A Comprehensive Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort
So you've decided to check out Tokyo Disneyland Resort? You hear it's the best of the best? The Crème de la Crème?
Well, it is. Outside of Anaheim's Disneyland Park, you won't find a theme park in the world on the level of Tokyo DisneySea, but the dominant factor is distinguishable.
Disneyland Park is stacked with rides and charm. Tokyo DisneySea by comparison is grandiose and has unimaginably impressive theming with deliberate design throughout. If you think the Potter lands at Universal or Cars Land at California Adventure are top-tier, imagine a park with over half a dozen of them all tied together to a single unifying mission statement.
Because of that, DisneySea is something exceptionally special; the rides are great, but the park is first and foremost about the breathtaking way it transports.
Soak in the details.
Tokyo Disneyland is no slacker either, but it's obviously not as distinctive. If you are only going to Tokyo Disney Resort for a couple of days then you should probably prioritize Tokyo Disney Resort exclusive rides and the exploration of DisneySea, so if you only have a single day, absolutely choose to visit it.
A lot of the appeal of Tokyo's parks is also the second-to-none attention to detail and the Disney Cruise Line-level service throughout the resort. The maintenance is flawless, and the food game is a savory step up from the American parks at nearly all of the quick-service restaurants paired with an unreal snack game. Despite all of the improvements, it is far more affordable than any other Disney resort. Tokyo Disney Resort owes all of this to it being the only franchised Disney resort in the world.
This post assumes you'll be going for a couple of days, but the resort really requires 3 or more days for Tokyo DisneySea and 2 or more for Tokyo Disneyland. A casual person should definitely aim for 2 full days at each park. A larger fan could spend 6-7 days at the resort no problem.
Japan of course is one of the most beautiful countries in the world with a delectable cuisine and a rich culture, so definitely see far beyond just Tokyo Disney Resort. That being said, I personally think it is the highlight of Tokyo for someone who loves theme parks, but most definitely make it a point to check out other world-class cities such as Kyoto.
A frequent question that's repeated often when discussing the international parks is: "How is it not knowing the native language?"
I'm not going to lie, the language barrier is larger at this resort than even Shanghai Disney Resort, and not irrelevant like at the mostly bilingual Disneyland Paris, but the impact on the experience is next to none. Don't let that stop you.
Convinced it's worth visiting yet? With all that out of the way now, onto the guide!
What to Ride
Tokyo Disneyland Park
I would prioritize:
I love the Beaver Brothers Explorer Canoes (which are just like the ones at Disneyland). The railroad also doesn't loop around the park and is instead just a ride with one stop.
There is a new show at the Fantasyland Forest Theatre called Mickey's Magical Music World. I haven't had the chance to catch it, so I can't yet comment on its quality.
Absolutely under no circumstance should you miss the Tokyo Disneyland Electric Parade Dreamlights. The park's night parade blows all the other ones ever made out of the water. The Fireworks show, Sky Full of Colors, is skippable if you are only there for a day as it cannot compare to Happily Ever After, but it's worth watching for longer stays.
This is how I'd rank the park’s lands in terms of beauty in order to get an idea of how much time you might want to explore them (though, keep in mind this is very subjective):
Tokyo DisneySea
Do these two back-to-back in the morning. Be there at least 30 minutes before the park opens:
Then, fill the day out with these shorter wait rides:
These are the other exclusive rides you should prioritize:
These two are known for having stratospheric waits (as in 180 minutes daily) with the ride experience itself not unique to Tokyo. However, the exterior facades and queues (especially for Soarin') are stunning, so I would skip these two if you frequent the American parks and only have a day:
I would re-ride Journey to the Center of the Earth or Sinbad before I'd ride Toy Story Mania! or Soaring. Toy Story Mania! and especially Soaring have the best queues of any of their respective versions, but I would definitely pass on them both since they frequently command 180+ minute waits which is absurd for any ride much less for two rides that aren't even headliners.
There's of course the spectacular show Big Band Beat near the Tower of Terror, but it is still presently in a COVID B-mode. When it's operating normally, it's very well done, and surprisingly, a lot of it is in English. To get a seat on the lower level, you have to enter a 'lottery' for it. The upper level has a queue.
The night show at the park is a new show called Believe! Sea of Dreams in the park's Mediterranean Harbor. I haven't seen it so I can't comment on it personally, but it has great reviews.
I love the Venetian Gondolas (though the wait times can approach an hour), so you may want to skip it, but definitely walk around the Venice area. Aquatopia (a trackless, water, flat-ride) is also fun too, but I would definitely take the former over it.
In the big Titanic-like ship, there's a place called the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge, it's very cool, so take a look inside.
Also, in the fort/castle in front of Mount Prometheus (the volcano), Fortress Explorations is a delight, especially at night. Explore every inch of the park, everything is stunning, and even the Mermaid Lagoon indoor land is worth checking out (I'd skip every attraction inside it, however).
This is how I'd rank the park’s lands in terms of beauty (though, keep in mind this is very subjective, and they are all incredible):
Your perception of the park will be different doing it in this exclusive-rides-only sort of way (encouraged if you only have 1-day at each park) than if you were doing it normally, obviously, but it likely makes the most sense if you don't plan on returning for a while, and if you frequent Walt Disney World or Disneyland Resort.
Things will also change real world. If the Venetian Gondolas are under 30 minutes and you happen to be right there, it's definitely worth doing while if SeaRider is at 90 minutes, it's definitely not. So use all of the perspectives here as a starting point for your own adventure rather than a rigid set of rules outside of a few must-dos.
One thing to note is that you can't hop in a queue in the minutes before park closing as the queues for the big rides will generally close over an hour before the parks officially do. The parks themselves usually stay open until around 10pm; this is due to most Cast Members needing to get home before Tokyo's rail system shuts down for the night, and is my only gripe about the resort.
Where to Eat
Food-wise, skip table-service if you are only there for a couple days. If you are there for a long weekend or more, I'd say most definitely try at least one. Magellan's (table-service) at Tokyo DisneySea is arguably the best theme park restaurant in the world and is next to Fortress Explorations, so you could take a quick look into it while passing by.
The quick-service restaurants are excellent. They are lightyears ahead of the average ones in Orlando and still top Disneyland in Anaheim’s excellent locations. My personal favorite is Vulcania next to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea at Tokyo DisneySea and Grandma Sara's Kitchen next to Splash Mountain or Hungry Bear Restaurant in Westernland at Tokyo Disneyland Park.
From DisneySea's Casbah Food Court in Arabian Coast to Queen of Heart's Banquet Hall at Tokyo Disneyland's Fantasyland, there are some legitimately stunning restaurants. So be sure to check out the theming at restaurants throughout both parks, though especially DisneySea. Grandma Sara's and Vulcania are arguably the best two for food and theming!
The snack game is so impressive that it could effortlessly replace one meal at each park per day. I would honestly make it a plan to grab some food off-property after the parks close to maximize your time in them; that's what I typically do!
Speaking of after the parks, definitely check out Hotel MiraCosta's lobby at Tokyo DisneySea. Now that is a treat!
And you should try to avoid eating during the lunch rush from 11am-2pm.
A quick bite at the hotel before the parks open is the best way to start your day; many offer ridiculously cheap sushi or American-style continental breakfast.
At the parks, have your first “meal” at 2:00pm with snacks holding you until around a 10:30pm dinner outside the parks. That’s the way to go for a short stay. Like I said before, if you have 2 days in each park, a table-service restaurant would then be worth it. It will save you a good chunk of time!
Snacks, Tickets, & More!
There are Dozens of Popcorn Flavors spread across each park from strawberry to BBQ and honey to chocolate, so make a point to try at least a couple! For non-popcorn snacks, the Gyoza Sausage Bun at Nautilus Galley next to 20K Leagues Under the Sea and the Little Green Alien Mochi in Tomorrowland are both fire. There's far more than this, but the two websites linked below provide great guides into everything (including snacks) at TDR. I recommend checking them out!
Disney Tourist Blog & TDR Explorer
Also, make it a point to download the Tokyo Disney Resort App! You'll be able to of course check wait times but also buy Premier Access which you can only buy the day of.
One thing you'll also notice is that not only are the Park Tickets significantly cheaper than the other Disney Resorts, the food is too!
Just be aware that park hoppers don't really exist. A park hopper ticket allows access to each park on separate days. Same-day park hopping is not a thing in Tokyo, but both parks typically have the same hours and so much to do, so there's not really a point.
There's also a shopping district/mall called Ikspiari that's Tokyo's answer to Downtown Disney and Disney Springs at Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World, respectively. It's connected to the Transit Hub Monorail Station known as JR Maihama Railway Station as it's the transit hub of the entire resort. It's definitely not necessary to visit (as other areas in Tokyo are far more worth it), but it could make for a meal after the park closes or on arrival day.
Where to Stay
I definitely recommend staying at one of the Disney Good Neighbor Hotels to save time versus off-property hotels. The monorail costs money (an affordable few dollars per person for a multi-day pass) as it’s connected to the Tokyo Metro, but it will save you tons of time rather than commuting into the resort. The monorails put to shame the quality of Orlando’s.
The Hilton Tokyo Bay and the Sheraton Grande (both Good Neighbor Hotels) offer 'western style' hotel accommodations if that's what you're looking for.
If you can swing it, both the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel and even more so for the in-the-park hotel--Hotel MiraCosta (especially the Harbor View rooms, but the Venice ones are extraordinary too)--offer the best quality of accommodations and service of any Disney hotel on the planet, bar none.
Actually, in MiraCosta’s case, its theming tops even Animal Kingdom Lodge, and is quite a spectacle to behold, improving upon the idea of an in-park hotel like the Disneyland Hotel at Disneyland Paris. It is unquestionably the best Disney hotel in the world; despite that high praise, I wouldn't entirely recommend it or the TDL Hotel given the price.
If you want to spend a lot of time in your hotel, then I can see it, or even as part of a longer trip, but if you want to maximize your time in the parks, then most definitely no, at least, not for a full stay there. Save your money and stick to the Good Neighbor Hotels and make a point to visit both of these resorts after the parks close. If you stay at a good neighbor hotel in Tokyo when your usual accommodations in Orlando are like the Polynesian, I guarantee it will be cheaper to go to Tokyo (including airfare) than it is to stay at WDW. That's even truer if you factor in the park tickets and food being far less.
How to Get There
![Official]Limited-Period Decorations on Disney Resort Line Monorail Trains|Tokyo Disney Resort](https://media2.tokyodisneyresort.jp/home/tdr/resortline/duffy2019.jpg)
Taxis would be the most effortless, but it will set you back about $70 from Haneda Airport and $200 from Narita Aiport each way.
Trains are much more affordable, and is how nearly everyone gets to the resort with the transit systems in Japan being safe, clean, widely accessible, and always on time.
Barring traffic during rush hour (when trains would be faster), you should expect the excellent transit system to take about 30 minutes longer than driving with it being an hour trip to Haneda and an hour and a half to Narita by train.
If you're in Japan for at least a week, get the JR Rail Pass from Klook. It will allow unlimited travel on most of Japan's world-class train lines (including bullet trains) for tourists for a reasonable fee.
If you opt for a train from Narita, just take the Keisei Narita Main Line towards Haneda Airport. You'll have to transfer at Higashi-Matsudo Station, however, and hop on the JR Musashino Line towards Tokyo Station, and then finally get on the Tokyo Disney Resort Monorail from Maihama Station.
When to Visit
Like Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Tokyo Disney Resort is a "local's park," meaning not only are both the crowds far kinder than the touristy ones you'll find in Orlando, but it also affects the crowd patterns of the parks.
Here is a very good crowd calendar, but please be aware it's not an exact science.
Typically, weekends are busier than weekdays. The only time of year to absolutely avoid from a crowd perspective is Golden Week which is usually the last week of April and/or the first week of May.
The resort can also get extremely hot and humid like Orlando in the summer, so I personally like to avoid July/August for this reason.
One huge benefit to Tokyo Disneyland Resort is that the Halloween and Christmas parties are included, yes included, in regular park admission! And like I have said before, there are also many ride overlays during the holidays such as the Haunted Mansion Holiday Nightmare overlay!
Reasons to Come Back
Tokyo Disney Resort spoils you in a way no other resort can!
With the information overload out of the way, the resort is presently a real treat. They really are genuinely operated how all theme parks should be run, and DisneySea in particular is a global treasure.
Hopefully you found this guide helpful! It took quite a lot of time and experience to get everything together here, so if you’d like to support my work, consider allowing me to plan your next trip to theme parks and cruises around the world!
As a certified travel agent, I can get you better deals than you’ll likely be able to find yourself, and it’s completely free to you as I’m paid commission by Disney and other vacation providers.
If not, just enjoy the guide!
Regardless, I hope you have a wonderful, wonderful time!
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