Disney Sea - HELP!!!

[LeeLeeLuvsDisney]

I hope the lines are more manageable. We leave soon! Has panic set in yet for you? I think I'll be panicking by Tuesday.

DisCopper, thanks for writing that up!

Panic has not set in yet, but colds have! My husband is on day 3 of a cold, and I'm just getting the scratchy throat/runny nose thing today. We both are skipping the family Easter celebration so we don't pass it on.

Now, the plan is to just rest and get better so we're not congested for the flights. I think I'll start panicking as soon as I have more energy to do so! I think Tuesday will be the freak-out day for me, too.

 

[Briarmom]

Panic has not set in yet, but colds have! My husband is on day 3 of a cold, and I'm just getting the scratchy throat/runny nose thing today. We both are skipping the family Easter celebration so we don't pass it on.

Now, the plan is to just rest and get better so we're not congested for the flights. I think I'll start panicking as soon as I have more energy to do so! I think Tuesday will be the freak-out day for me, too.

Oh no! Take Airborne!!
How old are your kids? Mine are 10 and 5.
How bad are your flights (do you leave Thursday like we do?)?
We have a super short flight to Rome (like an hour +) and then a 6 hour layover in Rome and then 12 hours direct to Tokyo.
Oh boy.

 

[LeeLeeLuvsDisney]

Oh no! Take Airborne!!
How old are your kids? Mine are 10 and 5.
How bad are your flights (do you leave Thursday like we do?)?
We have a super short flight to Rome (like an hour +) and then a 6 hour layover in Rome and then 12 hours direct to Tokyo.
Oh boy.

I'm doing the vitamin and cupcake cold remedy today! Can't let good Easter cupcakes go to waste! I will be taking Airborne shortly, as well as a nap!

My husband and I do not have children yet. This is our one-year wedding anniversary trip and we're hoping to start trying to add to our family when we return.

Yes, we're leaving Thursday. We have a 5 hour flight to San Francisco, then a quick dash to catch our flight to Tokyo, which is 11 hours! It sounds like we're all going to have a loooong travel day. Our plan when we arrive is to get to our hotel, get food, and go to sleep. We spend a few days in central Tokyo before heading over to TDR - we planned TDR for weekdays so we hopefully have shorter lines for everything!

The weather report shows a bit of rain for Friday and Saturday. We're hoping the forecast changes, or that the rain is light. I'd hate to be dragging our luggage through the streets of Tokyo in a pouring rain! I think that's where I say forget the budget, let's take a taxi!

Anyways, I hope you and your family have safe, enjoyable flights! I'm sure it's more difficult flying with kids, but I'll bet they will be so excited, it will be so worth it to see the joy on their faces while they are there. I know we love going to WDW with our niece and nephew, they have so much fun there. It makes us feel like kids again!

 

[Briarmom]

Yes, we're leaving Thursday. We have a 5 hour flight to San Francisco, then a quick dash to catch our flight to Tokyo, which is 11 hours! It sounds like we're all going to have a loooong travel day. Our plan when we arrive is to get to our hotel, get food, and go to sleep. We spend a few days in central Tokyo before heading over to TDR - we planned TDR for weekdays so we hopefully have shorter lines for everything!

The weather report shows a bit of rain for Friday and Saturday. We're hoping the forecast changes, or that the rain is light. I'd hate to be dragging our luggage through the streets of Tokyo in a pouring rain! I think that's where I say forget the budget, let's take a taxi!

Anyways, I hope you and your family have safe, enjoyable flights! I'm sure it's more difficult flying with kids, but I'll bet they will be so excited, it will be so worth it to see the joy on their faces while they are there. I know we love going to WDW with our niece and nephew, they have so much fun there. It makes us feel like kids again!

We'll get in on Friday at 10 am, so we won't be napping. We're in Tokyo for a few days before TDR as well. I'm pretty sure you can take the metro or a hotel bus to your hotel! Don't worry about the rain. I think we'll backpack so we don't have suitcases. Haven't decided on that for sure.

The kids aren't excited, but they're not really thinking about it much, either. They'll be really excited after we land. Luckily, they fly like this quite often, so it's not that big of a deal for them.

Maybe we'll see you there!!

 

[LeeLeeLuvsDisney]

We'll get in on Friday at 10 am, so we won't be napping. We're in Tokyo for a few days before TDR as well. I'm pretty sure you can take the metro or a hotel bus to your hotel! Don't worry about the rain. I think we'll backpack so we don't have suitcases. Haven't decided on that for sure.

The kids aren't excited, but they're not really thinking about it much, either. They'll be really excited after we land. Luckily, they fly like this quite often, so it's not that big of a deal for them.

Maybe we'll see you there!!

We don't get in until the afternoon and don't expect to be at the hotel until evening. The limousine bus doesn't go near our hotel, so we're taking the train. The station isn't far from the hotel, but it's still a couple of blocks. We've got smaller size luggage with wheels, and my husband is carrying on a shoulder bag, and I've got a backpack. It shouldn't be too difficult to manuever. I wish we could just completely backpack - we haven't managed to pack that lightly yet. I have gone from a 29-inch suitcase to a 24-inch one, so I'm making progress!

Yes, I'm sure the kids will be excited when you arrive. I traveled a lot as a kid, and I didn't get excited until the day we left, and I had so much fun on all our trips. I guess it just didn't seem real to me then until we were heading to the airport, all dressed up as we used to do back then.

You never know, we may see each other there! I imagine it will be at least 99% Japanese people at the parks, so we'll all stand out in the crowd!

 

[Katy Belle]

Hello All!! I've just returned from our Japan trip! I found this thread right before we left. I think its awesome that so many Dissers are getting to go to Tokyo!

Some comments on your threads, then onto a mini-report of sorts.

The colds.... Afrin Nasal Spray will open you nasal passages/ears and help so much. I once had to fly a few days after having an eardrum burst and the Ear/Nose/Throat Dr. reccommended this, I use it every time I fly if I'm the least bit congested.

Cherry blossoms.... unfortunately they are almost gone, especially in Tokyo. We did the Osaka/Kyoto area first and it appeared their blossoms were a few days behind Tokyos. The petals were flying off the trees our last few days in Tokyo. Beautiful. We were really there at peak time. Just luck, we didn't plan the trip around the blossoms, it was just our kids' spring break week!

Something worth mentioning...ATMs, cash and credit cards. You probably have read about this, but just in case I will say it again. Most of the ATMs do not accept international ATM cards, even if they are in English. Neither of our hotels had international ATMs. Disney does not either. Post Offices do and airports. So when you get cash, get a lot Some of our credit cards worked, others did not, even after phoning them. They just simply weren't compatible. Luckily I had read about the post Office thing, it saved our trip!

Ok--- We arrived in Osaka Friday April 3, evening. We ate dinner at <GASP> Outback Steakhouse <GASP> because it was all so overwhelming. The area that our hotel was had loads of restaurants, but NONE had any English and we just weren't up to trying. It felt like a cop-out, but really it was necessary. Two of our boys get airsick and had had very little to eat in the last 17 hours, we just wanted to EAT. The food was fantastic, by the way and was something we don't have here in Doha.

we took the train to Kyoto both Saturday and Sunday and saw all of the sights there. If you want details, ask. I'll spare you and focus on Disney. We did love everything we saw. AND we did eat Japanese food, with chop-sticks. Everything got easier as the jet-lag cleared and we got used to things.

Monday we toured in Osaka, then flew to Tokyo. We arrived at our hotel, Hotel Nikko, around 10 and were exhausted. Tuesday we saw sights around Tokyo. We sat in the park under the trees and ate our snack. It was all great. Again, if you want details, please ask. I'm happy to type it up, but don't want this to be so long.

Wednesday was DisneyLand and Thursday was Disney Sea. Our hotel was a "Good Neighbor" hotel, so they took us on a bus to the parks. It was about 25 minutes. And frankly it was heaven after dealing with the trains and subways for several days already.

School had started for the local schools, so crowd levels were down!!!! We took the 10:00 bus to the parks. Another <GASP>!!! We just couldn't get up early and go to bed late every day. With all the walking we were doing, it was just too much. So for DisneyLand we left the hotel at 10 and returned at 11p.m. We were walking onto our first ride by 11. Our first ride was Pirates. We loved it and ended up doing it again at night. Then the boys did the Swiss Family Treehouse, and loved it. I guess I will stop using the "we loved it." We loved it all! Up next Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Tom Sawyers Island. Then we grabbed a Fast Pass for Splash Mountain, which was for 2 ish. Then we saw Haunted Mansion, one of our favorites! We went txo lunch at Crystal Palace. It was a buffet, no characters. We wish we would have skipped it and just done counter service. It was edible, but that was about it. Pooh's Hunny Hunt was closed for the day!!!! I think we did Peter Pan and Pinnochio's Daring Journey, then Splash Mountain. We did Small World and then moved onto TomorrowLand. I don't remember why we skipped ToonTown at that moment! We did Star tours, Space Mountain, Star Jets, Raceway, and got Fast Passes for Buzz Lightyear, which weren't until 9:10!!! Space Mountain was Fantastic!!! Don't do Star Jets. It sucks up time and is not that great. In ToonTown we did Roger Rabbitts Car Toon Spin, Minnie's house, Chip and Dale's Treehouse, Gadgets Go Coaster, and, Donald's Boat.
We then ate mickey shaped pizzas at a counter service place.

By this time it was about 7:30 and time for a parade. We hadn't planned to watch it, but happened upon it and watched. It was fantastic! We normally don't watch parades, but we did like it. My top priority was the fireworks. They were to happen at 8:30. We sat on a bench and waited. At 8:30 they came over the speakers and announced it was cancelled due to weather! It must have been wind....which was minimal. So we were pleased that we'd watched the parade! This gave us TIME! So we went and rode pirates again, the Space Mountain, then Buzz Lightyear. Then Space Mountain again for 3 of us while the other two did Buzz again. Perhaps we did one more repeat.... then they were closing and we went and waited for our 10:20 bus.

I really, really loved it I probably loved it more than DisneySea. But I really, really love MK. AND it felt good to have familiar. There was little to "figure out."

This is so long. I'll continue in the next post.

Katy

 

[Katy Belle]

Me again. I will finish up here! I have decided that instead of the blow by blow I will just list all the rides we went on and how many times we went on them.

We arrived at 10:30 again and were on our first ride by 11. We chose to go home earlier, signing up for the 9:10 bus. We did not plan on watching the fireworks or any shows. The fireworks were cancelled once again due to weather. Once again there was no bad weather. Perhaps it was windy higher up in the sky ???

We ate at Yucatan Base Camp Grill for lunch and Zambini Brothers Restaruante for dinner. Both were good, but dinner was better. The pork at lunch was a bit fatty/grissley.

Ok....here is what we rode. I don't think we used fast Pass at all.
We never waited as long as the time said. I think our longest wait both days was probably 15 minutes.

Tower of Terror (3 times)
Disney Sea Electric RailRoad
Journey to the Center of the Earth (4 times)
20,000 Leagues under the Sea (boys twice, mom and dad once)
Storm Rider
Aquatopia (3 times)
Indiana Jones (3 or 4)
Raging Spirits ( twice) more on it later
Sinbad's Storybook Voyage
The Magic Lamp Theatre (used the English Subtitles- ask for it)
Caravan Carousel
Jumpin Jellyfish
Blowfish Balloon Race
Ariel's playground

About Raging Spirits.... Its a FastPass and they have all these warnings that make you think its going to be a really tough ride. We were ALL so disappointed the first time we rode it! It was really no big deal, one loop, the rest was pretty tame. But we had a lot of time after ridxing everything we wanted to once and we were in the neighborhood, so we did it again. It was better the 2nd time. It was dark, by that time, and we knew what to expect. So ride it, perhaps you will like it!

All in all we had two awesome days. We love Disney and are thrilled that we got to see these parks! I really wish they would let you park hop....they do if you buy 3 or 4 days.

It was not busy. Arriving at 10:30 did not hurt us, time wise. Oh, I just remembered... at DisneySea they closed the Fast Pass Machines. I'm assuming it was becuse crowds were low.

At Disney and all of Japan people were helpful and kind. They do not all speak English, but they will try to help you. We did have one funny moment... we wanted to put our backpack full of our jackets in a locker. I went up to a CM who was at the end of a character greeting line, she was holding a sign that said the line was closed so the character could take a break. I asked her where the lockers were located. She smiled and said in perfect English " This line is closed." So I asked again, pointing on the map. She replied in perfect English, "This line is closed." My oldest son said its like in a video game when the characters only say one phrase. We found it no problem, by the way.

Friday and Saturday we saw more of Tokyo and flew home Saturday night.

I hope this helps you in some way and I hope you have great trips!!!

Katy

 

[walt's assistant]

DisCopper and Katy Bell, thanks for the reviews.

We also followed Kevin Yee's advice and arrived when the park opened. Good move as we saw the running, too.

We made no plans to go to Disneyland during our stay; the list of attractions was very similar to what we'd experienced previously at WDW and DL. DisneySea was our focus as it is so unique, unlike anything else Disney had done.

We also ate at Zambini Bros. (for lunch) and really enjoyed it...dinner was off-site.

Best attraction at DisneySea: Journey to the Center of the Earth.

Worst: Sinbad's Storybook Adventure (the worst attraction we've ever seen at a Disney Park, hands down).

Anyway, welcome home!

 

[LeeLeeLuvsDisney]

Awesome report, Katy Belle! Ooh, you're getting me so excited for our trip!

I'm so glad your timing was good and the lines were short. That's what we're expecting for our time there as well - the kids are back in school and we'll be there before their big Golden Week holiday, so we figure a lot of people will be waiting up to go to Disney during their days off.

Thanks for the advice on flying with colds. My husband is feeling a little better today. I basically have a sore throat and swollen lymph nodes, so I'm trying hard to fight it off. I will be going to the store today, though, to get some nasal spray and more Airborne. We want to be prepared.

Good info on the ATMs and credit cards. We're getting cash at the airport, and our map book of Tokyo shows all the post offices, so I think we'll be okay!

I would love to hear about Kyoto - we are going there, too.

Oh, as for the fireworks, I heard they are cancelled a lot of the time. Being on Tokyo Bay, and also so close to homes and businesses, even just a little wind in the wrong direction will cause them to cancel. I think it has to do with local regulations - not wanting debris going into neighborhoods. Not sure about that, though - I seem to remember that's what I read! My head is so crammed full of information right now.

 

[Katy Belle]

DisCopper and Katy Bell, thanks for the reviews.

We also followed Kevin Yee's advice and arrived when the park opened. Good move as we saw the running, too.

We made no plans to go to Disneyland during our stay; the list of attractions was very similar to what we'd experienced previously at WDW and DL. DisneySea was our focus as it is so unique, unlike anything else Disney had done.

We also ate at Zambini Bros. (for lunch) and really enjoyed it...dinner was off-site.

Best attraction at DisneySea: Journey to the Center of the Earth.

Worst: Sinbad's Storybook Adventure (the worst attraction we've ever seen at a Disney Park, hands down).
Anyway, welcome home!

Funny! I kind of liked it! It was way better IMHO than Star Jets at Tokyo DisneyLand and Astro Orbiter at Disney Land Paris. Slow loading and boring! I guess I liked the Sinbad ride because I was tired and it was a nice break!

We also liked Journey to the Center of the Earth. It was fantastic. Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull was fantastic too.

Gotta love Disney...there is definitely something for all tastes! I fully expected to like Disney Sea best...but I did like Tokyo DisneyLand best. Part of it is that anything American feels like a break for us. Feels like home. Disney Sea was really great too.

I will type up what we did in Kyoto tomorrow.

Katy

 

[walt's assistant]

Funny! I kind of liked it! It was way better IMHO than Star Jets at Tokyo DisneyLand and Astro Orbiter at Disney Land Paris. Slow loading and boring! I guess I liked the Sinbad ride because I was tired and it was a nice break!

We also liked Journey to the Center of the Earth. It was fantastic. Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull was fantastic too.

Gotta love Disney...there is definitely something for all tastes! I fully expected to like Disney Sea best...but I did like Tokyo DisneyLand best. Part of it is that anything American feels like a break for us. Feels like home. Disney Sea was really great too.

I will type up what we did in Kyoto tomorrow.

Katy

Katy, what did you think of Storm Rider? Kinda reminded us of Star Tours, but weather-related...creative!

 

[sbell111]

We really enjoyed Sinbad. Of course, it was August and any excuse to get out of the intense heat was a good one.

 

[sbell111]

While I am thinking about it, let me mention that at Tokyo Disneyland (or DisneySea) you must try the frozen juice bars. I had the apple and Cathy had the other one (strawberry?). They were awesome.

Also, take advantage of the single rider lines. They were amazingly short.

EDITED to add that Cathy advises me that her Mickey juice bar was orange, not strawberry. Still, it was very, very good, as was the apple.

 

[DisCopper]

Another comment for those who are about to go to Japan (especially those going other places than Disney).

Japan has something wonderful called Takyubin (TAK-YOU-BEAN). It's a luggage transportation service. Their train systems are NOT set up for you to cart around a lot of luggage. Also, stops at some stations can be very brief... it could be hard to get off in time if you're dragging a lot of junk. So you ship your bags from one hotel to another using Takyubin. It takes about a day (more if you're going very far), so you just carry an overnight bag.

It is INSANELY efficient. Supposedly, any little out of the way inn has access to the system. You just give the bags to front desk at the hotel, give them the name and address of your next hotel, and you're off. Sometimes the bags were waiting for us in our next hotel room. We used it all over Japan with wonderful success. We ran into several other people during our travels who hadn't heard of it and were fighting with bags on the train.

I highly recommend it. No worrys about bags.

 

[Briarmom]

A Suica card is a prepaid debit card that you can use for easy access to trains in Japan. This saves you from having to buy tickets with cash/credit at machines before boarding trains. All you need to do is waive your Suica card over the sensor at the turnstile. You can also use it at various stores located within the train stations proper. If you plan to travel extensively using rails, etc., it would be a good thing to have.

Do you have to purchase a suica card for each person in your party or can you just purchase one and have the whole family use it? What about kids? Are they free?

If you cannot get the rail passes in time, it is quite easy to purchase tickets in the departures area at Narita. There is a desk there for bus and rail. You can use credit cards for bus passes, BUT ONLY YEN FOR RAIL.

OK, so we'd have to book our Kyoto tickets at Narita when we get there?
That would be fine and actually pretty great to get that over with.

Something worth mentioning...ATMs, cash and credit cards. You probably have read about this, but just in case I will say it again. Most of the ATMs do not accept international ATM cards, even if they are in English. Neither of our hotels had international ATMs. Disney does not either. Post Offices do and airports. So when you get cash, get a lot Some of our credit cards worked, others did not, even after phoning them. They just simply weren't compatible. Luckily I had read about the post Office thing, it saved our trip!

Yeah, I'd heard about that, too.
I have NO idea how much Yen to get! I think the military hotel we're staying at cashes checks for us, but we don't have reservations there until night 3. We booked them a year ago, and there wasn't any room the first two nights already. We are going to be moving hotels so much.

I am really starting to get nervous. I have no idea how to get anywhere.

 

[Katy Belle]

As far as we could tell there are not Sucia cards for children. And yes you have to have one per person. Tickets for kids are about 1/2 price, kids 12 and under. We ended up with Sucia cards for my DS13 and had to buy tickets for each leg for the younger two. It was a pain, but saved money. The really, really, great thing about the Sucia card is that it works for all lines. We stayed kinda out far and it was on a private line of the subway. I don't know how to explain it, but at times the differnent lines were a pain with buying tix, but no problem with Sucia.

You will figure out how to get around when you get there. DH and I both read and figured it all out together. Once you figure it out its pretty easy But it does take thinking. The multiple hotels will be a pain, but you can do it! We were only in 2 hotels this trip, by design. It was heaven. We usually bounce around and I hate it. Pack light. We did. It is really great. Each kid could handle their own suitcase, DH and I handled our own suitcases, we had 2 small/light backpacks and a briefcase. It was not bad. We even ended up walking about 15 min. to the one hotel with all the luggage and it wasn't a problem. We did re-wear pants a few times each, but other than that we wore clean clothes. We didn't take coats, only jackets and we were fine. We mostly wore short sleeved shirts. We only had rain one day.

I'd get at least 200 Yen a day cash at the beginning, more if you are a big shopper. How many people in your family? We were 5 and some meals were 100 Yen. The subway isn't cheap if you are going a lot. The money flew freely

When do you leave? Have a great trip!!!

Katy

 

[Briarmom]

As far as we could tell there are not Sucia cards for children. And yes you have to have one per person. Tickets for kids are about 1/2 price, kids 12 and under. We ended up with Sucia cards for my DS13 and had to buy tickets for each leg for the younger two. It was a pain, but saved money. The really, really, great thing about the Sucia card is that it works for all lines. We stayed kinda out far and it was on a private line of the subway. I don't know how to explain it, but at times the differnent lines were a pain with buying tix, but no problem with Sucia.

You will figure out how to get around when you get there. DH and I both read and figured it all out together. Once you figure it out its pretty easy But it does take thinking. The multiple hotels will be a pain, but you can do it! We were only in 2 hotels this trip, by design. It was heaven. We usually bounce around and I hate it. Pack light. We did. It is really great. Each kid could handle their own suitcase, DH and I handled our own suitcases, we had 2 small/light backpacks and a briefcase. It was not bad. We even ended up walking about 15 min. to the one hotel with all the luggage and it wasn't a problem. We did re-wear pants a few times each, but other than that we wore clean clothes. We didn't take coats, only jackets and we were fine. We mostly wore short sleeved shirts. We only had rain one day.

I'd get at least 200 Yen a day cash at the beginning, more if you are a big shopper. How many people in your family? We were 5 and some meals were 100 Yen. The subway isn't cheap if you are going a lot. The money flew freely

When do you leave? Have a great trip!!!

Katy

Yeah, we're backpacking as well. With all the hotel changing we'll be doing, it's the only way. Hopefully we'll be able to leave most of our stuff at the military hotels when we go to TDL and Kyoto (2 nights and one night respectively).

$200 a day in Yen? That doesn't seem like very much. I'm not worried about the shopping (except for TDL). We won't buy much. 100 Yen is only $1...meals aren't that cheap.

 

[walt's assistant]

Do you have to purchase a suica card for each person in your party or can you just purchase one and have the whole family use it? What about kids? Are they free?

Everyone must have their own Suica card, including kids. It is a smart card, which means that it keeps track of which stations you enter and exit in order to debit the proper fare. I think a new card costs about ¥2000, which includes a refundable deposit when the card is returned. You can load each card in ¥1000 increments at vending machines located at the airport and stations.

OK, so we'd have to book our Kyoto tickets at Narita when we get there? That would be fine and actually pretty great to get that over with.

It should be no problem. The desk can book a ticket for you anywhere you wish to go. That's the beauty of the rail system in Japan. If I lived in Tokyo, I don't think I would even bother owning a car.

Yeah, I'd heard about that, too.
I have NO idea how much Yen to get!

When I come to Japan, I usually hit the ATM machine near the ticket desk in baggage claim, and take out about ¥20000 (~$200). I don't like carrying more than that on me (loss, theft, et al), as it is very easy to find another ATM when I need one and many establishments take credit cards. I happen to have a Visa debit card, a Visa credit card, and an AMEX card. All work just fine in the ATMs, but do bring three different kinds of cards just in case there is a problem with one or another. The ONLY trouble I have encountered was with my AMEX card at a train station trying to buy a ticket from a machine...it didn't like my card and I had to walk into the ticket office to complete my transaction.

I am really starting to get nervous. I have no idea how to get anywhere.

Here is a web site that has been a big help for me: Hyperdia

This web site will display train schedules anywhere in Japan. The PROBLEM is that you must know the names of the stations you are traveling to/from. With a little research on the web, I have found that I can get the station info. It takes a little practice as it is confusing at first, but once you become familiar with it you won't be able to do without it.

 

[Briarmom]

When I come to Japan, I usually hit the ATM machine near the ticket desk in baggage claim, and take out about ¥20000 (~$200). I don't like carrying more than that on me (loss, theft, et al), as it is very easy to find another ATM when I need one and many establishments take credit cards. I happen to have a Visa debit card, a Visa credit card, and an AMEX card. All work just fine in the ATMs, but do bring three different kinds of cards just in case there is a problem with one or another. The ONLY trouble I have encountered was with my AMEX card at a train station trying to buy a ticket from a machine...it didn't like my card and I had to walk into the ticket office to complete my transaction.




Here is a web site that has been a big help for me: Hyperdia

This web site will display train schedules anywhere in Japan. The PROBLEM is that you must know the names of the stations you are traveling to/from. With a little research on the web, I have found that I can get the station info. It takes a little practice as it is confusing at first, but once you become familiar with it you won't be able to do without it.

Thank you so much!
So my 10 year old will need a Suica and so will my 5 year old?

I keep reading that the ATMs don't take foreign aTM cards.
If we can use them at most ATMs then I won't be worried about it, but I am right now.
I did find out that we can use the ATM at the military hotel we're staying at, so that's good, but I'm assuming that in the first 2 days we're there, I'll need to buy:
~tickets to Kyoto
~TDL tickets at the Disney Store (or a voucher somewhere)
~Suica cards
~food

That is going to be quite a bit of Yen before we get to the military hotel, right?

 

[walt's assistant]

Thank you so much!
So my 10 year old will need a Suica and so will my 5 year old?

Correct.

If I may ask, how long will you be in Japan and how much time will you be spending on the rails?

I keep reading that the ATMs don't take foreign aTM cards. If we can use them at most ATMs then I won't be worried about it, but I am right now.

All I can say is that I've never had a problem using a Visa or AMEX card at an ATM in Japan. But do be safe and bring more than one card in case you do have trouble with your primary!

I did find out that we can use the ATM at the military hotel we're staying at, so that's good, but I'm assuming that in the first 2 days we're there, I'll need to buy:
~tickets to Kyoto
~TDL tickets at the Disney Store (or a voucher somewhere)
~Suica cards
~food

That is going to be quite a bit of Yen before we get to the military hotel, right?

If you pay cash, yes. The tickets to Kyoto will need to be done in cash if you buy them at Narita, but the ticket office at the various stations do take credit. I would not buy TDL tickets until you get to the park; there's just no need. They take credit at the ticket window at TDL, and you can obtain English literature at Guest Relations just past the ticket window.