TDR in September and freaking out!

[aschwarz]

Hello lovely Disney fans! I am in the midst of planning my first ever trip to Tokyo with my husband for early September and am sort of at a loss for how to go about making said plans. I am used to planning for WDW, with ADRs 180 days out and having everything down to the second mapped out (in my native language, no less), so the idea of this whole across the world in a different language situation is making me break out into hives.

We will be in Tokyo for a week, and planning 4 full Disney days while there. We'll have about a day and a half at the start of the trip to explore Tokyo, and I literally know nothing about this great land we'll soon be exploring. What should a twenty-something married couple do in Tokyo for fun? Sadly, the only thing I know is of Harajuku, because of my love of fashion, but even that is limited.

Then, the Disney part of the equation -- I am told early September is a good time to go, crowd-wise. Is it really true that we should buy our park tickets the morning we arrive at Disney? That seems so bizarre to me. Also, is it true that dining reservations are made same-day whilst in the park? I'm having flashbacks to my childhood WDW trips when my family of 4 made dining reservations the same day at kiosks in the park, and simply can't believe it could be that easy with the level of crowds I've read TDR normally has. How do the restaurants not get booked up?

We have the Hilton Tokyo Bay booked for our Disney days, but no plans for hotel beyond that for our two nights in Tokyo. Any recommendations for me would be so helpful as I continue to read your posts in this board.

Thank you endlessly

 

[MomoMama]

I did some research before visiting Tokyo Disney in June. Here is what I know about the dining reservations.

Some restaurants require reservation in advance (they call it Priority Seating), and they are made online. For the same-day reservation, they start taking them at 9 am online. If there are seats still available, they would take the reservations in person at the restaurants starting at 10 am. There is no standby for those restaurants.

Halloween events starts in September, and I think the parks will be busy, especially on the weekends. The crowd prediction calendar shows the tickets may sell out on some days on the weekends. If you plan to visit on the weekends, I think you should buy the tickets in advance.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[tdonald]

Hello! I think I can be of a bit of help. I just return a couple days ago from my first trip to Japan and TDR. I was there Monday-Thursday of the last week of June. Looking at the crowd calendar at tdrnavi, it seems the weekdays in early September are pretty comparable to (predicted) crowds when I was there, which is to say NOT crowded... at least in comparison to literally every time I'm been to WDW in the past 10 years (many times in many different seasons). That said, I would ABSOLUTELY avoid the weekends if at all possible!!!!! if you are currently planning on visiting on a weekend, I would strongly suggest changing your days if possible. I would purchase your tickets either at your hotel when you check in, or get to a park at least 45-60 minutes early and buy them there.

As for ADRs, I can't help you much... we didn't make any! We went to the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge for drinks and a small meal and waited maybe 5 minutes to be seated. We walked up to Magellan's (which I would suggest possibly trying to make a same-day ADR for) and were seated instantly. It's not technically a "sit-down", but I think it's worth mentioning... I had heard stories of hour long lines to order food at Queen of Hearts Banquet Hall, but we walked in at 11:30am and the place was half empty and no line to order food.

I would advise you do as much internet research as you possibly can on TDR and decide exactly what you definitely want to do, but don't be worried that you don't have anything other than your hotel booked in advance. TDR is vastly different than WDW and most visitors are locals who don't plan very far in advance.

 

[tdonald]

Just re-read your post and realized you asked about Tokyo too... sorry...

We stayed at the Sotetsu Fresa Inn Shimbashi-Hibiyaguchi, which is very close to Shimbashi Station (one stop from Tokyo Station). Very clean and in a good central location if you're doing sightseeing to several different areas in Tokyo (and not too far from TDR!). The room was pretty small (as are most hotels in Japan, especially Tokyo) but perfectly adequate for a couple. Within walking distance to the Imperial Palace, Ginza (nice shopping area), and Tsukiji Fish Market (which is being relocated later this year)... about 10 minutes from Ueno Park and Museums, 20-25 away (by subway/train) to Shibuya, Meiji-Jingu Shrine, Harajuku, and Asakusa... all of which are absolutely worth visiting if you're interested... look them up. As for nightlife... sorry but I can't help you... we pretty jet lagged and waking up by 6am everyday so by 9 pm or so we were exhausted and just crashed!

There's so much to do in Tokyo it's hard to narrow it down... so just decide what interests you the most.

 

[aschwarz]

Thank you both so much for such a speedy response!! It's very much appreciated

@MomoMama, just read through much of your trip report & absolutely loved it!

@tdonald -- we will be in the parks Monday-Thursday, and planned this because we read about the crowds on weekends which sound crazy! It does make me feel better to read that you didn't make any ADRs and had an easy time finding places to eat. In the states, we prefer to do counter service lunches and table service dinners, so I figured we'd make reservations for dinner if needed. And thank you SO much for the info on where you stayed in Tokyo.. we are not at all much for nightlife and usually go to bed around 10pm on a normal night, so I'm assuming we'll be just the same in Tokyo but this is an excellent and helpful start. I really appreciate it!

 

[MomoMama]

I realized my comment earlier may be a little confusing. Tokyo Disney seems to use the word dining “reservation” for the entertainment restaurants, like dinner/lunch and show. For the others that requires booking, they call it “priority seating.” The restaurant booking site is in Japanese only, so it is not as easy as booking for WDW. If you couldn’t book online, you can still try to see if the priority seating is available on the day of the visit.

I am not a Tokyo expert, and there are a lot to see in Tokyo… I think you should do a search on things to do in Tokyo, and see what interests you. Then pick a hotel that is convenient to go to those places. I had 1 day to explorer Tokyo, and I chose to go to Tsukiji market and Asakusa area. I picked a hotel (Via Inn) in east Ginza, because it was walking distance to Tsukiji market, and it was less than 15 min train ride to Asakusa from East Ginza train station without transfers.

 

[Agent 86]

1. Tokyo

So very many options - Studio Ghibli Museum, Kamakura with the big bronze Buddha, Yokohama with the noodle museum, Odaiba, Asakusa, Imperial Gardens and numerous other gardens, including some near Harajuku, Akihabara, cocktails and/or dinner at the top of various buildings, including the Park Hyatt, clothes shopping in Ginza, etc. I'd look at Tripadvisor's "things to do" in Tokyo to determine what would appeal most to you.

Also, just wandering the streets, popping into small shops and restaurants and enjoying the culture can be a lot of fun.

2. Disney

On our last trip, we purchased our tickets at Disney. We arrived an hour before opening and the ticket counters were already open. It wasn't an issue. I think you can also buy them in Disney Stores if you happen across one before you head to Disney.

We went in September in 2011 and the crowds were fine. We went on 8 to 10 September in 2015 (all weekdays) and the crowds were ... HUGE! 45 minute long wait for Fast Passes for Toy Story Mania. 3 hour wait for Tower of Terror (as all Fast Passes were gone by midday). BUT, the parks were highly enjoyable. I *think* part of the reason it was so crowded was our visit coincided with the time of year when they allow everyone to attend in their own Disney-themed costumes.

We made dining reservations on the day for Blue Bayou, Magellan's and a villain-themed special event at the aircraft hanger buffet at DisneySea (which ended up not being particularly villain-themed since the mini-show didn't happen). We tried to make reservations for the Italian restaurant at DisneySea, but they were fully booked. Instead we just turned up for an "early" dinner, were asked to wait 5 minutes and were seated with no problems. All of the successful reservations were made either upon opening or soon after opening (e.g. one person grabbed Fast Passes for Monsters Inc, then got in line for Pooh's Hunny Hunt while the other made reservations at Blue Bayou and then headed to Pooh's). We tried to book the Italian restaurant after midday (on our third day when you can transfer between parks) and they were fully booked.

Other restaurants were also busy. We waited in line for maybe 15 minutes for the Queen of Heart's Banquet Hall (although we arrived "early" for lunch). We also waited in line for maybe 20 minutes to get into Teddy Roosevelt's Lounge. There are plenty of dining options though, so there is no real need to "wait" unless you want to dine at a particular location.

I'd recommend thoroughly reading the tdrexplorer blog. It's a great resource!

3. Tokyo Accommodation

I would figure out what else you want to see and do in Tokyo and choose a hotel in a convenient location. You'll want to save your energy for Disney, so limit the amount of walking and travelling you need to do for your first couple of days.

4. Different Language

Everyone has a different experience, but I've personally never encountered any major language difficulties in Japan, especially in central Tokyo. It's a good idea to learn some common phrases (e.g. hello, goodbye, please, thank you, excuse me, etc), but I've never been armed with more than that.

 

[RandomlyrachelG]

How exciting!! We're leaving for Tokyo in 9 days--we'll only have 3 days at the parks, but I'm really looking forward to it! We're not nightlife people either, and I think it's a good thing, because there's so much to see and do in Tokyo and in the parks during the day that we'll need our sleep at night! We're planning on spending a whole day exploring the Yokohama area--there's guides online that list all sorts of stuff to see and do there. I think there's a Disney Store in Shibuya (relatively near the Hachiko statue), where we might try to buy our Disney tickets on the first day of our trip, just to be on the safe side, though we are also going weekdays, Tuesday through Thursday, so I think we should be pretty okay for tickets.

 

[Jade-Elise]

YAY! I can help here, my hubby and I did Japan in 2012 and fell in love!!!

Our FIRST day in Japan plan was... to get lost! Seriously. Just walk in an direction and see what you can see. Have your phone charged and gps on the ready to find your way back OR just catch a cab back to your hotel.
I HIGHLY recommend staying IN Shinjuku close to Kabukicho. There is things to see and do EVERYWHERE! Literally. You won't even believe it... Some of our favourite days were 'no plan' days, just breathe and live Japan. Our hotel was Citadines and we loved it. Don't bother getting the breakfast, walk outside the door and there is a plethora of gorgeous dining places. Everywhere you look there is places to eat and shop. It wasn't noisy from memory either. For 2 days, get as close to the train station as possible, so you can walk or catch the train to anywhere.

If you want something super fun how about going to Asakasa and getting a Kimono rental! http://www.meeko-meeko.com/kimono.html

Disney Side of things... Yes I am with you. Never been to a Disney park in my life, and for years we were trying to do WDW but being all the way over in Aus it is just too much for us (not to mention the horrible exchange for us now). All the cool info in English doesn't translate well for TDR. I am in the process of trying to put together a 'must do' time by time timetable. Part of me is thinking it is overkill, but another doesn't want to miss anything. Here is Aus we have Dreamworld/Movieworld/Seaworld/WetnWild and those need NO planning whatsoever. (Like at all... it's totally Aussie to just rock up and go with the flow)

If I make anything significant I'd be happy to share! There are only a couple of 1 day itineraries and I find them hard to print and use format. They are conflicting as well, not like websites like http://**************.net/ where it is set out, no planning needed, just print and roll. LOL!

Keep in touch, hopefully we can share information!

 

[OldSchoolReasons]

Following as I'm also a twenty something planning a September trip to Tokyo with my partner (4 days Disney, 5 days Tokyo)!

The tips I've gathered so far are - get a pocket wifi, Japanese addresses are completely different and google maps will be crucial.

We're looking to stay in an Airbnb as its cheaper than a hotel and will have kitchen facilities plus a place to wash clothes.

For the Tokyo leg of our trip we have so much kitschy stuff planned: a robot themed bar, an Alice in Wonderland themed restaurant, a prison themed restaurant with cocktails served in syringes, a Capcom bar, plus lots of temples - Senso-ji and the Meiji shrine for example. I think it really does depend on your interests.

If you like fashion I recommend going to Yoyogi Park on Sunday as they have rockabilly events sometimes in there.

Also I'm not entirely sure (someone will confirm) but I'm pretty sure you can buy Disney tickets at the Tokyo Hilton - so I'd do it then.

 

[Jade-Elise]

AH The Alice restaurant in Ginza??? It was SO FREAKING AMAZING! And we got super lost getting there. The address was a nightmare, and we spent a good 40 minutes lost. Luckily we had a good sense to try and get there an hour early, otherwise we'd loose our reservation. It was my husbands birthday and they made a huge deal out of it. Would love to go again, I don't want to spoil it but they went 150% on the design! Totally awesome!

 

[OldSchoolReasons]

AH The Alice restaurant in Ginza??? It was SO FREAKING AMAZING! And we got super lost getting there. The address was a nightmare, and we spent a good 40 minutes lost. Luckily we had a good sense to try and get there an hour early, otherwise we'd loose our reservation. It was my husbands birthday and they made a huge deal out of it. Would love to go again, I don't want to spoil it but they went 150% on the design! Totally awesome!

I think it's the Ginza one! We have 3 marked on Google Maps so surely we'll be able to fine one *fingers crossed*

 

[Jade-Elise]

This is the one we went to - http://r.gnavi.co.jp/g600101/ Couldn't recommend enough. A MUST do! In fact we may go back again also!

 

[aschwarz]

Thank you ALL for such amazing responses! I am always floored by the responses I get on this board, and this time is no different! When I have time, I will go through everything in detail but did want to thank you all you've made me feel so much better and more at ease!

 

[retwinked]

Tokyo

When in Tokyo, it really depends on your interests as a lot of cultural niches tend to be segregated into particular areas. Why did you come to Japan? If you are interested in...

> Eclectic Fashion and Shopping
+ Shibuya
+ Harajuku

> Anime and Manga and Video Game Merchandise
+ Akihabara
+ Nakano Broadway (mall)

> Character/Themed Cafes
+ Shibuya
+ Harajuku
+ Video Game Cafes (Capcom, Final Fantasy, etc)
+ Owl/Kitty/Puppy Cafes

> Historical Sites
+ Asakusa
+ Edo Castle
+ Sengaku-ji Temple

Tripadvisor is your friend!

To every friend who visits Tokyo, I tell them to go to the Robot Restaurant in Shinjuku because it is basically everything you thought Japan would be before you knew much about it: http://www.shinjuku-robot.com/pc/?lng=en
There is an English page and the staff speak decent English. I've been living in Japan for a few years now and I thought I had seen everything, but this place proved me very wrong. It is a very unique experience that I highly recommend making time for.

----------------------------------

Tokyo Disney

If you are going in the first week of September, crowd levels should be fairly low given that the school term would have just begun. Keep in mind that you will be entering Halloween season which, next to Christmas, is the most popular event at Tokyo Disney so crowd levels are consistently above average. Going on a weekday is always better than a weekend, but definitely come with a plan.

In terms of tickets, you are able to purchase them on the day of the park and I wouldn't worry about the lines because they go fairly quickly. If you get there about an hour prior to opening, you can get it easily. If you are planning to get a FP for Toy Story Mania though, it won't do you any good because the time it takes getting the tickets will significantly cut off lining up time for FP.

I also recommend ordering it online http://www.tokyodisneyresort.jp/en/ticket/
It is not a voucher so you don't have to line-up at the booths to exchange it. You print out the ticket and that will be your actual ticket to the parks.

One last point, I highly recommend spending more days at Tokyo Disney Sea because Disneyland is essentially a combination of the Florida and California parks. There is no Disney park like Disney Sea. I mean, it is the only Disney park in the world without a castle. It is vastly different and requires much more time to take in.

I am in the process of translating some Japanese TDR pages into English which might prove helpful to your planning. I maintain a TDR blog at https://kagayakey.wordpress.com/

 

[katt789]

In terms of tickets, you are able to purchase them on the day of the park and I wouldn't worry about the lines because they go fairly quickly. If you get there about an hour prior to opening, you can get it easily. If you are planning to get a FP for Toy Story Mania though, it won't do you any good because the time it takes getting the tickets will significantly cut off lining up time for FP.

I also recommend ordering it online http://www.tokyodisneyresort.jp/en/ticket/
It is not a voucher so you don't have to line-up at the booths to exchange it. You print out the ticket and that will be your actual ticket to the parks

I am in the process of translating some Japanese TDR pages into English which might prove helpful to your planning. I maintain a TDR blog at https://kagayakey.wordpress.com/

Hi! Sorry to jump in, I'm just in the process of getting our TDR plans into more detailed works and am curious about the tickets, when we order online, we don't have to exchange them at all? Do we scan them for fast passes then, or is it a different system? Just curious!

 

[retwinked]

Hi! Sorry to jump in, I'm just in the process of getting our TDR plans into more detailed works and am curious about the tickets, when we order online, we don't have to exchange them at all? Do we scan them for fast passes then, or is it a different system? Just curious!

When you order the park ticket online, (unless you chose the option to have it mailed to you) it is literally your ticket to the parks. When you print it, the ticket will contain a QR code in the corner. This is what gets scanned for entry and Fast Passes. So you don't need to exchange it at the booths and just go straight to the gates.

 

[aussie shaz]

Hi! Sorry to jump in, I'm just in the process of getting our TDR plans into more detailed works and am curious about the tickets, when we order online, we don't have to exchange them at all? Do we scan them for fast passes then, or is it a different system? Just curious!

Or, like we did, you can exchange them for real tickets. I think it cost us about 500yen each. They were easier to carry and they are a nice souvenir.

 

[aschwarz]

Hi all! I wanted to send a warm thank you again for these responses -- they were incredibly helpful in planning our trip. We leave on Friday 9/2 and will be spending 4 hopefully magical days at the parks, two for each. I am very, very nervous about being across the world/the language barrier/basically everything, but I know we're going to embark on an unforgettable journey for our first international Disney experience. We could've gone the safer route of Disneyland Paris, but with all the not-so-great things I've read, we thought... go big or go home! If anyone has any other tips to share about Tokyo Disney or Tokyo in general, please do otherwise I will report back when we return!

 

[MomoMama]

Looks like you will be there after the Summer Festival is over but the before the Halloween events starts. The parks should not be too crowded. Have a great trip!