – January 1-8, 2024
• Disney Pal-Palooza: Minnie’s Funderland (Tokyo Disneyland) – January 10, 2024 to March 19, 2024
• Disney Pal-Palooza: Second Event (Tokyo Disneyland) – April 9, 2024 to June 30, 2024
• Space Mountain: The Final Ignition (Tokyo Disneyland) – April 9, 2024 to July 31, 2024
• Dreaming of Fantasy Springs (Tokyo DisneySea) – April 9, 2024 to June 30, 2024
• Food & Wine Festival (Tokyo DisneySea) – April 9, 2024 to June 30, 2024

As compared to a normal (2019 and earlier) year, this lineup of 2024 special events is still rather meager. There’s no winter event at Tokyo DisneySea and no Easter at either park. While the Disney Pal-Palooza Minnie’s Funderland event appears that it’ll be fairly robust, some of the other offerings may be substantively lacking.

We’re both surprised and unsurprised by this. As compared to the last few years, this is a marked increase. There’s also the practical reality that Tokyo Disney Resort is way behind the curve in resuming operations, getting back to normal almost 2 years behind the U.S. parks. That has meant health safety protocol and constraints, both onstage and off, as well as staffing shortages.

That’s not to excuse this lineup or what’s been offered the last few years. The slow pace of getting back to normal is consistent with Japan as a whole, but it’s also an easy pretense for cost-cutting. It’s also to be expected that entertainment would be reduced as capital investments (new rides and lands) increases; that’s the Disney playbook.

Nevertheless, we’re slightly surprised to see Tokyo Disney Resort not doing more in Spring 2024 to entice locals to return to the parks ahead of the opening of Fantasy Springs. As noted above, there’s likely to be a lull in the first half of the year, and it’s unlikely anything on that calendar is going to move the needle for Tokyo DisneySea, except with the most diehard of fans.

Here’s a rundown of what to expect each month. Note that these are  normal  trends with past special events preserved so you can see what would typically be offered:

• Seasonal Event: New Year’s at Both Parks
• Seasonal Event: Minnie Bestie Bash at Tokyo Disneyland
• Seasonal Event: Duffy’s Heartwarming Days at Tokyo DisneySea
• Weather: 35-50° F with mostly sunny days and little precipitation.
• Crowds: Low after New Year’s week.
• Crowds: Low to moderate, increasing towards the end of the month.
• Special Event: Minnie Bestie Bash at Tokyo Disneyland
• Seasonal Event: Disney’s Easter at Both Parks
• Weather: 40-55° F with mostly sunny days and light precipitation.
• Crowds: Moderate crowds the entire month getting worse towards the end of the month, both in Tokyo Disneyland and Japan in general (blossom season).
• Weather: 50-65° F with moderate sunny days and light precipitation
• Crowds: Low outside of potential holidays at the end of the month (avoid days around Golden Week).
• Weather: 60-75° F with moderate sunny days and light precipitation.
• Crowds: Low after Golden Week travel concludes.
• Special Event: Duffy Sunny Fun at Tokyo DisneySea
• Weather: 65-75° F with some sunny days and moderate precipitation.
• Crowds: Normally low. In 2024, low until Fantasy Springs opens, then CRAZY.
• Seasonal Event: Duffy Sunny Fun & Pirates Summer in Tokyo DisneySea
• Weather: 75-85° F with some sunny days, some precipitation, and high humidity.
• Crowds: Moderate until the last week, which is heavy.
• Weather: 75-90° F with moderate sunny days, light precipitation, and high humidity.
• Crowds: Heavy.
• Special Event: Halloween in both parks
• Weather: 70-80° F with moderate sunny days and some precipitation.
• Crowds: Low at the beginning of the month, increasing to heavy at the end.
• Weather: 60-70° F with moderate sunny days and light precipitation.
• Special Event: Christmas in both parks
• Weather: 50-65° F with mostly sunny days and light precipitation.
• Crowds: Moderate.
• Crowds: Low until Christmas week; heavy thereafter.

Note that this month by month look is a high level overview, and makes generalizations about crowds and weather. For exact dates of Tokyo Disney Resort seasonal events, consult their official monthly calendar .

In addition to the events on this calendar and that official one, Tokyo Disneyland has opened its massive expansion that includes the new Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast attraction and the indoor Fantasyland Forest Theatre. In Toontown, the new Disney Character greeting facility Minnie’s Style Studio is also open, and the Happy Ride with Baymax has debuted in Tomorrowland.

In terms of weather, it gets cold in the winter and then increasingly warmer until peaking during the spring months. Late-June through early-August are the worst times to visit from a weather perspective terms of both precipitation and debilitating humidity.

Pre-closure, we visited during several times of year. Most noteworthy for the purposes of this post were our summer visits. While we enjoyed the summer festivities, the weather bordered on miserable. Japan’s sweltering temperatures made world news due to temperatures over 100F and a record-breaking heat wave that has killed dozens. Obviously, temperatures this intense are not normal for the summer in Japan, but this type of weather is possible, and that’s something to consider when planning.

Around September, the weather starts to cool again in the fall leading to colder weather again in the winter. From September through November, things are generally pleasant. December through February are once again “weather wild cards” with freezing temperatures and even snow possible. If you’re averse to cold weather, you should avoid these months.

Weather once again becomes more temperate in the spring, with April and May being quite nice. Our calendar above covers in-park crowds, and indicates that April is generally low season for Tokyo Disney Resort. Note that April is cherry blossom season in Japan, so you are likely to encounter heavier crowds outside the parks during peak sakura times. (Ditto that with mid to late November and fall colors season.)

As for crowds, you definitely want to consult something more precise than our overview. Japanese national holidays and to a lesser extent national holidays in China and South Korea (the largest demographics of overseas visitors to Japan) can have impact crowds on certain dates, and crowds can turn on a dime from being light to heavy when school is out of session.

For a bit more precision, we recommend consulting Crowd Calendars for Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea . These are incredibly great resources for choosing which days to visit the parks once you’ve narrowed down your rough travel dates based upon the season or special events you want to experience. There’s a lot of info in the crowd calendars, and they have never steered us wrong.

One thing to note is that crowds fluctuate more at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea more than any other parks in the world. We’ve been on “low” days in the middle of the weeks that are lighter than mid-January at Disneyland, and we’ve been on weekends that feel like New Year’s Eve in Magic Kingdom.

A lot of people of apprehensive about visiting Tokyo Disneyland due to photos that circulate of humongous lines to get into the park and crazy congestion, and while the former is true every day (the Japanese like to show up early!) the latter is only true on the busiest days of the year. I want to underscore this because the perception of crowds in these parks has taken on a life of its own and is, frankly, overblown.

With that said, it is very important to choose your travel dates wisely to avoid weekends and holidays, otherwise you risk being caught in one of these ‘crazy congestion’ times. Our 3 favorite times to visit the parks are mid-May, early to mid-September, and early-November.

If you go in mid-May, you avoid the the Golden Week crowds, get better weather than earlier in the year, and will be able to see Disney’s Easter, which is awesome. In our experience, this is the sweet spot in terms of weather, crowds, and seasonal events.

If you visit in early to mid-September, you’ll be able again have milder weather and you will beat the Halloween crowds (which get bad!) while still being able to enjoy the Halloween festivities.

We’ve dubbed going for the last two days of Halloween and the first week of Christmas as “ HalloXmas at Tokyo Disney Resort .” This is our absolute favorite time of the year to go thanks to seasonal offerings. Note that Halloween itself is bad crowd-wise, but the following days are light. Weather should be temperate throughout the trip, but you might need a light jacket.

We love Tokyo Disney Resort, but we think it would be sort of extreme (and not EXTREME! in a good way, like chugging a bunch of Mountain Dew and hanging out with Chuck Norris) to visit Japan without seeing other parts of Japan, so you should definitely consult a calendar of happenings around the country before finalizing your dates.

As noted above, cherry blossom and fall colors seasons are going to be busy throughout the country. This is particularly true in Kyoto, Mt. Fuji, and other areas known for seasonal beauty. If you’re just visiting only Tokyo on your first trip to Japan, this shouldn’t be as much of a concern.

Once you’ve determined what time of year you want to visit, it’s important to plan the particular days you will be visiting. The most important takeaway you can glean from this article is do not visit Tokyo Disneyland or DisneySea on weekends. That’s really important, so let me reiterate with some dramatic emphasis: DO NOT VISIT TOKYO DISNEY RESORT ON WEEKENDS!!!

This is true no matter what time of year you visit, even during the lowest seasons, weekend crowds are bad. Like Times Square on New Year’s Eve (minus the B.O. and vomit) bad. This is because Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea are locals parks more than even Disneyland in California, meaning they get crowded with Annual Passholders on the weekends when they are off school and work.

Saturday is the absolute worst day of the week, with Sunday a close second (until around 5 p.m. when locals start heading home). Friday is the third worst day, especially in the afternoon and evening, as people head to the parks to kick off their weekends.

In terms of the rest of the week, we can’t really say we’ve noticed a significant difference among Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, save for Monday arguably being slightly busier with a few locals doing long weekends and tourists kicking off the start of their vacation head to the parks. This difference is negligible at best, and we would not recommend avoiding Monday as a result.

One final thing to consider is the strength of the yen as compared to the dollar. The yen is hovering around its weakest levels since 1998, with the Japanese currency falling about 25% year-to-date. The strength of the dollar means greater purchasing power when traveling abroad, and to Japan in particular.

The Bank of Japan has intervened by selling dollar-denominated assets to buy the yen in an effort to prop-up the Japanese currency’s free-fall, but that hasn’t done much. The Bank of Japan has reaffirmed a commitment to ultralow monetary policy, whereas the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks in the West have hiked interest rates repeatedly–and have signaled intent to continue doing so.

These divergent approaches will mean the effects of the yen intervention might be limited, unless the BOJ changes its dovish stance. Consult conversion charts while planning your trip to Tokyo Disney Resort to see where things stand prior to your visit, but you should  have more purchasing power when it comes to airfare, hotels, park tickets, and outfits for your Duffy plush–you know,  all of the essentials.

Planning a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort? For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Tokyo Disneyland & DisneySea Trip Planning Guide ! For more specifics, our TDR Hotel Rankings & Reviews page covers accommodations. Our Restaurant Reviews detail where to dine & snack. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money  post. Our What to Pack for Disney post takes a unique look at clever items to take. Venturing elsewhere in Japan? Consult our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan and City Guide to Tokyo, Japan .

Your Thoughts

If you’ve been to Tokyo Disneyland or Tokyo DisneySea, what did you think were the best or worst times to visit? Thinking about visiting at any particular times of year? Other thoughts on avoiding crowds at Tokyo Disneyland? Share your thoughts or questions in the comments below!

Written by Tom Bricker

Hey Tom. I finally took the plunge and managed to book an award flight to Tkyo, landing Memorial Day Monday May 26th 2025. I’m thinking I’ll head straight from HND to Disney with the plan to spend Tueaday through Thursday in the parks.

Should this be a good time of year to visit? I wasn’t able to get earlier in the spring while avoiding Golden Week. I’m headed to Tokyo after, would you recommend we move to our Tokyo proper hotel Thursday night after our last park day or should we move in the morning? Thanks!

It should be a good time to visit–hopefully some of the current pent-up demand dies down by then.

I assume the question about hotel changes is Thursday night vs. Friday morning? If so, I’d change on Friday. If it’s Thursday morning vs. night, Thursday night. We love and recommend long park days at TDR, so I’d try to avoid transferring on a park day–but especially *before* one starts. By contrast, visiting the city is more laid back–nothing you really need to ‘rope drop.’

Do you think Sept 17-19 are safe or are they in the heavy crowd window??

Each hotel in the resort e.g. Toy Story hotel has its own restaurants which are only opened for its own guests. Do you know if we can invite friends to come to dine with us. Similar for the Fantasy hotel?

Tom – my family is considering a 2025 Japan trip, and wonder if there is any intel on when the best time to visit in 2025 is. Ideally part of the trip would include traditional spring break in mid March or summer 2025. Thanks!

Thanks as always for the TDR info! We went for the first time in February 2020 (right before Covid shut everything down), and your info was invaluable in planning what ended up being the best vacation of our lives!

One question. Do you have an idea of which of the weeks below would be less crowded for a 4-day visit?

Monday, Nov 18 thru Thursday, Nov 21 Monday, Nov 25 thru Thursday, Nov 28 Monday, Dec 2 thru Thursday, Dec 5

Hi Tom, I’m excited by your experience and know that a Great Disney experience is well thought out and planned. I’m not travelling until Sept/Oct 24 but I’m a planner…. I am a solo traveller and would like to spend 2 days each at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea. I am not restricted by dates but going on advice for low crowds but temps over 15oC. Is this asking too much? I’ve done Halloween and Christmas in USA, so not fussed on which season I see. I see I can’t book a package because you need two people and that you can only buy 1 day tickets…. Do you have a blog to help solo travellers? Love reading about all your adventures. Thankyou

It’s worth mentioning September is typhoon season in Tokyo (same as it is hurricane season in Florida) and although the parks are unlikely to close, this can cause issues with transport and crowds. We visited in September 2019 and there was a typhoon which stopped all the trains from evening until about 10am the next morning. This also meant the days after the typhoon were INSANE due to pent up demand and lots of people putting off their trip by a day or two.

Looking at a trip in Mid April and escaping right before Golden week. What would you expect to pay for airfare from MCO to Narita? I am seeing 1200 per person round trip. I have looked through several resources including yours to try and gauge this but figured I would ask.

Hey, my friend and I wanna go next week and only Thursday 11.3 (which is a public holiday) and Saturday/Sunday are available. Which one of these days would you recommend us going then? Also, are more tickets sold on holidays and weekend than on weekdays?

Wow- this left me more confused than ever. Seems like you added some “post-covid” info on top of “pre-covid” info and through it in the blender and hope we understand the results. What exactly are you recommending? Previously you’ve inferred that “Hallo-Xmas” is best; here you state it will be really crowded; you also inferred that late-March/Early April would be good to beat the tour groups ( and low yen/$ ratio); now you are saying early May ( after Golden Week?). First and maybe last trip to Japan – and I’d appreciate your real opinion….

If you’re visiting Japan as a whole–beyond Tokyo and beyond the parks–our favorite times of year are fall colors and sakura seasons.

For Tokyo Disney Resort, we love mid-May, early to mid-September, and early-November.

Next year, you could conceivably hit sakura season in Kyoto and then the start of TDL’s 40th Anniversary. Or ‘HalloXmas’ and then fall colors season. I would expect the latter to be crowded due to pent-up demand and the debut of Fantasy Springs; it’s still our favorite time to visit Japan.

You have to decide how you want to balance crowds v. seasonal events and openings.

Thanks SO much!

We were looking at the first two weeks after the opening…the crowd calendar doesn’t look too bad but it does look a little generic for this years calendar attendance. Would you steer me away from a 18-28 October 22 timeframe for the parks? M-Th only of course.

I think you’re under-selling how hot it is in the summer here. At TDR you can duck in and out of air conditioning, but from mid-July until the last week of September it is very hot and extremely humid every day, unless there are typhoon rains. There is general aversion to air conditioning here, at least compared to the USA, which can make it hard to enjoy Tokyo, other than TDR, in the summer.

Tom Have you gone to the fireworks festivals in Japan? Do you have a guide/recommendations? They seem to be in August so it would be heavy crowds at TDL but might be possible? Thanks

I have plane and hotel reservations for Tokyo Disneyland in mid-May. Are they operating ‘normally’? Do I need a park reservation such as Disney World? I don’t want to get there and find out I can’t get in. How can I buy tickets in advance? Any good websites in English? Would I be better off postponing until early/mid November? I have read your blogs and wondered if you had any additional words of wisdom. Thanks for your help.

When would you recommend hitting Shanghai’s Disney and Tokyo Disney on the same trip? And would you recommend Hong Kong Disney or Shanghai Disney? Still May or another time? We are planning post COVID trips

Hi everyone, This year the Culture Day public holiday falls on the Tuesday 3rd November. So my question is – would be typical of Japanese locals to take the Monday off to extend their weekend and go to DisneySea? I am trying to decide between Monday 2nd or Wednesday 4th November 2020 to avoid large crowds.

Hi! I’ll be traveling with my daughter in October 2020 and my question is: isn’t it possible to purchase park tickets now? I’ve been in the official site and it only shows till June…? Any advice on that? Thank you so much for all your great information! This page is very helpful! I’ll be reading all the pages on this site smiles from Denmark

Hi, we are going to Tokyo over New Years, 2019-2020, and the crowd calendar shows that Sunday December 29 will be the lowest day for attendance, 33,000. But you indicated that we should never go on a weekend. The next week is all red and near capacity so that seems bad as well. What do you think? Go for a Sunday since it is projected to be the lowest? Thanks!

Hi, We are travelling at the same time…. the week over NYE. Did you find out what the best day to go was? I would love to know! We were confused as well because it said avoid weekend but 29th looked better based on crowd calendar. Apparently that is there winter break time so super busy 🙁

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ASIA , JAPAN , TOKYO · July 9, 2019 Last Updated on March 10, 2024

HOW TO PLAN A TRIP TO TOKYO DISNEY IN 5 EASY STEPS

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If you’ve ever planned a trip to Disney World or Disneyland, then you know how easy and convenient it is. You can do everything online without the need to talk to a representative. Piece of cake. However, when it comes to an international Disney park like Tokyo Disney, things can get a bit tricky.

This is where this article comes in. Although it can be a bit overwhelming, if you properly do your research, it really can be just as smooth as planning a Disney trip in the States. To help, I’ve created this guide: 5 easy steps for planning a trip to Tokyo Disney.

TRY TO VISIT TOKYO DISNEY IN JANUARY OR SEPTEMBER

I’d say this is probably the most important advice I can give you. Walt Disney World in Florida and Tokyo Disney are the busiest parks and it can get very crowded. Which is why you should visit during the slow season.

I went in January and it was the best decision I ever made. You should also know that the best days to go during the slow season is the weekdays, specifically Tuesday through Thursday, the ultimate slow time.

Avoid going to the parks during the weekends. It can get very unpleasant in terms of crowds. I cannot stress this enough!

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When we went to Tokyo Disneyland on a Tuesday, most rides were empty so all we did was walk in and hop on the ride. Others only had a 5-minute wait. It was so funny watching the cast members just stand there waiting for someone to walk into their rides. It was amazing. I remember riding 3 rides in the span of 20 minutes, no FastPass necessary!

STAY AT A DISNEY HOTEL OR PARTNER HOTEL

If you want to take advantage of being one of the first people to enter the parks AND have a stress-free commute to the parks, I suggest staying at a Disney hotel or Disney partner hotel .

If you’re only planning on doing one day at the parks, then it’s not really necessary, but if you aren’t, you definitely should stay on Disney property. The commute from central Tokyo to Urayasu can be a hassle, especially in the mornings and evenings. I stayed at the Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel , a Disney partner hotel, and it was one of the best experiences of the whole trip.

The hotel is situated right across the street from the Disney resort line, which takes you around the entire Disney resort, the parks, and Ikspiari (their version of Disney Springs). It was convenient and so satisfying just crossing the street to catch our train to and from the parks.

The same goes for the Disneyland Hotel, the MiraCosta Hotel, Hotel Okura Tokyo Bay , and the Hilton Tokyo Bay . All of the nearby Disney Tokyo hotels are easily accessible and a small walk to the resort line.

SHERATON GRANDE TOKYO BAY HOTEL

If you can’t choose a hotel and if you’re looking for something affordable, I highly recommend the Sheraton . The room was so amazing and we were lucky enough to stay in their newly renovated wing.

They offer so many amenities, we were slightly overwhelmed. The food was delicious, the hotel itself was beautiful, the little shopping area in the hotel was extremely useful, (I got sick and required some medicine). And they have their own mini Disney store!

You can easily buy Disney tickets right at the hotel and you’re guaranteed admission even if the park reaches capacity. Their body wash also smelled really good! Another great thing about the partner hotels is that you can book them on Booking.com and other travel websites, so you can use your points if you have any.

PURCHASE A DISNEY RESORT LINE MULTI-DAY PASS 

Now you really only have to do this if you’re staying on Disney property, or if you’re planning on commuting to the parks more than one day. Like mentioned before, the Disney resort line moves you throughout the entire Disney property. It’s one large loop going in circles around the resort, with 4 stops total:

• Stop 1: Resort Gateway Station. This is where you’ll find Maihama Station, the train stop you’ll get off at if you’re visiting the resort from central Tokyo. You’ll also find Ikspiari, their version of Disney Springs. And finally the Disney Ambassador Hotel, as well as other entertainment facilities.
• Stop 2: Tokyo Disneyland Station. You’ll find Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland Hotel.
• Stop 3: Bayside Station. This is where the Tokyo Disney partner and official hotels are located, (and where I stayed).
• Stop 4: Tokyo DisneySea Station. Here you’ll find Tokyo DisneySea and Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta.

DISNEY RESORT LINE AT TOKYO DISNEY

The Disney resort line multi-day pass is sort of an unlimited MetroCard. You can buy it for a certain amount of days, and use it as much as you’d like to within the time frame. You can go back and forth between the parks, Ikspiari, and your hotel.

KNOW WHICH RIDES YOU WANT TO DO FIRST

This one is very important. Unlike Disney World, you can’t book fast passes beforehand. This is probably the only negative thing I can say about Tokyo Disney. Because you can’t pick fast passes in advance, it’s all about timing your day and your rides.

People take their rides very seriously. The locals will line up for hours before the park opens in order to be first and run to the ride they want to get fast passes for, or just run to be the first in line, which can become an hour-long within 10 minutes of the park opening. And I do mean RUN – cast members are forced to hold signs reminding people to walk instead of running. Fast passes also sell out very quickly.

TOKYO DISNEYLAND RIDES

At Tokyo Disneyland, the most popular ride is Pooh’s Hunny Hunt . It’s so popular that fast passes sell out within the first 2 hours of the park opening! We wanted to ride that ride because it’s also unique to Tokyo Disney, so of course, that was the main focus on our Disneyland day.

We got our FastPass at opening hours, then, later on, we got Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We really didn’t have to get fast passes for the remainder of the day because as mentioned before, the park was so slow there was no need!

TOKYO DISNEYSEA RIDES

At Tokyo DisneySea , the most popular ride is Toy Story Mania. It’s so popular it’s insane. Fastpasses sell out within the hour of the park opening. When entering the park, we found it so interesting observing the entire crowd just turn left to go get in line or get a FastPass for Toy Story!

I don’t blame them though, it’s an amazing ride, but we opted out of this one this time. Instead, we got fast passes for Tower of Terror, (which it’s a completely different theme than the other Disney parks and has a terrifying monkey), Journey to the Center of the Earth, (which I found to be a little underwhelming if I’m honest), and Tower of Terror again because we loved it so much!

PICKING YOUR FAVORITE RIDES

Now returning back to my point: you should know the must-rides for you. That way you can plan and know where you have to run to, (or speed walk really really fast), to get your FastPass in the morning. Know how popular that ride is and if it’s one of the most popular ones, get a FastPass for that one first and get the least popular rides later in the day because you can’t get them all the same time. Planning saves you time, which allows for more fun!

You should also know that Tokyo DisneySea is an extremely large park. The minimum you should plan for it is 2 days. It also has the most thrilling attractions out of the two parks, therefore the favorite to most people.

It also has the most interesting theme spots such as Ariel’s Playground, Agrabah Marketplace, and the Italy section. Nothing you’ve ever seen before! Take your time exploring Tokyo DisneySea, it is beautiful.

BUY YOUR TICKETS BEFOREHAND OR AT THE HOTEL

You’ve most likely probably heard of this one. Well, you hear it a lot for a reason! No one likes the morning lines to get tickets, watching everyone rush by you because they already have theirs. Buy your tickets online, or at the Disney hotel, you are staying at.

You can even buy Disney tickets at 7-elevens and Lawsons in central Tokyo if that’s where you’re staying, it’s so easy and convenient! Just don’t do it when you reach the gates.

Tokyo Disney tickets are also the most affordable Disney tickets in my opinion. Compared to other parks, it’s moderately priced. The food and merchandise are also surprisingly affordable if you were wondering!

WHAT TO KNOW FOR VISITING JAPAN

Japan visas.

Citizens of many countries can get a free 90 day entry to visit Japan for tourism.

Be sure to check the official Japanese Immigration Website for the latest information for your specific country.

The currency used in Japan is the Japanese Yen (JPY) . The current exchange rate is approximately 1 USD to 108 JPY. You can check the latest EUR exchange rate on Google .

While traveling, our number one tip is to use a free Charles Schwab Debit Card which gives unlimited worldwide ATM Fee Refunds and the true exchange rate.

BEST TOURS IN TOKYO

Some of the best tours and things to do in Tokyo are:

• Tokyo Temples and Shrines Morning Tour
• Tokyo: Sushi Making Class
• 2-Hour Asakusa Food Hunt & Cultural Tour
• Photo Shoot in Tokyo with a Private Photographer

WHERE TO STAY IN TOKYO

We recommend booking your hotels on Booking.com to get the best rate and many hotels offer free cancellation in case your plans change.

Some of our favorite hotels near Tokyo Disney are:

• Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel
• Hotel Okura Tokyo Bay
• Hilton Tokyo Bay

AirBnB is also a great option in Tokyo (and you can save $44 using that link to sign up!).

BEST TIME TO VISIT JAPAN

The best time to visit Japan is during the shoulder seasons of March to May or September to November . These times have the mildest temperatures and will be less crowded than summer.

BEST BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN

Read more about Japan before you go! Some of the best books about Japan are:

• Memoirs of a Geisha
• Shogun: The Epic Novel of Japan
• My Year of Meats

WHAT POWER ADAPTERS DO YOU NEED

Japan uses standard Type A and Type B adapters also commonly used in the USA. However, keep in mind that the voltage is different so be careful with your electronics and bring a voltage converter if necessary.

You can buy a universal adapter that will work in any country and has extra ports for USB cables to charge your phone and other devices.

We also always travel with a portable battery pack which is great to keep your phone charged on long journeys.

TRANSPORTATION IN JAPAN

• Public Transportation: Japan has extensive public transportation by both bus and train. The high speed trains are particularly good.
• Rental Cars : If you want flexibility, we recommend renting a car at the airport. This provides the easiest way to see certain landmarks, though parking in Tokyo can be expensive.
• Uber: Uber is sometimes available in Japan, though it depends on the area (mostly in Tokyo and Kyoto). However, the rules are constantly changing about Uber in Japan due to the strict permits that are required for drivers to offer rides. Metered taxis are readily available. You can use the popular JapanTaxiApp instead of Uber.

TRAVEL INSURANCE

Our top recommended travel insurance companies for Japan are:

• World Nomads : Comprehensive coverage for medical, travel delays, and electronics.
• SafetyWing : Cheaper monthly coverage primarily for medical, starting at $37 for 4 weeks of coverage.

MORE ARTICLES ABOUT JAPAN

• Top 10 Things To Do In Tokyo
• Naoshima, Japan Will Surprise You
• Why You Should Consider Japan For A Solo Female Trip
• A Guide To Visiting Hakone, Japan
• The Perfect 7 Day Japan Itinerary
• 8 Things To Do In Japan Totally Worth The Hype
• 8 Off The Beaten Path Things To Do In Tokyo, Japan

So far, I think Tokyo Disney might be my favorite Disney park, in terms of uniqueness and convenience. Walt Disney World, of course, will always be my OG. But these two parks are the parks that I will always continue coming to.

We hope that this article has helped inspire you to visit Tokyo Disney. If you have any questions about the destination or have your own travel tips to share please leave these in the comments below.

Want to share your own travel tips by guest writing for We Are Travel Girls? Go to our Contribute page for guidelines and to submit your article.

Subscribe to get access to our FREE eBook with tips for saving money when you travel!

We Are Travel Girls Contributor Ashley Prenza of AshleyPrenza.com   Connect with Ashley  Instagram  | YouTube

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January 24, 2020 at 9:40 pm

Great article! We’re a family of 7 — mom/dad and 5 kids. Any hotel recommendations?

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• PLAN A TRIP
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• DISNEY CRUISE LINE
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• ADVENTURES BY DISNEY
• HONG KONG | SHANGHAI | TOKYO

Hong Kong, Shanghai & Tokyo

• HONG KONG | Hong Kong Disneyland Park + 3 Hotels
• CHINA | Shanghai Disneyland Park + 3 Hotels
• JAPAN | Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo DisneySea + 6 Hotels 

How many of Disney’s twelve different theme parks have you seen? Die-hard fans know that if you want to visit Disney’s most beautiful and innovative parks, you’ll need a passport! 

Tokyo Disney Resort is home to the 3rd and 4th most visited theme parks in the world. Many Disney experts consider Tokyo DisneySea the greatest Disney park on Earth, and Disney’s newest castle is now charming guests in the adorable Hong Kong Disneyland.  With Shanghai Disneyland’s innovative new attractions, all of Disney’s Asian international parks set a high bar for creative enchantment.

But coming out of the pandemic, visiting Japan and China has become extra tricky. When is the best time to go? Can international guests easily access the Disney parks? What kind of reservations or visas are required?

We know Japan & China.

Chris from Wishful Thinking studied abroad in China and has visited Japan many times. He recently visited all four Asian Disney parks in December 2023.

For 2024 and 2025, we’ve got up-to-date information on the international travel & visa requirements to visit Asia. Post-pandemic international travel to Japan and China has more than rebounded — it’s thriving. Now more than ever, it’s wise to start planning as early as possible. 

We’re happy to help. For free.

Thankfully, Wishful Thinking is more than merely an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. We’re experts about Disney destinations around the world, and we’ve planned detailed trips to Asia for dozens of clients for more than a decade. 

As soon as you’ve got travel dates in mind, it’s smart to start planning. Asia’s Disney destinations sell out months in advance. To learn more, visit our FAQ articles below.

TOKYO DISNEY RESORT

Shanghai disneyland resort, hong kong disneyland resort, tokyo disney resort.

Updated: May, 2024

For over a decade, Chris from Wishful Thinking has made regular visits to Tokyo Disneyland & Tokyo DisneySea; most recently in December of 2023.

Tokyo’s Fantasy Springs expansion at DisneySea is inspiring Disney fans across the planet. 

Wondering which hotel is best? How many days for sightseeing in Tokyo? How to include visits to Kyoto, Osaka, or Universal Studios Japan? Scroll down for some expert advice.

Fantasy Springs has dramatically raised the bar. Disney’s most exciting, new, state-of-the-art attractions are inspired by Tangled, Frozen and Peter Pan. 

Now’s the time to plan your visit to the Land of the Rising Sun!

Tokyo Disney Resort | FAQ

Curious about Tokyo’s two spectacular theme parks, their five Disney-owned resort hotels, and some of the most creative Imagineering on Earth? Tokyo Disney Resort is preparing to launch Disney’s latest innovations to Tokyo DisneySea at the deeply imaginative new Fantasy Springs.  Disney fans are thrilled to finally see these sights with their own eyes. 

But when we compare it to Disneyland (in California) and Walt Disney World (in Florida), what’s different about Tokyo Disney Resort?  Let’s answer some of the most common questions:

• TIMING | When is the best time to visit Tokyo Disney Resort? How many days do I need? What holidays or days of the week should I avoid? Should I visit Disney before or after some sightseeing in Tokyo? Should I wait for the new Fantasy Springs  buzz to die down? | Get the answers ▸

• FANTASY SPRINGS | What’s required in order to experience the new Tangled, Frozen, and Peter Pan -themed areas at TokyoDisneySea? What attractions & restaurants are best? Fantasy Springs opens on June 6, 2024 — what can we expect? | Get the answers ▸

• HOTELS | What are the best hotels at Tokyo Disney Resort? The Disneyland Hotel, the Hotel MiraCosta, the Toy Story hotel, the Ambassador hotel, or the Celebration hotel? What about the other hotels along the monorail? When will the new Fantasy Springs Hotel open for bookings? | Get the answers  ▸

• TICKETS | How do I get theme park tickets for Tokyo Disneyland & Tokyo DisneySea?  Can I get single-day tickets without a hotel stay? Will North American credit cards work? | Get the answers ▸

• PACKAGES | Is a Package a good value? Is Fantasy Springs access guaranteed for everyone? What are Attraction Tickets? If are packages only available for one or two nights, how can I extend my stay? | Get the answers ▸

• TOURISM | What should I see & do in Tokyo? How many days do I need for sightseeing? How should I get around? What’s the most essential etiquette? | Get the answers  ▸

• TOKYO + SHANGHAI + HONG KONG | What’s the best way to visit all three Asian Disney destinations?  Which should I visit first? How many days do I really need in each location? What’s the best way to schedule this kind of trip? 

These are just the first batch of questions you’re likely to have. Thankfully, we’re experts on travel to Asia, and we’re ready to help you plan every detail of your trip — for free.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO VISIT TOKYO DISNEY RESORT?

The weather’s different, the holidays are different, and the local traffic patterns are very different from North American Disney parks. You won’t want to arrive in Japan and question if you’ve timed it right. How many days do you need to see everything? Is it best to wait to visit after Fantasy Springs opens at Tokyo DisneySea?

When you think about planning your visit, keep these guidelines in mind:

You’ll probably want four days to see the parks. | If you’re a major Disney fan — like many Wishful Thinking clients — you’ll probably want at least four days to properly explore Tokyo Disney’s parks.

Tokyo Disneyland’s shows, restaurants, parades, and shops are completely unique. You’ll want to see them all. Other one-of-a-kind attractions — like their new Beauty & the Beast attraction, Pooh’s Hunny Hunt, Monsters Inc. Ride & Go Seek, and others — are so cool that you’ll want to ride them more than once to notice new details! 

Tokyo DisneySea is Disney’s best theme park. You could easily spend an entire day exploring the astonishing theming without getting on a single ride. Nearly all the attractions at DisneySea are unique to Tokyo; you’ll want more than one ride. Sindbad’s Storybook Voyage, The Journey to the Center of the Earth, and Nemo & Friends SeaRider are all originals. Even the Tower of Terror has an entirely unique story.  

On June 6 2024, Fantasy Springs will open at DisneySea. | As you’ll see below, entry for this new state-of-the-art land and its attractions will be limited — especially in the opening months. If seeing Fantasy Springs is a priority for you, be sure to read the next section, below.

Plan for intense jet lag. | If you’re arriving from North or South America, It isn’t wise to visit Disney immediately upon arrival. Why? Because you’ll be dealing with intense jet lag symptoms. For the first two or three days, you’ll feel like you’re sleepwalking. Your body will be saying, “Cannot do this right now. Must. Lie. Down. Immediately.” You’ll be foggy-brained and exhausted. 

Plan for Tokyo sightseeing first. | At the start of your trip, give yourself a few full days in Tokyo. Fill your itinerary with flexible sightseeing plans. Book a comfy, centrally-located hotel where you can sleep in or take mid-day breaks without fearing that you’re wasting the precious time you’re supposed to be in the parks. Save your Disney days until after your body has had some time to adjust. | See our expert tourism tips ▸

Expect massive crowds. | 38 million people live in Tokyo Disney Resort’s backyard. On Saturdays and Sundays — all year long — you’ll see an influx of local families with kids and huge groups of teenagers who crowd the parks. If there’s any way to visit during the week — at least before June — it’s a bit more chill. However, when Fantasy Springs opens, you should expect sold-out peak capacity days every day of the week until the fall. 

Prepare to wait in lines. | At Disney, there are no VIP Tours, and FastPass was discontinued. If you cannot handle waiting in queues, do not go to Tokyo. It’s that simple. The Japanese queue up for everything in Tokyo, even beyond Disney, from train stations to restrooms to ramen shops. That’s how things are in the world’s largest city.

Avoid Japan & China’s major holidays. |  The parks’ busiest periods are during  Golden Week (late April into early May), Obon (August), and the New Year (Dec 31 through early January). Hotel rates are higher throughout the country. historically Chinese New Year brings many vacationers to Japan, and Chinese tourists love Tokyo Disney Resort. The Western holidays of Christmas, Easter, & Halloween don’t bring major crowds — they do, however, bring delightful decorations to the parks.

Tokyo’s weather is similar to Washington, D.C. | Tokyo has four distinct seasons. Summer is hot and humid, fall is cooler and dry. Winter sees frigid temperatures & occasional frozen rain / snow. Spring tends to arrive a bit early, with warm sunshine and springtime showers. Tokyo’s Disney parks are designed for this weather, with more indoor queues than you’ll find in Florida or California. But even sub-zero temperatures don’t drive away crowds — guests show up in their warm winter coats & fuzzy character hats, and make it a fun day with hot cocoa and warm hugs. Extended rainy days — like during a fall typhoon — do tend to inspire the locals to stay home. 

Tell us about your travel dates & let’s start planning ▸   

WHAT IS FANTASY SPRINGS AT TOKYO DISNEYSEA?

Curious about the enchanting additions coming to Tokyo Disney Resort’s Fantasy Springs,  opening on  June 6, 2024? If you’ve ever wondered what it’d be like to see Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival or sail up into the sky on pirate ship with Peter Pan, get ready for an adventure like no other. Disney’s just announced all new details for Fantasy Springs, its captivating attractions, dining, and more!

WHAT IS FANTASY SPRINGS?

A whole new world of Disney magic is now welcoming guests to all-new state-of-the-art attractions, restaurants & entertainment inspired by Tangled, Frozen, and Peter Pan. The eighth themed port at Tokyo DisneySea promises a paradise of enchantment, featuring three waterfront areas: Rapunzel’s Forest, Peter Pan’s Never Land, and Frozen Kingdom.

At last — you’ll see the light! Join  Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival as you sail away on a romantic boat ride, reliving the heartwarming tale of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider.  Head to The Snuggly Duckling  for a delicious meal in a brand new restaurant that’s ready to refresh all your ruffians.

Never-grow-up adventures unfold in Peter Pan’s Never Land.  Explore a swashbuckling pirate ship playground, then chow down at Lookout Cookout, the hideout for the Lost Kids.  Peter Pan hosts an all-new one-of-a-kind attraction that soars far beyond Peter Pan’s Flight. Little ones are sure to giggle as they help Tinker Bell deliver packages in Pixie Hollow on the Fairy Tinker Bell’s Busy Buggies .

Frozen Kingdom beckons you into the unknown on Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey . You’ll relive the heartwarming sisters’ story and enjoy captivating views of fjord cliffs at the  Royal Banquet of Arendelle restaurant. The park’s newest snacks will tempt your tastebuds at Oaken’s OK Foods.

WHAT WILL I NEED IN ORDER TO VISIT FANTASY SPRINGS?

All guests who want to see Fantasy Springs will need a valid park ticket for Tokyo Disney Sea plus at least one of the following:

• A Standby Pass, which is essentially just like one of Disneyland / WDW’s Virtual Queues — it’s free. You’ll request one in the Tokyo Disney app on the day of your visit after you pass through the turnstiles to the park.
• Disney Premier Access — which is just like an Individual Lightning Lane — is available for purchase. You may purchase Premier Access for the top attractions inside Fantasy Springs within the app on the day of your visit after you enter the park — or — receive one as a perk of booking a specific Tokyo Disney Resort Vacation Package. As of now, the price is 2,000 JPY per attraction. View the latest updates on Premier Access ▸ 

TDR has announced that guests will only be able to obtain these entry methods after they have passed through the turnstiles. This is one reason why Early Park Entry is being restricted to Tokyo DisneySea; after June 6, only the guests of the Hotel Miracosta and the Fantasy Springs Hotel will have early park entry at DisneySea. (Disney’s said that this is subject to change.) It’s reasonable to assume that not everyone who enters Tokyo DisneySea on a given day will gain access to Fantasy Springs. (If everyone did, guests would lack a strong incentive to purchase Disney’s Premier Access for entry.)

WHAT IS THE NEW 1-DAY PASSPORT – FANTASY SPRINGS MAGIC?

It’s a new type of 1-day ticket that bundles together Tokyo DisneySea theme park entry with a Disney Premier Access pass for Fantasy Springs. It guarantees that you’ll gain entry to the land. Currently, they’re only available to those who book new type of Disney Vacation Package — although they may become available to regular ticket buyers. We’re awaiting details.

WHAT IS THE FANTASY SPRINGS HOTEL?

Built right into the perimeter of the park, the elegant new Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel brings enchanting luxury accommodations and Art Nouveau to Fantasy Springs. With rooms and restaurants that gaze directly into the land, the Fantasy Springs Restaurant will offering buffet-style dining, La Libellule serves gourmet French cuisine, and Grand Paradis Lounge offers a relaxing salon with wide open windows and one-of-a-kind views. Read on below for more info about Disney’s resort hotels.

Complete this form and we’ll keep you up to date on all the news from Tokyo ▸

WHAT ARE THE BEST HOTELS AT TOKYO DISNEY RESORT?

If this is your only chance to visit, you’ll want to be comfortable. Let’s explore the Disney resort hotels — plus the hotels along the Disney resort monorail line. And, let’s discuss why you shouldn’t stay in central Tokyo for your Disney days.

THE LAY OF THE LAND

Before you think about where to stay, let’s cover some navigational basics:

Tokyo is huge. | You can easily spend two hours traveling from one side of the city to the other. That’s why you’ll want to stay right near Tokyo Disney Resort during your theme park days. Stay in central Tokyo when you’re sightseeing.

Tokyo Disney Resort is located on the distant southeastern waterfront. | It’s about as far from central Tokyo as Disneyland is from central Los Angeles. It’s in the neighborhood of Urayasu, along the shores of Tokyo Bay. Technically, Urayasu is not in Tokyo — it’s in the neighboring Shiba prefecture. The train station nearest to Tokyo Disney Resort is Maihama .

View the location on Google Maps ▸

Traveling to Tokyo Disney Resort can be a hike. | Depending on which train you catch (and the time of day), reaching Urayasu can take 30 minutes from Tokyo Station, 35 minutes from Shinagawa Station, and 45 minutes (to an hour) from Shinjuku Station, Shibuya Station, and Ikebukuro Station. Like any major city, there are rush hour delays. If you’re traveling here directly from either international airport —  Narita (NRT) or Haneda (HND) — trains and shared shuttles are your best transfer options. The Airport Limousine Bus is arguably the easiest, most carefree way to travel, but its schedule is limited — the last departure from Narita can depart as early as 6:00 PM. 

More on traveling from HND  Airport ▸ | More on traveling from NRT Airport ▸

The resort area includes five Disney-owned hotels and six Official Hotels (aka ‘Good Neighbor’ hotels) | All but one of them are accessible along Tokyo Disney Resort’s monorail line. Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel is a quick shuttle ride away.

View the resort hotel map* ▸    * the new Toy Story Hotel is located between map markers 4 and 5

DISNEY-THEMED HOTELS AT TOKYO DISNEY RESORT

The official owner of Tokyo Disney Resort is the Oriental Land Company (OLC) , which owns and manages the following Disney-themed hotels.

HELPFUL TIP: At each link, scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and you’ll be able to view a simple calendar that reveals which dates have rooms remaining and the nightly rate (in Japanese Yen) of the lowest-price available room. As of today, hotel rates and booking are only available 120 days in advance. We’ve got expert tips and advice about how to start planning now; complete this form and we’ll send you three very helpful FAQ guides. Be sure to also see our information about Disney Travel Packages below.

• Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel | Luxury / Deluxe |  Disney’s newest luxury hotel experience is divided into two areas: the Grand Chateau offers Luxury accommodations and amenities (including line-skipping privileges) , while the Fantasy Chateau is classified as a Deluxe hotel. Its three new restaurants will offer beautiful views of the park, and this hotel benefits with unique ticketed access to Fantasy Springs plus the 15-minute early park entry directly into Tokyo DisneySea. | View more details about the hotel ▸ 

• Tokyo Disneyland Hotel | Deluxe | Luxurious, classical, elegant. Similar Victorian-era design as Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa in Orlando, but nicer (if you can believe it) . Located just outside the monorail station entrance to Disneyland park. Some rooms feature views of Cinderella Castle; you may see fireworks in the distance. You’ll find art inspired by Alice in Wonderland, beautifully appointed rooms with subtle theme details, themed suites, and a gorgeous lobby with high-end restaurants and cafes. | View the room availability & rate calendar ▸ 

• Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta | Deluxe | Ornate, sumptuous, opulent. The world’s only hotel located inside a Disney theme park. Baroque design invites you to relax within an 18th-century Italian waterfront village, inspired by Portofino and Venice. Its main façade serves as the entry point to Tokyo DisneySea’s Mediterranean Harbor. Many rooms feature water views of the park’s nightly spectacular. Its recently renovated, sophisticated rooms feature rich brocades, tapestries, and wood-carved furnishings. The stunning domed lobby features fresco paintings and entryways to a collection of delicious restaurants. | View the room availability & rate calendar ▸ 

• Disney Ambassador Hotel | Deluxe | Clever, cool, comfortable. Art deco design evokes 1920’s – 1930’s railway sleeper cars and Atlantic steamships. Although the rooms are simply appointed (on par with a Moderate-level hotel at Walt Disney World) the lobby, pools and common areas feel like a Deluxe resort. Around every corner, you’ll find extravagant details and gleaming artwork from the period. The hotel is located near the back of  Disneyland Park, but it’s a bit too far to walk. Entrances to both parks are just a few minutes away via the monorail. Dining includes a gourmet table service restaurant, a casual diner, and some of Tokyo’s only character dining, Chef Mickey’s. | View the room availability & rate calendar ▸ 

• Toy Story Hotel | Moderate | Colorful, whimsical, imaginative. Tokyo’s newest Disney-themed resort hotel, located right along the monorail line. Think: Toy Story Land at Walt Disney World / Disneyland Paris — the vibe is identical.  Lots of two-dimensional drawings and oversized toy-sized architecture. Rooms are inviting and full of clever details, like an Etch-A-Sketch TV screen and Andy’s iconic bedroom wallpaper: blue sky & white clouds. The hotel’s extensive original merch, kid-friendly play areas, and casual affordable eateries make this family-friendly hotel ideal for guests of all ages.  | View the room availability & rate calendar ▸ 

• Tokyo Celebration Hotel | Value | Fanciful, cute, casual. The only Disney-themed hotel located beyond the resort, about a 15-minute complimentary shuttle drive away. Formerly the Palm & Fountain Terrace Hotel, Oriental Land Company began to transform these hotels a few years ago by adding all-new Disney designs to its rooms, lobbies and pools.  The comfortable rooms are modestly-appointed. The amusing, brightly-colored murals and various bed configurations, however, are designed to appeal to families with young kids. Affordable nightly rates make this hotel one of the most economical lodging choices for Tokyo Disney Resort. | View the room availability & rate calendar ▸ 

TOKYO DISNEY RESORT OFFICIAL HOTELS

In addition to the hotels above, Tokyo Disney Resort also features six official hotels which are located along the resort monorail.   These are similar to what you might know in the USA as Good Neighbor Hotels. OLC doesn’t own or manage them, but they meet the resort’s high standards for cleanliness, service, and amenities. Each of them has an on-site official Tokyo Disney Resort ticket & planning desk.

Two of the hotels are owned by American brands, and are exceptionally accommodating for English-speaking travelers.

HELPFUL TIP | Unlike the Disney hotels above, these hotels may be booked up to 1 year in advance, and Wishful Thinking can set up your hotel reservation .

• Hilton Tokyo Bay | Modern, efficient, familiar. Our top choice for where to stay if you’re not in one of the Disney hotels. This large, recently renovated resort hotel feels like any upscale Hilton you might find back home, with polished marble floors and sleek, modern décor. The Front Desk staff speaks impeccable English. Standard rooms are divided into two design categories — one is more serene and classic, the other more colorful and contemporary — but you can’t go wrong here. The on-site restaurants are big — if a tad bit overpriced — with impressive menus that cater to North American, European, and Asian travelers. Best of all, the hotel’s just a quick monorail ride away from the theme parks. | Get pricing ▸

• Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay | Not currently recommended. Although the hotel formerly was on-par with the Hilton right next door, it’s now overdue for a refresh & refurbishment, and the staff at the Front Desk are not able to communicate in conversational English. After numerous visits (and client feedback) over the 2023 / 2024 travel period, we can’t recommend this hotel, unfortunately. We’ll update this if things improve over the coming year. 

CHOOSING A HOTEL IN CENTRAL TOKYO

Tokyo’s main sights aren’t near Tokyo Disney Resort. Wishful Thinking has expert tips, first-hand accounts, and we love to recommend and book hotels for our clients in Tokyo.

We’ve got hotels in the best neighborhoods. | Most Tokyo visitors have the easiest, most enjoyable visits when they stay in Shinjuku, Harajuku, Shibuya, Roppongi, or Ginza. These neighborhoods are all full of terrific dining, elaborate shopping, and vibrant street life.  I f we had to pick just one neighborhood, we’d probably point you toward Shinjuku. But it’s a tough call; they’re all great. Get pricing for Tokyo hotels ▸ 

You’ll want to stay near a train station. | As we explain below, Tokyo is all about train travel. If possible, select a hotel that’s within a comfortable walking distance of a big train station. 

Compare North American hotel brands vs. Japanese lodging. | If you don’t have a lot of international travel experience, try to minimize your culture shock. A North American hotel chain might be your smartest option. Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, and IHG all have properties in Tokyo, and we’ve got top recommendations within each brand. Their websites, support staff, and on-site front desk staff will work in fluent English. In the guest rooms, you’ll find familiar bed sizes and amenities. If you need to modify / cancel your booking, you’ll be able to rely on English language phone support. When you’re visiting an unfamiliar country, that can help guarantee more restful nights.

However, if you’re an adventurous, seasoned traveler and you’re drawn to unique experiences, consider staying in a  ryokan . These traditional, family-owned lodges are Japan’s most memorable accommodations, particularly in historic locales like Kyoto, Nara, or Osaka. Learn all about ryokan ▸

We have a terrific shortlist of hotels in central Tokyo. | Get pricing at one of our top hotels ▸ 

WHEN & HOW TO BOOK YOUR HOTELS FOR A TOKYO DISNEY RESORT VACATION

When should I visit? And how far in advance can I book?

It greatly depends on whether you want a simple hotel stay, a Disney Vacation Package, or if you’d simply like to visit Tokyo Disneyland / Tokyo DisneySea during a longer stay in Tokyo. Tap below and we’ll send you a free, informative FAQ to help you think through all these decisions.

Let’s plan your trip to Japan ▸

HOW DO I GET THEME PARK TICKETS FOR TOKYO DISNEYLAND & TOKYO DISNEYSEA?

Having trouble with North American credit cards? Wondering if you should get your theme park tickets before you arrive in Japan? Are theme park reservations required?

Learn the secure & guaranteed way to get Tokyo Disney Resort's theme park tickets

Here’s the main thing you need to know: many of Tokyo Disney Resort’s operations have changed post-pandemic.

That’s especially true of their ticket & reservation systems. Much of what we could tell you today could be different tomorrow. 

Here are the most essential updates (updated May, 2024):

If you’re an overnight guest in one of the Disney resort hotels, Disney instructs you to WAIT to buy theme park tickets through your hotel. |  As Tokyo Disney Resort explains on their helpful FAQ, all Disney resort hotel guests are guaranteed to be able to enter the parks on all their dates of stay (check-in through check-out) even if all the day’s theme park tickets are sold out for non-hotel guests.  However, you should wait to purchase your tickets for a few big reasons: one, you’ll need the type of ticket that includes early park entry. Those tickets aren’t available on the internet. Two, Disney may someday offer other types of tickets that were paused for the pandemic, namely, a park hopper ticket and a multi-day ticket. As of April 2024, only one-park-per-day tickets are being sold.

The Disney resort hotels are:

• Tokyo Disneyland Hotel
• Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta
• Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel
• Disney Ambassador Hotel
• Tokyo Disney Resort Toy Story Hotel
• Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel

Guests at the Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel have unique access. | As of April, 2024, guests of this hotel (who are not package holders) have exclusive access to a one-day ticket that includes guaranteed Fantasy Springs entry and reduced wait times at its attractions. Learn more here. Additionally, guests in the Grand Chateau rooms receive extra line-skipping privileges .

If you’re a guest in one of the Tokyo Disney Resort Official Hotels — the ones which are not Disney operated & themed — guests may buy tickets through the hotel. | All guests of the Hilton Tokyo Bay may purchase one-park, one-day tickets in person, in the lobby of the Hilton, even when the tickets are sold out for the general public. Wishful Thinking can book you today into the Hilton, and we highly recommend it. Start here ▸ 

You may buy advance-day tickets online, but you can’t buy tickets more than 60 days in advance. | Currently, online tickets are only valid on the date you select when you purchase them — no additional Theme Park reservations are required. As of now, there are no in-person theme park ticket sales at the parks. You MUST buy your tickets online (or through your Disney-area hotel).

Tickets do not include Genie+ — that’s not how things work in Tokyo. | Instead of FastPass or Genie+, Tokyo Disney Resort offers Premier Access, which any guest may purchase on the day of their visit within the Tokyo Disney Resort app. As of now, Premier Access is only offered on about 3 or 4 attractions per park — here’s the list of attractions and prices. It works almost identically to Individual Lightning Lane purchases at Disneyland in California. You purchase the enhancement after you scan into the park.

Many USA-based credit cards are declined because the Tokyo Disney Resort website and app rely on advanced credit card security called 3D Secure. | The 3D Secure verification is standard for Japan-based banks, but it’s a protocol that isn’t yet standard within the USA. For this reason, many USA-based credit cards will not work if you try to book a hotel or purchase tickets on the Tokyo Disney Resort site. If your card is not working, you need to get a new card. Why? Because you will need a card with this feature when you actually visit Japan. The paid features in the Tokyo Disney Resort app won’t work without one, and many other vendors in Japan require this type of authentication.

Get a card from Revolut. | We highly recommend the safe, secure, internationally-accepted debit cards & credit cards from Revolut, which specializes in international travel . Their exchange rates are tremendous, there are no international transaction fees, and you can even store online balances in multiple currencies — a great strategy if you’d like to buy JPY in advance when the USD is strong. Best of all, their cards support 3D Secure verification.

Explore debit & credit cards from Revolut ▸

Multi-day tickets are still not available. | The 2-day Passport, 3-Day Magic Passport, 5-Day Magic Passport, Annual Passport, and many other long-standing ticket categories are currently not available, and we don’t know when Tokyo Disney Resort may resume the sales of these ticket types. 

Wishful Thinking provides expert guidance & assistance for Tokyo Disney Resort. | Complete our form and we’ll send you an extremely informative, helpful FAQ, direct to your inbox.

SHOULD I BOOK A PACKAGE FOR TOKYO DISNEY RESORT?

Packages at Tokyo Disney Resort are very different from what you’ll find at Disneyland or Walt Disney World. For starters: they’re more expensive than simple hotel bookings + park tickets. You’re paying for unique perks & privileges . So are they worth it? What are the minimum / maximum number of hotel nights and theme park days? When do Tokyo Disney Resort Travel Packages become available? We’ve got all the nerdy details.

Nothing confounds international visitors more than Tokyo Disney Resort’s Disney Travel Packages.

Why? Because their offerings and restrictions are dramatically different from Walt Disney World or Disneyland. Pay attention to the details we’re sharing here; they matter tremendously.

To begin, it’s important that you recognize a few things about Tokyo Disney Resort:

• The crowds are massive. | Every day of the week. Ignore outdated information online that says that things are only busy on weekends. Not anymore. See what rope drop looks like.

• FastPass doesn’t exist anymore. | Post-pandemic, Tokyo Disney Resort replaced their FastPass system with a new benefit called Premier Access, which any guest may purchase on the day of their visit within the Tokyo Disney Resort app. As of now, Premier Access is only offered on about 3 or 4 attractions per park — here’s the list of attractions and prices. It works almost identically to Individual Lightning Lane purchases at Disneyland in California. You’re waiting in line for everything else. UNLESS you have a Disney Travel Package. 

• Tokyo Disney Resort does not offer VIP tours | This is simply not a thing at Tokyo Disney Resort. Pre-pandemic, the park offered informational tours in Japanese (similar to the Keys to the Kingdom Tour at Magic Kingdom ), but they haven’t returned.

Therefore, knowing that avoiding crowds are the MAIN thing that its guests would want, Tokyo Disney Resort offers exclusive additional line-skipping (and show / parade viewing) privileges within their Disney Travel Packages. But there are severe restrictions:

Packages are ONLY available for a one night stay or a two night stay.

• A ONE NIGHT package includes TWO DAYS of theme park tickets: Tokyo DisneySea on day one and Tokyo Disneyland on day two.
• A TWO NIGHT package includes THREE DAYS of theme park tickets: Tokyo DisneySea on day one, Disneyland on day two, and DisneySea again on day three.
• You cannot modify when you use your tickets; your first ticket MUST be used on your check-in day, and your last ticket MUST be used on your check-out day. For this reason, you will probably not want to begin any Disney Travel Package on the day you arrive in Japan. Thankfully, we’ve got expert recommendations for additional hotels in Tokyo. Get pricing ▸
• Disney will not permit any guest to purchase two tickets for the dame day — therefore, you CAN NOT simply book back-to-back packages. (That would mean you’d double up on tickets when one package’s check-out day is another package’s check-in day.)
• As of now — for stays through late 2024 — there are no packages available for longer stays. This is all there is. See our recommendations below about adding a hotel stay to your package.

Currently, package perks include extra line-skipping privileges . This is the sweet gooey center of Disney Travel Packages, and this is why Disney guests are willing to pay more for them. When you book your package, you’ll gain the ability to select from a handful of attractions that are NOT offered as part of Premier Access . Disney simply calls them Attraction Tickets, but they work essentially like a FastPass. They’re available for the ‘2nd tier’ of popular attractions, and they include:

AT TOKYO DISNEYLAND | ATTRACTION TICKETS

• Big Thunder Mountain
• Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters
• Haunted Mansion
• Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek!
• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt
• Space Mountain
• Splash Mountain
• Star Tours: The Adventures Continue

AT TOKYO DISNEYSEA | ATTRACTION TICKETS

• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Indiana Jones® Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull
• Journey to the Center of the Earth
• The Magic Lamp Theater
• Nemo & Friends SeaRider
• Raging Spirits
• Tower of Terror
• Turtle Talk

See more details about Attraction Tickets included in Vacation Packages ▸ 

What to choose? | When you purchase your package, you’ll make your selection as for which attractions you’d like to use for your benefit. Because the ultra-popular attractions Beauty and the Beast and Soaring; Fantastic Flight are also available via Premier Access, we suggest that you use your perks here for one of these ‘2nd tier’ attractions that are ONLY available to package holders. That’s the best way to maximize the value of your purchase. Buy Beauty & the Beast after you’ve entered Disneyland. And if you’re big into the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (S.E.A.) , don’t miss Soaring: Fantastic Flight. The pre-show is stunning. 

Guaranteed Fantasy Springs Access | As of now, all packages for stays beyond June 6th also include guaranteed entry to the new Fantasy Springs land at Tokyo DisneySea on one of your days. We don’t know how long that benefit will be offered as a package perk, and we don’t know whether future packages might include it. But because this is currently the ONLY way to guarantee that you’ll get into Fantasy Springs, these packages are highly sought after. This also explains why they cost so much.

Most Wishful Thinking clients choose to book a package PLUS an additional hotel stay. As you can imagine, many who journey from abroad want more than a two night stay. We recommend that you obtain an additional hotel reservation — a la carte — and purchase any additional theme park tickets on-site at your Disney hotel. (As you’ll see above, ALL Disney resort hotel guests are guaranteed to be able to purchase theme park tickets for the dates of their stay even if tickets are sold out to the general public.)  Do note, however:

• Tokyo Disney Resort does NOT guarantee that if you purchase an a la carte hotel stay for the same hotel as your package that you’ll be able to remain in your same room. These decisions are handled on a case-by-case basis after you arrive at your hotel.
• If you’re in a different room type at the same hotel, Cast Members will transfer your bags for you.
• If you select to stay at a different Disney resort hotel  — including the Hilton Tokyo Bay or the Sheraton, but excluding the Celebration Hotel — Disney Cast Members will transfer your luggage for free to your next hotel. See details about the luggage delivery service ▸ 

IMPORTANT NOTE ON THE JAPANESE-LANGUAGE SITE | Package type availability and benefits differ between the Japanese-language portal of the site and the English-language portal.  Just as Disneyland has special offers for California residents and Walt Disney World has special offers for Florida residents, Tokyo Disney Resort has special offers for Japan residents. Don’t try to be sneaky and enter the name of your Japan-based lodging; if you cannot enter your legal name, permanent address, and credit card billing address using Japanese characters, you will not qualify for these packages. 

When do Tokyo Disney Resort Disney Vacation Packages become available? | Since early 2024, as the resort prepares for / promotes the new Fantasy Springs expansion, Disney’s been releasing them in monthly ‘dumps.’ Typically, Disney only provides a few days notice as to when the next release is coming, and no one knows how long this release pattern will continue.

Bookmark this page and watch for announcements ▸ 

Can an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner or a travel agent book a package for me? | No. As of now, you are literally the only person on the planet who can book a Tokyo Disney Resort Vacation Package; Disney explicitly forbids others from booking a package on your behalf, and if any agent offers to do this for you, your tickets may be invalidated.

Get our FAQ guide sent to your inbox — to learn how to actually book a package ▸ 

What CAN Wishful Thinking quote and book for me? | We’re experts on Japan and Tokyo travel, and we can quote / book all your additional hotel stays in Japan, plus guided day tours, private transportation, and phenomenal multi-night guided tours via Adventures by Disney and National Geographic Expeditions. Also, as of spring 2024, we can book a la carte hotel stays at the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel — but these are not Disney Travel Packages. You’ll still need to purchase your tickets after arriving at the hotel.

Share your plans here — we’ll send free Disney tips and expert recommendations on Japan hotels & sightseeing ▸

WHAT SHOULD I SEE & DO IN TOKYO?

The world’s biggest metropolis: 20 million people live here. Thankfully, it’s also one of the most hospitable destinations for international travelers. But what are the real must-sees? And how should you get around the city?

Have you ever walked into an incredible party in full-swing and thought, “gosh, if I’d known it was going to be this cool, I would have shown up earlier!” 

That’s what it’s like to visit Japan for the first time. It’s even cooler than you imagine it’s going to be. Most North Americans have only a surface-level knowledge of Japanese cuisine, history, & culture. Research can only get you so far. You simply have to go.

Here are a few of the key things you’ll need to know as you plan your visit to Tokyo:

It’s all about the trains | Getting in a car means you’ll be sitting in traffic, not moving. Taxis & rideshares are very expensive — we’re talking $250+ USD just to get to the airport. Not worth it. Getting around Tokyo — and journeying to cities beyond — is all about train travel. There are 3 major train systems in Tokyo:

• The Japan Rail (JR) |  A nationwide rail network, kinda like Amtrak in the USA (but far, far better)
• Tokyo Metro | 9 train lines serving 179 stations
• Toei Subway | 4 train lines serving 106 stations

Taken together, they form an interconnected web of train lines that service the whole city. Thankfully, an IC (integrated circuit) payment card (like  Suica ) works for all three systems, so it doesn’t really matter which train you use. There are many major train station hubs where you can easily transfer from one train to another: Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ikebukuro, Kita-senju and Tokyo Station are the busiest.

Check out this excellent guide to Tokyo’s train systems ▸ 

Bullet trains to other cities | The JR lines also include Japan’s famous bullet trains, known by the Japanese word shinkansen . These high-speed trains are excellent and affordable and provide easy access to cities like Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, and Hiroshima. Many theme park fans who visit Tokyo Disney Resort are also interested in Universal Studios Japan in the city of Osaka, which is 3+ hours away by train. 

View shinkansen routes, schedules & tickets ▸

Japan’s trains can be intimidating at first. Soon, you’ll learn that the station signs, onboard announcements, and train schedules are available in English — once you know where to look. Within a few days, you’ll wish that travel in North America was this quick, efficient, and easy to navigate!

Sightseeing: a contrast of ancient & modern | The sights of Tokyo inspire you to appreciate one of the world’s most incredible ancient cultures with a non-stop eye on the future. From Buddhist temples to high-tech shopping, you should give yourself at leas t three full days for sightseeing. Remember, you’ll be very jet-lagged, so don’t plan on overdoing it. Here are the most popular tourist sights for international visitors:

• Tokyo National Museum | An eye-popping, incredibly curated museum that traces Japan’s history from the shogun to the modern era. More ▸
• Sensō-ji Temple / Kaminari-mon Gate | Tokyo’s oldest and most spectacular temple, dating back to the year 645. More ▸
• Meiji-jingū Shrine | A beautiful, picturesque Shinto shrine within a peaceful evergreen park — one of Tokyo’s most-photographed locations. More ▸
• Ghibli Museum | A family-friendly, incredible museum devoted to the films of the legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki (My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke & many more). A must-see, especially for Disney fans. More ▸
• Shibuya Crossing & Hachikō statue |  The zig-zag pedestrian traffic crossing that you’ll recognize from countless video composites of Tokyo. You might not be familiar with the touching story of the adorable Akita who waited for his dearly-departed master here every day for ten years. More ▸
• Takeshita-dori street in Harajuku | An alley-style shopping bazaar catering to the latest youth trends. You’ll find cutting-edge fashion and the newest must-have snacks. More ▸
• Ginza | A tawny neighborhood with impressive department stores offering high-end accessories, housewares, and designer clothing. More ▸
• Kamakura | The former capital of Japan and an ideal day trip from the city. Visitors flock here to explore its beautiful ancient temples and pose in front of one of Asia’s largest Buddha statues. More ▸
• Nightlife in Shinjuku  | Among many nightlife districts, Shinjuku is especially energetic and over the top. Check out the  Mario Brothers Go-Kart experience and the must-be-seen-to-be-believed Robot Restaurant . Shinjuku Ni-Chome is where you’ll find a collection of tourist-friendly LGBTQ+ bars and dance clubs. More ▸

Learn Japanese manners and courteous phrases. | Japan is a very, very polite society. To avoid unpleasantness, it’s best to learn the most common Japanese phrases, along with the most essential etiquette:

• Payment is given & received with two hands. | When greeting a cashier, always present your cash or credit card with two hands, and do the same when receiving it back.  More ▸  
• Don’t walk & eat / drink at the same time. | Food and drink are meant to be consumed while seated indoors. Even if you place an order ‘to go,’ never eat or drink while walking. You’ll notice that there are virtually no trash cans on public street corners — and this is why. The one spot in Japan where you can probably get away with this? Inside Tokyo Disneyland / Tokyo DisneySea. 
• Remove your shoes in establishments, if requested. | Many traditional tea shops, restaurants, and ryokan hotels will provide slippers or sandals for you to wear upon entry. Place your shoes in the provided cubby holes and change into the footwear they provide.  More ▸
• To visit gyms, pools or onsen spas, be cautious about tattoos. | Tattoos are considered disrespectful by traditional Japanese society. If you’ve got large, elaborate tattoos, it’s possible that you may be denied entry to certain gyms, pools, or onsen spa baths. You may want to seek out a tattoo-friendly gym or onsen that has a stated tattoo-friendly policy. Learn more  ▸
• Learn important, courteous Japanese phrases. | It’s absolutely crucial to learn the Japanese words for please, thank you, hello, goodbye, etc. Here’s a great guide  ▸

This is just the beginning. We’ve got far, far more tips to share.

Wondering where to find the biggest selection of kawaii collectibles, manga , and anime merch? Wondering where to pipe up for some karaoke with the locals?  Want to try fluffy Japanese cloud pancakes, giant multi-colored cones of cotton candy, or the city’s best sushi, omakase, gyoza, ramen & more?

We’ve been to Japan many times, and we’d love to tell you.

If you plan your trip with Wishful Thinking, we can provide a shortlist of our favorite restaurants, the coolest shops, most unique bars, and the best locations to find the hot new food trends. We’ve also got lots of practical tips on how to overcome jet lag, how to set up your WiFi and phone service, how to pay for things, tipping & gratuities, and more. It’s never too early to start planning!

Let’s plan your Japan adventure ▸

Shanghai Disneyland Resort | FAQ

Do I need a visa to enter China if I want to visit Shanghai Disneyland Resort? How many days should I spend in the park? What are the best Shanghai Disneyland resort hotels?  What’s the best way to include a visit to the Great Wall of China? We’ve got answers to the most common questions below.

WHERE IS SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT LOCATED?

Shanghai Disneyland is around 11 miles from Shanghai Pudong International Airport. It’s in the Pudong District of Shanghai, just 12 miles from the city center. Most guests take the train.

WHAT’S THE WEATHER LIKE IN SHANGHAI?

Shanghai’s weather offers four distinct seasons. Summers are sizzling, and winters can be rather chilly. The sweet spot for visiting? Spring and autumn. Here are the historical average temps.

HOW MANY DAYS SHOULD I PLAN FOR SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT?

If you’re a major Disney fan, we recommend at least two full days in the park, plus at least two additional days for sightseeing. If this will be your first destination after flying from North America, schedule your sightseeing days first. Jet lag is going to be absolutely brutal.

IS ENGLISH IN USE AT SHANGHAI DISNEYLAND? HOW CAN I TRANSLATE ON MY PHONE?

Throughout all of China, English is used as a lingua franca for many international guests. English translations are found across Shanghai Disneyland — on signs, maps, restaurant menus, and in-park spiels. Similar to the ways you’ll hear Spanish at Disneyland or Walt Disney World — “¡Por favor manténgase alejado de las puertas!” — you’ll hear English at Shanghai.

Show scripts, attractions, parades, etc., however are exclusively presented in Mandarin Chinese.

If you’re lucky enough to meet a Disney Princess, villain, or MARVEL character, they’ll speak English. Live shows typically have subtitles / supertitles projected along the proscenium with English translations. 

Disney Cast Members have very limited English that’s particular to their role. Attractions hosts will know how to say little more than “How many in your party?” The Disney Resort Hotel Front Desk agents will have much more advanced English vocabulary.Among other guests, it’s common to meet Chinese young adults and teens who speak English and are eager to practice and help. That said, communicating in English can be a challenge because…

Google Translate is blocked in China. All Google-based websites and apps — including Google search, Google Maps and Gmail — are blocked in Mainland China and will not connect to the internet.

There are a few workarounds and things you can do to prepare:

• Rely on a VPN service like Express VPN
• Download your native language(s) to your Google Translate app so it’ll work offline
• Download offline maps for any cities you plan to visit
• Consider downloading a China-based app with translation function, like Baidu

Considering that Yahoo search, Yahoo mail, and all Meta apps (including Facebook, Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp ) are also blocked in China, you’ll probably need a VPN no matter what — just to simply stay in touch with folks back home! Those with Android operating systems on their cellphones typically experience extra difficulties; some folks purchase an iPhone just for their journey. 

Your real-time experience with the Shanghai Disneyland app and website can be a challenge, especially when it’s sending confirmation emails to your Gmail or Yahoo email address. The best solution is to have plan B’s for everything (like a Hotmail email address). 

WHEN & WHERE SHOULD I GET TICKETS?

It’s best if we set up your theme park tickets with your Disney resort hotel stay. See below.

WHERE SHOULD I STAY AT SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT?

There are two Disney-owned hotels. The Shanghai Disneyland Hotel is an upscale resort with blissfully charming Art Nouveau décor. It overlooks the beautiful Wishing Star Lake. For a more budget-friendly option, the Toy Story Hotel makes Andy’s room larger-than-life. They’ve each got their own pros & cons, which we’d love to share with you:

Get pricing and expert insights for the Shanghai Disney Resort hotels ▸ 

WHAT DINING OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE PARK?

Just like any other Disney park, dining is a combination of table service, quick service & kiosks. Traditional Chinese cuisine is served in the beautiful Wandering Moon Restaurant , while the Royal Banquet Hall is a must-see fine dining restaurant inside the castle. The Tangled Tree Tavern is a charming quick service spot serving international fare. Sweet treats are available at the Duffy & Friends-inspired Cookie Ann Bakery Café on Mickey Avenue.

After you book your trip , we’ll happily steer you toward the best dining options.

WHAT ARE THE PARK’S HIGHLIGHTS?

Shanghai Disneyland boasts eight unique themed lands:

Zootopia | The newest land at Shanghai Disneyland opened in December, 2023. It’s laugh-out-loud clever, visually imaginative, and fully-immersive. Zootopia: Hot Pursuit carries guests from icy-cold Tundratown through the Rainforest District and beyond, on a crime-fighting chase alongside Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde .  You can taste a raspberry-flavored Pawpsicle , pick up an oversized donut, and try on some new threads at Fashions by Fru Fru.

Mickey Avenue | Here’s the welcome mat of Shanghai Disneyland. Imagine a Disney character-infused hometown, rather than your typical Main Street, U.S.A. vibe. Pick up your “why yes, I’ve been there” apparel in Avenue M Arcade — their equivalent of the Emporium — where you’ll find a huge selection of unique Disney merchandise. 

Gardens of Imagination | A touch of calm with a dash of imagination, Gardens of Imagination is where you’ll come across the Chinese Zodiac-themed garden, a Disney twist that’s genuinely delightful. Key spots? The Storyteller Statue and the Fantasia Carousel. And, of course, there’s the Enchanted Storybook Castle — it’s the largest one that Disney’s ever built.

Fantasyland | Step into a realm brimming with classic Disney stories. The enchanting Voyage to the Crystal Grotto is a must-do. Kids (and kids at heart) adore Peter Pan’s Flight and the Hunny Pot Spin. 

Adventure Isle | Time for some adrenaline rush. Prehistoric fun meets high-stakes adventure in attractions like the Roaring Rapids and Soaring Over the Horizon. And don’t miss out on the Camp Discovery challenge trails — they’re like full on hiking adventures.

Treasure Cove | All aboard mateys for the one and only fully pirate-themed land across all Disney parks. A must-see? Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure . Widely considered the world’s best Pirates. Discover legends and lore on a real pirate ship: Siren’s Revenge. And don’t miss Eye of the Storm: Captain Jack’s Stunt Spectacular.

Tomorrowland | Shanghai’s Tomorrowland aims to be actually futuristic. The TRON Lightcycle Power Run is a definite bucket-list item, while the Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue provides an entertaining (if familiar) alternative.

Toy Story Land | It’s time to play along with Woody, Buzz, and friends in this fun-filled setting. Ride high on Slinky Dog Spin, test your courage on Rex’s Racer , or join Woody’s Roundup. Remember to pop by Al’s Toy Barn and grab a bite at the Lotso Lunch Box.

WHAT IS THERE TO DO BEYOND THE PARK?

Although Shanghai Disneyland Resort doesn’t offer the vast outdoor recreation activities of Walt Disney World, Shanghai Disneyland’s footprint is unique — it’s the one Disney ‘castle park’ where the main thoroughfare — Mickey Avenue – is located  before the theme park’s turnstiles . In Celebration Square, the Market District and more, you’ll find ample Disney shopping, dining, and entertainment . For a quieter moment, take a stroll around Wishing Star Park to enjoy nature, views, and tranquility.

WHAT ELSE SHOULD I SEE WHILE VISITING CHINA?

How much time have you got? Many North Americans only know of a handful of sights — the Great Wall of China, maybe the Forbidden City, or the Xi’an Terracotta War Soldiers. China is a gigantic country with 1/5th of the world’s population. Planning a trip here can be incredibly complicated, even for seasoned travelers. None of these must-see sights are within easy reach from Shanghai.

That’s why we highly recommend the Adventures by Disney trip through China , which includes an unforgettable visit to both Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland.

ADVENTURES BY DISNEY: CHINA | 12 DAYS, 11 NIGHTS | HIGHLIGHTS:

Explore Hong Kong Discover the vibrant harbor city with an iconic skyline, world-class shops and exciting street scene.

Hong Kong Disneyland & Shanghai Disneyland Check 2 more Disney theme parks off your bucket list as you immerse yourself in Disney magic at China’s Disney theme parks.

Great Wall of China Cable Car Ride Reach new heights as you ride to Mutianyu for an amazing walk atop this iconic structure.

Victoria Peak Be awed by panoramic views of Hong Kong’s stunning skyline and harbor from the top of the mountain.

Beijing’s Ancient & Modern History Tour Walk through centuries of history as you tour this modern city with a rich past.

Beijing’s Temple of Heaven Tour this massive temple built for emperors to worship the god of heaven.

Panda Visit Get a rare peek at China’s cutest residents on a tour of Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

Sichuan Opera Enjoy music, acrobatics and the classic face changing act that has delighted audiences for centuries.

Shanghai Acrobat Show Experience the excitement of this acrobatic performance and live rock show.

Lijiang River Guilin Boat Tour Cruise the Li River and take in the scenic landscapes, including the “gumdrop mountains.”

Terracotta Warriors & Horses in Xi’an Marvel at this sculpted army created to protect China’s first emperor in the afterlife.

Explore Shanghai Discover the sprawling skyline, classic architecture and waterfront district of this truly international city.

Tiananmen Square Walking Tour Learn the rich history of this focal point of celebration and protest with a local guide.

Yu Garden Tour in Old Shanghai Find peace and inspiration in this 300-year-old garden sanctuary in the heart of Shanghai.

Get 2024 / 2025 dates and pricing for an Adventures by Disney trip to   China ▸ 

DO I NEED A VISA FOR PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA?

Travelers from 50+ countries — including USA, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom — can enjoy a visa-free visit to China for up to 144 hours if they’re transiting to another country. That’s 6 days. Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months beyond the date you enter the country. There are specific restrictions on where you can travel in China and which ports of entry / airports you may use, so it’s very important to study the regulations. Fact check everything.

How it works: upon arrival at the immigration desk in the airport or cruise terminal, you’ll complete a simple form (in English) that includes your lodging address and the reason for your visit. It about 5 minutes to complete.  In addition to your completed form, you will need to present a departure from Shanghai travel confirmation (i.e., a cruise itinerary or a flight confirmation). It’s best to print up this document on paper and have it ready for inspection; the officials will photocopy your confirmation and return it to you. Please note that if you only have the conformation on your phone, the officials will ask you to unlock your device so they can screenshot your phone’s screen. Paper is better.

Learn more about China’s 144-hour visa-free travel policy and review the countries which qualify ▸ 

If you plan to do any sightseeing in mainland China beyond Shanghai, you will you will need a visa . Best to apply for your visa 2 to 3 months before your trip.

If you are ONLY planning to visit Shanghai (for less than 144 hours) and Hong Kong, most international travelers do not need a visa before arrival. See information under Hong Kong, below.

CHINA CONSULAR SERVICES:   For citizens of the USA ▸   |   For citizens of Canada ▸  

List of China consular service websites for other countries ▸ 

LET’S START PLANNING YOUR ASIA DISNEY TRIP

The sooner we start, the better prepared you’ll be for the adventure of a lifetime.

Start planning your trip here ▸ 

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort | FAQ

Is it easy to visit Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland in one trip? Yes, and Wishful Thinking knows just how to do it. Let’s dive into common questions about visa entry requirements , Hong Kong’s three Disney resort hotels, sightseeing in Hong Kong, how far in advance you should reserve things, and how to enjoy the brand-new Arendelle – The World of Frozen. This absolute gem of a Disney park has so many delights that aren’t well known in the USA, and it may be the easiest Disney park to visit of them all.

WHERE IS HONG KONG DISNEYLAND LOCATED?

Hong Kong comprises a peninsula and a series of islands off the coast of mainland China. Today, Hong Kong is a special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China — somewhat similar to the way that Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States. Although the region operates under the concept of “one country, two systems,” Hong Kong has a separate government, series of freedoms, and protections which are undergoing recent changes .

Hong Kong Disneyland is located on Lantau Island — the same island where the international airport is located — about 45 minutes (by train) from the more-developed city areas.

WHAT’S THE WEATHER LIKE IN HONG KONG?

Hong Kong is a subtropical climate with four distinct seasons, but summers are extra hot and humid, and winters are generally mild and dry. Here are the historical average temps. If you’re planning to visit Shanghai and Tokyo on the same trip, take note that these three destinations have dramatically different weather — that can make it tricky to pack light.

HOW MANY DAYS SHOULD I PLAN FOR HONG KONG DISNEYLAND?

If you’re a major Disney fan, we recommend at least two full days in the park, plus at least two additional days for sightseeing. If this will be your first destination after flying from North America, schedule your sightseeing days first. Jet lag is rough.

IS ENGLISH IN USE AT HONG KONG DISNEYLAND?

Like Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland is fully bilingual. Shows, songs, parades, and attraction spiels are presented in both English and Cantonese Chinese. Disney’s own Cast Members are conversational in English, although you’ll notice British usage and vocabulary. (Hong Kong’s 150+ years as a British protectorate means that English-language education is extremely common here.) Unlike Shanghai, above, there are no internet blocks in Hong Kong for Google, Google Translate, or Meta-owned apps / websites.

Mandarin Chinese translations are offered throughout the park. 對於講普通話的人來說，您會注意到香港迪士尼樂園內有許多標誌、餐廳菜單和表演字幕.

HOW FAR IN ADVANCE DO I NEED TO PLAN FOR HONG KONG DISNEYLAND?

This is tough for guests from North America to accept, but not only do you not need to worry about planning Hong Kong far in advance, you cannot plan Hong Kong many months in advance. Often times, standalone theme park tickets aren’t even on sale beyond the current month.

Hong Kong Disneyland isn’t open every day.

During less busy times of year, it’s common for the theme park to be closed for one day in the middle of the week (most often on Wednesdays). The park’s opening hours and schedule, however, aren’t typically announced more than about 6 weeks in advance. Hong Kong’s own promotions typically include an ‘Early Bird’ special for bookings that are merely 21-days in advance.

Yes, our version of a last minute booking is their version of an early bird special!

For visitors who plan to fly in from overseas, this makes planning ahead quite difficult. It’s one reason why we suggest giving yourself 4+ days in Hong Kong, allowing for flexibility on exactly which day(s) you visit Hong Kong Disneyland.

Thankfully, Wishful Thinking has expert insights to share; if you get in touch, we can tell you when your travel dates become available , book and help plan your entire Hong Kong adventure. 

Get pricing & assistance for Hong Kong Disneyland ▸  

HOW BUSY IS HONG KONG DISNEYLAND COMPARED TO WALT DISNEY WORLD OR DISNEYLAND IN CALIFORNIA?

Hong Kong Disneyland is nowhere near as busy as the American Disney parks. For that reason, it’s very easy to simply visit as a spur-of-the-moment decision. You really don’t need to plan out every little detail in advance, fight for dining reservations, or struggle to beat the crowds. If anything, your challenges stem from too few guests: the parks (and some restaurants) aren’t open every day.

SO WHEN & WHERE SHOULD I GET TICKETS?

Sold out days at Hong Kong Disneyland are extremely rare.

Currently, only 1-day tickets or 2-day tickets are on sale. You can either set up tickets with your Disney resort hotel stay, purchase them on site at the ticket window, buy them directly on Hong Kong Disneyland’s website. Hong Kong Disneyland also offers a number of add-ons, including:

• Early Park Entry | Gain access to the theme park turnstiles one hour early and enjoy select attractions in Fantasyland and Arendelle – The World of Frozen.
• Disney Premier Access | Not unlike Genie+ / Lightning Lane, this add-on enhancement typically includes ‘skip the line’ entries for 8 attractions plus two shows, including the terrific fireworks nighttime spectacular, Momentous.

Please note that — when available — guests may also purchase Premier Access on the day of their visit, within the Hong Kong Disneyland app. It’s available for specific attractions, shows, character shows and experiences, like the new Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs or the Anna & Elsa Playhouse in the Woods interactive show.

WHERE SHOULD I STAY AT HONG KONG DISNEYLAND?

Some guests stay in Hong Kong for their visit, and simply catch the train (or a taxi) out to Disneyland for the day. If you only anticipate a one-day visit to Hong Kong Disneyland — and if Disney isn’t really the reason for your visit — that may be the easiest way to go. Just buy a ticket for the day and have a great time.

Most Wishful Thinking clients, however, are big Disney fans and want the full immersive experience. If that’s what you’re wishing for, stay in a Disney hotel.

There are three Disney-owned hotels at Hong Kong Disneyland. They’re all right beside one another, along a coastline avenue about a 5-minute drive from the theme park entrance. All three properties are Deluxe-level hotels with similar levels of amenities, accommodations, and pricing. A walkway connects the three hotels to an oceanside jogging path. None of the hotels have a walking path to reach the theme parks. There are no Moderate or Value hotels at Hong Kong Disneyland resort.

Resort Hotel Transportation between the hotels and the theme park is complimentary aboard Disney’s own resort buses. Disney does not offer transportation to / from the Hong Kong Airport. (See our recommendations below.) 

Hotel bedding and amenities are nearly identical to what you’d expect at Disneyland or Walt Disney World; most rooms feature two standard queen-size beds, air conditioning, complimentary Wi-Fi, and you’ll find conversational English-speaking Cast Members at the Front Desk. 

Because the location, transportation, and offerings of the three Disney hotels are nearly identical, what makes each one distinct is each hotel’s theme and design .

The Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel | Looks and feels very similar to Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa at Walt Disney World. Inspired by the Hotel del Coronado near San Diego, it’s a Victorian-era, elegant, classy resort hotel with a beautiful multi-story atrium. Accommodations include rooms with water views and the Kingdom Club, upscale club-level rooms with enhanced amenities and an on-site concierge. The Enchanted Garden restaurant offers an elaborate buffet at breakfast, lunch, and dinner with character dining table-side visits from Mickey, Minnie & pals. It’s a beautiful, elaborate hotel. Get pricing ▸ 

Disney Explorers Lodge | Looks and feels almost identical to the Animal Kingdom Lodge at Walt Disney World. With wings and guest rooms themed to different areas on the globe, you’ll encounter whimsical maps, artifacts, sights and sounds from Asia, Oceania, South America and Africa. It’s stylish and tremendously fun, as if you’re in an upscale lodge along a safari route or tropical rainforest getaway. Highly recommended. Get pricing ▸ 

Disney’s Hollywood Hotel | Looks and feels very similar to Tokyo Disney Resort’s Ambassador Hotel, but instead of a nautical / air travel theme, the hotel’s inspired by Disney Hollywood history and art deco décor. Rrecent lobby renovations (in 2023 / 2024) have added style and panache with new art, upgraded furnishings and a swanky new lounge inspired by MARVEL characters, The Archivist . You’ll find a newly-renovated buffet with terrific illustrations and paint-bucket splashes of color at Ink & Paint. Rooms are still being renovated; we recommend waiting to book this property until those room renovations are complete. 

Get pricing and expert insights for the Hong Kong Disneyland resort hotels ▸ 

WHAT ARE THE HIGHLIGHTS OF HONG KONG DISNEYLAND?

Many first-time visitors have heard that Hong Kong is the smallest Disney theme park, but are surprised by just how much originality is found inside. This is a true gem of a park, and Disney fans are sure to be charmed.

Grizzly Gulch | You could imagine this fun, interactive land as as a cross between Frontierland and Grizzly Peak in DCA. Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars is far more fun than it looks on a map; the long lengths of its coaster tracks allows for some super fun momentum!

Mystic Manor |  Easily a contender for the title of Walt Disney Imagineering’s greatest dark ride, this fully original one-of-a-kind spook house is a whimsical, comic delight. Meet Lord Henry Mystic, a member of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers and his adorable, mischievous monkey, Albert. With a score by Danny Elfman and an incredibly immersive atmosphere, this is one attraction you’ll want to ride back-to-back.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Nano Battle and The Iron Man Experience | Hong Kong Disneyland’s Tomorrowland features a number of MARVEL-themed attractions, restaurants & super hero character meet & greets, but these two attractions are must-sees. The former is similar to Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters, but far cooler. The Iron Man Experience is a motion-simulator attraction — similar to Star Tours — that brings you on board Stark Technology transport for an exhilarating flight through the skies of Hong Kong.

Duffy & Friends Play House | You’ve heard about the Asian Disney Parks obsession with Mickey Mouse’s teddy bear, Duffy, and all his adorable friends — but here’s your chance to meet them all. 

Incredible live shows | It’s probably fair to say that Hong Kong Disneyland’s live performers are the highest caliber performing arts ensemble of any Disney park worldwide. Mickey & the Wondrous Book is an absolute must-see, featuring a terrific medley of Disney music favorites, sung by Broadway-level musical theatre performers. Hong Kong’s Festival of the Lion King has an elevated artistry that puts other parks’ versions to shame — another must-see. Moana: A Homecoming Celebration is a children’s-theatre style re-telling of the tale, with zany antics, creative props and lots of laughs. 

Arendelle – the World of Frozen | Is the park’s newest area, and it’s a visual stunner. Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs is a simple, quick coaster aimed at kids (with a thrill level on par with Goofy’s Barnstormer or Gadget’s Go-Coaster). Frozen Ever After is a ‘plussed’ version of the attraction in EPCOT. Far more unique / original is the Playhouse In the Woods , an interactive show where you’ll come face-to-face with Anna & Elsa as they introduce you to the spirits of the forest. You’ll find very good Scandinavian and American cuisine at the Golden Crocus Inn . 

WHAT IS THERE TO DO BEYOND DISNEY?

Hong Kong is a fascinating, dynamic city that could easily fill two days of sightseeing fun. You’ll want to zip up to Victoria Peak for jaw-dropping city views — the topography of the region is stunning. At night, you must meander through the bustling stalls of Temple Street Night Market and sample the astonishing array of street food delicacies — the kind of flavors you simply can’t find back home. Don’t miss the chance to catch a ferry ride across Victoria Harbour. See more things to do in Hong Kong ▸ 

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO SCHEDULE / COMBINE A VISIT WITH SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT?

Many of our clients ask for advice about which to do first. There’s no one obvious ‘best way’ to do this, but here are a few helpful things to keep in mind:

• Flights between Shanghai and Hong Kong are plentiful and affordable. | Typical flight time is about 2 hours and 45 minutes. Wishful Thinking does not quote or book air travel, but you may find the best price if you book a multi-city / multi-destination ticket all on one carrier. (That also typically saves you money on baggage allowances.)
• Hong Kong qualifies as a “non-China” destination when you’re departing mainland China. | If you’re opting for the 144-hour visit (see above under Shanghai), Hong Kong qualifies as a next destination under the visa-waiver program.
• From most cities, there are more flights into Shanghai than Hong Kong. | That’s especially true if you’re flying from North America. 

Some folks like to plan “the best for last,” but it’s probably a bit too simplistic to say that Hong Kong Disneyland vs. Shanghai Disneyland are better or worse. They’re each absolutely lovely. (That said, Tokyo Disney Resort undeniably has the best Disney parks on earth.)

We highly recommend the Adventures by Disney trip through China , which includes an unforgettable visit to both Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland. Get pricing and dates for an Adventures by Disney trip ▸ 

DO I NEED A VISA TO VISIT HONG KONG DISNEYLAND?

Unlike mainland China, most visitors do not need to apply for a tourist visa to enter Hong Kong, and most may remain within the territory anywhere from 7 days all the way up to 6 months. Check your own country’s criteria, here. 

As we note above, if you intend to visit Shanghai as well, but plan to stay in Shanghai for less than 144 hours, most international travelers will not need a visa for China before arrival. 

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO REACH HONG KONG DISNEYLAND FROM HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT?

Although Disney does not offer their own transportation, the airport has plentiful taxis and ride share services for easy access to and from the Hong Kong Disneyland area. Taxi services throughout Hong Kong are restricted on where they can travel; taxis that serve Lantau Island are blue and are located in specific pickup locations. Learn more ▸ 

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With lots of fun extras to enjoy

Wonderful Reasons to Choose Vacation Packages

Opening on june 6, 2024 a park ticket for admission to fantasy springs and its attractions.

These plans include the "1-Day Passport: Fantasy Springs Magic," which allows guests to enter Fantasy Springs, opening on June 6, 2024, and experience its attractions with a reduced wait time, and without specifying a time in advance.

During your stay Park tickets for your entire stay

With Park tickets that can be used every day during your stay, enjoy Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea to the fullest!

- The plan will include Park tickets that allow you to enter one Park a day, for your entire stay at a Disney hotel. *Not available in some package plans. Please check your plan’s details.

Experience popular attractions with less time waiting!

Attraction Tickets allow guests to experience attractions with a minimal wait. There are three types of Attraction Tickets as listed below. Attraction Tickets (with designated experience / time) Attraction Tickets (with designated experience / without designated time) Attraction Tickets (without designated experience / time)

* See here for more information about Attraction Tickets.

* Not available in some package plans. Please check the details of your package plan for more information.

Have a wonderful time with your favorite Disney Character.

Greeting Venue Admission Tickets included in Tokyo Disney Resort Vacation Packages allow guests to select a time to experience a Disney Character Greeting in advance. On the day of visit, guests can enjoy a Disney Character Greeting with a minimal wait.

* See here for information on venues accepting Greeting Venue Admission Tickets. * Not available in some package plans. Please check the details of your package plan for more information.

Select the Hotel to Suit Your Travel Plan

Disney hotels.

Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel Fantasy Chateau

Stay in an ambience filled with motifs of Fantasy Springs. Relax in a calming setting, adorned with motifs of the flora and fauna of Fantasy Springs. Fantasy Chateau allows you to enjoy your stay while soaking up the ambience of Fantasy Springs.

*Only available for use by guests staying in Fantasy Chateau at Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel as part of their Vacation Package.

Tokyo Disneyland® Hotel [Deluxe Type]

Continue the dreams and magic just steps away from Tokyo Disneyland .

Disney Ambassador® Hotel [Deluxe Type]

Stay near both Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea in an ambience filled with the Disney Friends.

Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta® [Deluxe Type]

Spend the night still immersed in the adventures of Tokyo DisneySea .

Tokyo Disney Resort Toy Story Hotel

The Tokyo Disney Resort Toy Story Hotel is inspired by the Disney and Pixar Toy Story films, immersing guests in a world filled with the wonder of childhood dreams, imagination and play.

Tokyo Disney Resort Official Hotels

Tokyo Bay Maihama Hotel First Resort

Tokyo Bay Maihama Hotel

Tokyo Bay Maihama Hotel Club Resort

Hilton TokyoBay

Hotel Okura Tokyo Bay

SHERATON GRANDE TOKYO BAY HOTEL

Tokyo disney resort partner hotels.

Hotel Emion Tokyo Bay

Oriental Hotel Tokyo Bay

Urayasu Brighton Hotel Tokyo Bay

Mitsui Garden Hotel Prana Tokyo Bay

Choose your original items, exclusive items, offered only to guests who book a vacation package.

*These are only examples of items offered and may change without notice. *Items are only available while stocks last. *Not available in some package plans. Please check your plan’s details.

Gauze Blanket

Gauze Blanket Size: 86 cm x 120 cm Tote Bag Size: 26 cm x 35 cm

Size: 35 cm x 51 cm x 20 cm

Disney Vehicle Collection (Tomica)

Size: 5.8 cm x 3.6 cm x 3.0 cm

Customize it with a Dream Garland to make a one-of-a-kind bag charm! Or you can use the bag charm as is!

Size:18 cm x 9 cm Dream garland is sold separately.

Shopping Bag

Size when opened: 40 cm x 50 cm x 20cm (Strage case: 13.5 cm x 14.5 cm)

Attachable Plush Toy

Size: 21 cm x 15 cm

*The shops where you can pick up these items are subject to change without notice. Please check your Tokyo Disney Resort Vacation Package Guidebook on your day of visit.

Show your Beverage Ticket to a Cast Member at participating locations in the Park to get free soft drinks (limited to certain drinks) during your stay as often as you like.

- For details, please check the Vacation Package Guidebook (electronic version) at the time of your visit.

Drinks included

Soft drinks served in cups (both hot or cold!)

*Only applies to drinks sold separately. *There is no discount for drinks purchased as part of set menus. ＜Drinks not available＞ Drinks that come in bottles or paper packs, milk, alcoholic drinks, soup, etc.

Exclusive to Vacation Packages Original Souvenir Popcorn Case

Vacation Package plans will include one original popcorn case per guest room. Please redeem the voucher for your popcorn case at a wagon with the flavor of your choice, as you will receive a regular box at the same time.

‐Only the first purchase of popcorn will be complimentary. ‐This item is not available in some package plans. Please check the details of each plan. ‐The photo is a concept image, and may change without notice.

Frequently Asked Questions

• See frequently asked questions

10 Tokyo Disney Resort Tips For First Timers

M ajor Disney Parks fans will tell you that all the parks worldwide may share a vibe, but they are vastly different from one another. Whether you're talking about cultural or logistical park differences, knowing a few insider tricks will undoubtedly help make your visit to any park magical.

You can't go wrong with Tokyo Disney Resort (TDR), which is known for having the cutest merchandise, the best-themed food, and just the general kawaii vibe you can't get anywhere else. Opened in 1983, Tokyo Disneyland was Disney's first international park. TDR changed the game for Disney fans worldwide, who no longer had to come to the United States to enjoy the parks.

TDR comprises Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea, as well as the on-site resorts. This Tokyo-based Disney resort is another incredible foray into what it means to be immersed in Disney magic. It's also the home to Duffy and Friends, Mickey Mouse's teddy bear, and his adorable animal companions. What's better than that? Nothing.

Read more: 28 Bucket List Destinations That Everyone Needs To Experience At Least Once

Download The App Beforehand

Disney may know theme parks, but they've also gotten apps down to a science. The Tokyo Disney Resort app will be your best friend while navigating both parks during your vacation. Beyond providing wait and showtimes in Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea, the app lets you make reservations, access photos, and much more. The TDR app also has maps to help you make the most of your visit to the parks by not spending countless minutes getting lost.

The app also allows you to purchase and utilize Premier Access. Like the Disney Plus system at Disneyland and Walt Disney World, Premier Access is an add-on allowing guests to access skip-the-line privileges for rides and attractions. The app also has Entry Request, which is a free service offered by TDR. Entry Request can be used to reserve seating at certain shows and access to character greetings around the park. Keep in mind that Entry Request for show seats is more of a lottery than a reservation system, so you may not get a seat.

Hit Popular Rides Early

This suggestion isn't unique to the Tokyo Disney Resort, but it's still vital to thoroughly enjoy a Disney Park day. It may seem like a lot of people enter the parks as soon as the doors open, yet everyone has their own agenda. So, by planning on hitting a popular or your most-anticipated ride right away in the morning, you won't have to wait an excruciatingly long time, or purchase passes to skip the line later.

Getting to the most popular rides first will also ensure you can experience certain attractions that aren't available at other parks around the world . One ride you won't find elsewhere is Journey to the Center of the Earth, one of the only proper roller coasters you'll find at TDR.

In conjunction with enjoying rides early, you'll also want to keep track of the availability of the shows in the TDR app's free Entry Request service. Since Entry Request operates more like a lottery system, you may want to just queue up for the first show performance of whatever you want to see that day. Chances are you'll be able to get a seat even if you have to wait a while for it.

Get Tickets In Advance

When you're excited for a Disney day, the last thing you want to do is waste time lining up to buy tickets. Your best bet is to get your tickets in advance online or as part of a package. That way, you head straight to the entrance queue and skip yet another line to start your day off strong. Tickets can be purchased for up to five visits at a time.

TDR is only selling fixed-date tickets right now, with no indication that they will change that in the future. As their name implies, fixed-date tickets require the ticketholder to know when they want to visit the resort. That said, you can contact the resort if your plans change and you need to adjust the dates (so long as your tickets are still valid). Fixed-date tickets are available for purchase up to 60 days in advance of your visit.

Plan For At Least Four Park Days

Truth be told, you could probably see all of Tokyo Disney Resort in one day if you spend half at Tokyo Disneyland and the other half at Tokyo DisneySea. There's just no way you're going to get the whole experience by doing things that way, though. The prime number of days to spend at TDR, regardless of how you break it up, is four.

That gives you plenty of time to see what you have to see, experience things you may not have known about, and re-ride the attractions you will inevitably fall in love with along the way. Plus, if you don't manage to get seats for shows through the Entry Request service, four days gives you plenty of time to try and see things with or without winning the app lottery. And it gives you ample time to eat your weight in little green alien mochi -- it's a win-win all around.

Stay On The Property

Choosing a Disney hotel for your accommodation will almost always be a more expensive option. However, staying nearby has many perks that often outweigh the cost-benefit, and TDR is no exception. Not commuting back to a different hotel, getting access to the parks outside of regular hours, and being able to enjoy Disney magic from sunup to sundown are just a few reasons why staying on property at a Disney park is almost always a good idea .

While Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea are smaller parks, you may still want to return to your resort for a mid-day nap or rest. Even though they're both smaller than Florida's EPCOT and Animal Kingdom, you don't want to run yourself ragged during your visit, either. After all, it's a vacation! There are five official Disney hotels on the TDR property (which will become six in spring 2024 when Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel opens), with six additional partner hotels nearby.

Don't Forget The Restaurant Reservations

One of the reasons why Disney fans visit parks all over the world is because they are all so different. All the parks have their own range of unique restaurants you can't enjoy elsewhere, making reservations crucial if you want to eat in one of these coveted locations. With wait times between one to two hours (if waiting is even available), you don't want to expel all of your precious park time just waiting to sit down at a table.

Plus, for a little more money, you may even get a souvenir plate or cup with your food. TDR is known for its absurdly cute merchandise, and who couldn't use more Disney kitchenware for just a few dollars more?

Keep in mind that, unlike Disney parks in the U.S., Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea do not allow visitors to bring in outside food. There are picnic areas outside TDR if you wish to bring food along; you just can't have it in the parks. This means restaurant reservations are even more critical than usual here.

Watch Out For Characters

Frequent Walt Disney World visitors are often thrilled at interacting with characters meandering around the park throughout the day. So, if that is one of your highlights, this tip is for you. Just like at Disneyland in California, some characters wander around TDR, greeting visitors as they do. Although some have permanent locations where they can be found, others you may just run into. If that happens and you want a photo, be sure to get it right then and there in case you don't see them again.

As we mentioned earlier, one of the functions of the Entry Request system is to request a spot for character greetings. Not all characters require these reservations, though the most popular icons, such as Mickey Mouse, may require a booking to meet. The majority of characters do not require reservations ahead of time. These requirements can change, so keep an eye on your app before heading to the character greeting spots.

The Monorail Isn't Free

Hold onto your ears, Disney lovers. You read that right; the monorail to the parks is not a free service like transportation to other Disney park locations worldwide. At TDR, the monorail is considered public transportation and, therefore, requires a small payment to ride. The kicker is that the fee must be paid in cash, so be sure to have some money with you when you visit. Make sure you are carrying some small bill denominations since the fee is only about JP¥260 (around $1.75) as of 2023

The monorail is also known as the Disney Resort Line and runs from the Resort Gateway Station at Ikspiari to Tokyo Disneyland Station, Bayside Station, and then Tokyo DisneySea Station. Should you require them, there are also secure locker facilities at each train station along the monorail's route, perfect if you need to offload some merch.

Bring The Phone Essentials

One thing that folks might need to remember when planning a trip to TDR is how quickly your phone battery will drain, particularly if you're making good use of the park mobile app. That's doubly true if you're visiting TDR from another country like the United States. Your phone is working even harder to stay awake when it isn't always near a recognizable cell tower.

Like at the U.S. parks, you can rent a portable battery at TDR. These rental locations are found both inside and outside the parks. However, the rental fees are based on how long you use the battery, unlike the portable batteries at the U.S. parks. Starting at under an hour and going up to 48 hours, these batteries help in a pinch. Plus, the prices are super reasonable. They start at JP¥180 (just over $1.20) for less than an hour to JP¥900 (approximately $6) for up to 48 hours. Longer rentals are also available. That's a lot more reasonable than the expensive portable batteries at Disneyland and Disney World .

Be Aware Of Holidays

In a place like TDR, crowds can feel a lot bigger. It's about the same park size as Disneyland in California, so the place fills up quickly. That's why you need to be aware of Japanese public holidays and school calendars when planning your visit. Going to a Disney park in the off-season is generally a good idea anyway, especially if you want to avoid significant crowds.

As with other Disney parks worldwide, TDR is packed during the Christmas and New Year holidays . These crowds continue into the start of January. Golden Week, when several national holidays take place over the course of a week, is also a very crowded time to visit TDR. Golden Week spans the end of April into the first week of May, varying slightly each year.

Outside of bigger holidays, the parks remain busy during spring break, which occurs for Japanese students from the end of February into March. Summer is also busy because of holidays like Marine Day and Mountain Day. A place like Tokyo Disney Resort is always relatively busy, but planning your visit wisely can be the difference between a good time and a great one.

Read the original article on Explore .

Tokyo DisneySea to open new attraction in June 2024

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Reporting by Francis Tang Editing by Chang-Ran Kim

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