Honeymoon help???

[The Director]

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Hello!

My fiance' and I have picked our date (October 16th 2010!! ) and we were talking about potentially trying to do a theme park trip to Disney Tokyo or Hong Kong Disneyland.

However, after a brief bout of google-ing, we found what seemed like quite a few negative reviews from American Disney go-ers about their experiences in these other locales (Particularly around our wedding time in late October).

My question is, has anybody had (or heard of) any firsthand experience at these parks/resorts? I wouldn't mind dropping some extra cash for fast passes or staying on-site discounts, but one review mentioned two hours of queing just to get into the park!

Also, is it worth going to these other places (Tokyo in particular, my lady LOVES Japanese culture), or do their similarites to other Disney parks kind of make traveling halfway around the world seem a little redundant?

Any perspectives on potential Tokyo Disneyland travel is appreciated!!

(I apologize if this is in the wrong thread, I'm admittedly new to DIS, but I'm hoping somebody might be able to help us out.)

Thanks in advance!!

 

[ChrisFL]

I'm betting the negative reviews may have come from people who didn't do their research first.

Both Tokyo and Hong Kong, as cities, are wonderful destinations, and have a lot to offer without even going to the Disney parks. I spent time in both cities and the parks just over 1 year ago.

If you're after the true Disney experience, Tokyo is by far the place to visit. Hong Kong Disneyland is still a very "light" park on attractions, but Tokyo has the best of the best in many regards, 2 amazing parks, top quality attractions and hotels.

The time of year you visit Tokyo is quite important as you're correct, crowds can be massive, and EVERYONE knows how to use Fastpasses there!!

So plan what attractions you want to see first, and get there as early as possible to see them with less wait/grab a fastpass if you think you'll want to ride it again (Winnie the Pooh for example is something you'll want to ride more than once, trust me!)

 

[walt's assistant]

I had no trouble at all with lengthy line queues at TDR, and I cannot imagine that Disney would ever tolerate such a thing. My guess is that this was an anomaly.

There is so much to see and do in Japan that you won't want your visit to begin and end at TDR. I think TDR is worth 2-3 days max., but make sure you venture out and experience the richness of Japanese culture. That, IMO, is what will make your honeymoon extra special.

 

[Sugarglider]

Hi again - you can read my full post on the other board where you posted the same question - but the answer remains the same - TDL is the way to go

 

[LeeLeeLuvsDisney]

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Hello!

My fiance' and I have picked our date (October 16th 2010!! ) and we were talking about potentially trying to do a theme park trip to Disney Tokyo or Hong Kong Disneyland.

However, after a brief bout of google-ing, we found what seemed like quite a few negative reviews from American Disney go-ers about their experiences in these other locales (Particularly around our wedding time in late October).

My question is, has anybody had (or heard of) any firsthand experience at these parks/resorts? I wouldn't mind dropping some extra cash for fast passes or staying on-site discounts, but one review mentioned two hours of queing just to get into the park!

Also, is it worth going to these other places (Tokyo in particular, my lady LOVES Japanese culture), or do their similarites to other Disney parks kind of make traveling halfway around the world seem a little redundant?

Any perspectives on potential Tokyo Disneyland travel is appreciated!!

(I apologize if this is in the wrong thread, I'm admittedly new to DIS, but I'm hoping somebody might be able to help us out.)

Thanks in advance!!

We have not been to Hong Kong, so I can't say if you should or shouldn't go there, but I have heard that the Disney park there is small and can be seen in one day. The Tokyo parks, on the other hand, should be given at least 3 days...one at each park, and then one other day to park hop and catch anything you missed or finish shopping. Plus, my husband and I both found Japan fascinating. There's a lot to see and do outside of TDR.

I did a lot of research before our trip this past April and found very few negative reviews about Tokyo Disney. Most of the complaints I did see involved crowds/lines, but as someone else mentioned, just doing some research on how things work at the parks and making use of fast passes really cuts down on the wait times. One of the keys is to make sure you go on weekdays and avoid national holidays and school vacations.

Tokyo Disneyland does have many similarities to other "Magic Kingdom" parks around the world, but there are differences, too. It has unique attractions (Pooh's Hunny Hunt being one) as well as different food that is catered to the local audience (see my food thread here on the board for examples and pictures). The DisneySEA park, however, is unique in many ways. There are a few rides that are similar (such as Tower of Terror), but yet done in their own special theming that is unique to Tokyo. And the entire park is set up and themed differently than any other park in the world...there's nothing like it! The shows are special and different, too...

Besides the parks, there is so much to do in Japan...just about anything for any interest you and your fiancee may have. I highly recommend a trip there - just do your research first. Armed with knowledge of customs, how the trains work, what to expect food-wise, some simple Japanese polite phrases, etc. just made our whole trip easier and more enjoyable.

 

[voleball]

I grew up in Japan and visited TDL a few times. Because I only knew TDL then, I thought it was normal, but the wait time is VERY long. When I first visited DL in CA, I was quite shocked that I didn't have to wait in line for long. Just for that reason I loved the Disneyland in CA.

I just browsed through Japanese websites and here is what I found on crowds.

Crowd Calendar.

* - least crowded
***** - unbelievably crowded (you should stick to browsing and enjoy being in the park rather than attractions)

** 1/1 ~ 1/5 (new year holiday) - (except 1/1 is very crowded)
* 1/6 ~ Feb end (except 1/15 and 2/14) the slowest season of the year
*** Feb end ~ first week of April - Spring break. Avoid Sat, Sun and Holidays
** 2nd week of April ~ right before Golden week
**** Golden Week (usually end of April ~ 1st week of May) - extremely busy but the last day of Golden week can be much less crowded
** Post Golden Week ~ first half of July - most people visited during GW and rain season starts (Japanese hates to get wet)
**** 7/21 ~ 1st week of Sept - Summer break
** Mid till end of Sept. - slow post break
***** October - Unbelievably crowded. Most Saturdays have possibility of TDL getting closed due to max capacity, which leads to TDS gets packed w/ people who couldn't get in to TDL.
* 11/1 ~ 11/3 - EMPTY!!!
*** 11/4 ~ end of Nov. - Christmast events start -> starts to get busy a bit
***** 1st week of Dec. ~ 12/25 - Unbelievably crowded due to Christmas events. The same as Oct. Avoid Saturdays.
** 12/26 ~ 12/31 - Christmas events end and becomes slow (except 12/31 & 1/1 due to new year event)

This is more of overview and the crowd level will change based on the day of the week, special events and weather. Like I mentioned above, Japanese HATES rain. They don't come to the park if it rains. You may want to check the weather and pick the rainy day for the park visit. I went to TDL in April 2008 and it had some light rains, but the park was EMPTY! We did everything we wanted and all were walk on (at max 5 min. wait). That was wonderful.

I heard that MK in WDW closed for an hour or so due to reaching the max capacity on 12/19/2009. I was there on that day/night and it was super busy. But comparing to TDL, I think that level of crowd is nothing new. I think it would be like *** to **** crowd level in TDL.

Majority of guests at TDR is Japanese/locals so Saturday is the busiest. Then Sunday/Monday, Friday, Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday.

Anyway can you arrange to be in Tokyo during 11/1 ~ 11/3? You'll have a blast at TDR!

 

[GrtWtNorth]

If you opt to visit Monday-Thursday, crowds will not be a factor. Weekends are nuts! Use Disney's hotel rate calendar to predict crowds.
http://www.disneyhotels.jp/english/reserve/dhm_price_e.html

If your lady loves Japanese culture, Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea might disappoint her. These parks look at American culture from a Japanese perspective. It's neither one, nor the other.

Tokyo is a cosmopolitain city, with a lot of foreign influence. If you want to experience true Japanese culture, you need to go a bit out of your way, either getting off the beaten path in Tokyo or travelling to other cities such as Kyoto. I highly recommend going to a hot springs resort -- just make sure to find one that has English speaking staff that are eager to explain the rules for dining and bathing. We stayed in one, arranged by Japanese hosts. The experience was great, but the resort staff didn't know English, so we studied our guidebooks, and tried to do exactly as Japanese did. All our offenses were forgiven because we brought our 13-month old daughter with us - Japanese love 'western' kids! In the parks, tourists often took more pictures of our family than the Disney characters.

Japanese consider Tokyo Disneyland to be a kids park, so it is swamped with families. Tokyo Disney Sea is viewed as a place to take your date -- heavily themed, romantic, with lots of good dining options and fewer attractions. If you can swing the bill, the Hotel Miracosta is an ideal honeymoon resort. How expensive is it? 4 days in Tokyo Disney Resort in 2009 cost us more than 11 days in WDW in 2008 (where we split our trip between moderate and value resorts).