Quote:
Originally Posted by bionictony
Planning to go on a weekday between October 14-23, 2013. I'm going to buy the 2 day pass. I want to do Disney 1 day and Sea the next day. I heard they sell out sometimes and just close the doors. Does that happen in Tokyo?
Is October a month when children are in school? How crowded will it be? Are there any Japanese holidays around that time period?
I went to Disneyland Paris in October 2012 on a Friday and the wait for space mountain was literally 10 minutes. Small world was 10 minutes. Every ride there I didn't have to wait longer than 20 minutes.. I was in shock. The park didn't seem empty or over crowded that day.
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Hi bionictony!
We're Disney freaks in my family, and we've been to the parks in Japan a lot so I'll try to help out as best I can
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We actually lived out in Tokyo for a while, so while we were over there, we used to go pretty regularly. However, since moving back to the US I've actually been back to Tokyo once and did stop by Disney too for a 3 day visit. This was in early (January) 2011.
As for the park passes, when I was there in 2011, we just bought the passes once we had arrived at the parks. Like I said, I'm a Disney freak and I've been to the parks (all over the world) too many times to count, but we've always just bought the passes upon arrival at the parks. Now, the Japanese are very passionate about Disney, and the passes do sell out on occasion, but in my experiences, it's only for special events like Xmas, Halloween, New Years, etc. or something of the kind. If you're going for a normal day, then you should be fine. However, go with your gut, if you'd feel more comfortable buying the tickets in advance then do so. The last thing I want to do is tell you not to buy them, and then you'd get there and they'd be sold out for some reason. So, maybe do buy them in advance just to play it on the safe side. It'll save you a bit of time and then your mind can be at ease too. It's up to you
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As for the resort, DisneySea is amazing! The single best Disney theme park at any resort imo (and I've been to all the resorts minus HK). Disneyland is lovely as always, but it's more or less the same as the Magic Kingdom/Disneyland parks everywhere else in the world. DisneySea is really the thing that sets Tokyo Disney apart. At Disneyland, be sure to check out the Winnie the Pooh ride. It's different than the ones in the US parks and really something to see. The lines are usually very long for it though so either grab a fastpass or get there early to line up. DisneySea, like I said, is fantastic. It's not like any other Disney park in the world. My advice is really to take the time to go through all the lands and try to do as much as you can. Their Tower of Terror is different and very cool. The Journey to the Center of the Earth (in the volcano) ride is also something not to be missed. Really, I'm going on and on, but DisneySea is great if you're a Disney nerd like myself. Personally, I'd do 2 days at DisneySea and 1 day at Disneyland if you could swing it. Note: The Tokyo parks have some weird restrictions sometimes on what days you can visit the parks. Sometimes the tickets only allow you to visit certain parks and not to park hop (so I'd check into that). Also, another side note, get to the parks early (like when they open the gates) on the days that you're visiting. That way you can run to 1 or 2 rides that you really want to do right away and then go spend the rest of your day wandering around the park.
October, at the time that you're planning to go, shouldn't be too crowded. Children should be in school. It'll be a crazy at the end of the month on Halloween but if you go earlier on it shouldn't be as bad (although if you do a weekend then it definitely will be more crowded than if you went during the week). I can't remember about any Japanese holidays to be honest. Halloween is obviously very much an American thing, but it's becoming bigger and bigger in Japan. Believe it or not, this is very largely due thanks to Disney. They were really the first ones to introduce Halloween into Japan.
Personally, I'm not a massive fan of Disneyland Paris (I lived in Paris for a while too and know the parks there quite well too). The Japanese parks are better. Personally, I've always found the Japanese parks to be more crowded, but it really depends and is largely up to chance.
I think you'll find that the Japanese employees are also absolutely lovely. They're more than willing to help you out and point you in the right direction. They're always very cheerful and happy and very accommodating as well for those of us who don't speak Japanese. Often times, if they themselves can't speak English and/or help you with your request, they'll politely bow and run off quickly to find another cast member who's English is better and who can perhaps better assist you with your query. Really can't say enough good things about the staff, they're really marvelous. They're also always extremely welcoming and appreciative if you try to speak at least some Japanese too. Even if you butcher it (like me) they're always very happy and thankful that you've at least tried. So my advice is to go for it!
On a side note, make sure to try the popcorn at the parks! That sounds a little strange, but they have some crazy flavors that you probably won't have seen anywhere else before. Most of them are absolutely delicious (also, some are a little strange too, admittedly). Buy the plastic tub and keep on refilling it up for your visit. You won't regret it.
I hope that this very long and rambling post was at least somewhat helpful. I hope you have a great time at Tokyo Disney and enjoy your time in Japan in general. It's really a great country!
Let us know what you think of your trip!
Safe travels,
CityLover9
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tickets in advanced.
