Just got back from Tokyo Disney!

[Axelskater]

Did you find the jet lag issue to affect your enjoyment? We are planning 3 nights. A 1 night package, then 2 nights at a neaby hotel. I do not mind paying for the premier passes and such.

 

[Disneyhanna]

Did you find the jet lag issue to affect your enjoyment? We are planning 3 nights. A 1 night package, then 2 nights at a neaby hotel. I do not mind paying for the premier passes and such.

If you are coming from North America, I think Disney is good to have at the end of your trip. You will probably be waking up too early if it's at the beginning of your trip. The early wake ups are good for enjoying lower crowds when visiting popular shrines, etc in Japan! I was waking up at like 4-5AM the first three days of my trip and I usually sleep until noon on weekends

 

[Axelskater]

Great info thank you, We are indeed coming from EST (East Coast of the US)
Since we are only going for 3 nights, I know it will be crazy busy - and we have 10 days of relaxation on the ship.

I know I have to be ready to pounce to get my vacation package, but how are things with dining? Is that difficult to book and are there any sort of "must do" spots?
Thanks!

 

[Disneytrippin']

How many days would you ideally spend there?

I was thinking 5-7 nights but not sure if we would do anything else while there. Maybe Universal? I don't even know what else is in that area. We have never been there. Probably 4 days in the parks.

 

[Flossbolna]

I have so many questions. I am completely unfamiliar with TDR but have watched some YouTube videos. I would really love to go but, don't know where to start. I have only ever been to Canada out of the country.

When is a good time of year to go. We generally go to Florida in November and we like that weather.
Which resort would you recommend? It would be adults only.
Where can I research TDR so we know how to navigate?
My SO has the food preference of a five-year-old and not adventurous so where are some safe places for him to eat. Again, think in meat and potatoes no veggies type food.
Who do you fly with and how can I best search flight deals?
I can navigate Disneyworld without a map and I am the planner. So, this is going to be completely new to me.

What can I expect if we only speak English? I am fully prepared to learn words like toilet,food and hotel.lol

TIA!

A really good start to get an overview of it all are two websites:
https://tdrexplorer.com/
https://www.disneytouristblog.com/tokyo-disney-trip-planning-guide/

TDR Explorer also has a guide book that is an ebook. I think this guide book is a great resource for a first trip. Both websites will cover many of your questions about best times, where to stay etc.

In my opinion it’s not as important to stay in an official Disney hotel as at WDW as there are other, more affordable hotels, available that are nearly as much in the bubble as the Disney hotels. They can be reached by monorail. We stayed at the Hilton which is directly next to the Toy Story Hotel, so location wise nearly the same.

As to flights: Google Flights is a great search engine. You can search for flights to and from multiple airports at a time, you can change search parameters like only direct flights and such.

 

[MoPharmGirl]

My long planned trip finally arrived...and passed Big thanks to this forum for tips and ideas as I've planned this the past few years. I'm not gonna do a crazy long trip report, but I'm happy to answer any questions based on my recent trip and engage in any discussion about Tokyo Disney . In short, here were our plans:

Dates in Japan: Tues June 25 - Thursday July 4
8 nights Hilton Tokyo Bay in Happy Magic Suite (2 adults, 2 teens)
2 nights Miracosta Harbor View Room w/ Vacation Package (including Fantasy Springs Access)

Days 1 and 2: Tokyo Disney Sea
Days 3 and 4: Tokyo Disneyland
Days 5 and 6 (Sat/Sunday)
- Taxi to Tokyo Dome City for a Stardom Professional Wrestling Show
- Trains to Shibuya for typical tourist stuff
Day 7: Tokyo Disney Sea (last day before Vacation Package)
Day 8: VP Day 1: Tokyo Disneyland
Day 9: VP Day 2: Tokyo Disney Sea w/ Fantasy Springs Access
Day 10: VP Day 3: Tokyo Disney Sea (only spent the morning in the park shopping and eating and then flew out later that day).

Highlights: Um, everything! We got to see and do so much on this trip, even got to be at Disney Sea on the day a new Duffy Event started - that was quite an experience! Saw the Duffy and Friends show in Disney Sea, Saw the Diamond Horseshoe show in Disneyland. Rode each of the Fantasy Springs rides at least once. Rode everything we prioritized at least once. Saw Believe Sea of Dreams from our hotel room in Miracosta. So many things!

What I would have done differently:
- This was our first ever trip to Japan and I as sooo excited to see Disney Sea so we started with that first. In retrospect I think it would have been better for us to start in Disneyland....it's more familiar to us, less spread out...and we tended to like the food options better. We spent a lot of time the first day in Disney Sea trying to find something to eat...also it was hard to find Duffy...we found him on our second day though

- I would have incorporated a rest day...by the time our Fantasy Springs day came along I was just wrecked! In our itinerary our 'rest days' were Tokyo city days...so not that restful. But it was hard to take a break with so much to do! I was also kind of missing the WDW 'resort' experience on this trip...pool hours were limited (and cost extra)...and the hotels didn't feel like places you can just stay and relax...BUT I'm really not complaining, bc I went to JAPAN and it was awesome!

Once again, big thanks to this forum!

How far out did you reserve the Hilton Tokyo Bay? We have our flights for next July, but haven’t been able to find availability at the Hilton. We do have the Hyatt Tokyo Bay - booked on points - as a back up, but I’m afraid it might be “too far”, so keep looking at something closer.

 

[Flossbolna]

How far out did you reserve the Hilton Tokyo Bay? We have our flights for next July, but haven’t been able to find availability at the Hilton. We do have the Hyatt Tokyo Bay - booked on points - as a back up, but I’m afraid it might be “too far”, so keep looking at something closer.

When we planned our first trip to Japan I noticed that many hotels were not available for booking until closer to the trip.

I would recommend to keep checking prices regularly. We originally booked in December for our June trip at the Sheraton as that was cheaper than the Hilton. The rebooked the Sheraton a few times as prices fell (in Yen, not just that the exchange rate improved). Always kept checking the Hilton, too. And finally in April the Hilton was a smidge cheaper and we changed over there as we had a very good stay there in 2017. Really enjoyed our second stay there, too, but also treated us to club level and those rooms are fairly newly renovated. Some rooms at the Hilton do look very ancient…

 

[Disneyhanna]

How far out did you reserve the Hilton Tokyo Bay? We have our flights for next July, but haven’t been able to find availability at the Hilton. We do have the Hyatt Tokyo Bay - booked on points - as a back up, but I’m afraid it might be “too far”, so keep looking at something closer.

It’s way too early to get good rates there. July will open up soon and you can book something refundable for backup but as @Flossbolna said, keep checking rates. I booked a rate I could change until the night prior and my rate dropped a ton a couple weeks before my trip. Rates for 2025 are very expensive at the Hilton but I imagine they will go down. I think I ultimately paid less than $200 USD for a Friday night and I wouldn’t want to pay any more, I’d rather stay on property if I had to pay more.

 

[Seltzer76]

When we planned our first trip to Japan I noticed that many hotels were not available for booking until closer to the trip.

I would recommend to keep checking prices regularly. We originally booked in December for our June trip at the Sheraton as that was cheaper than the Hilton. The rebooked the Sheraton a few times as prices fell (in Yen, not just that the exchange rate improved). Always kept checking the Hilton, too. And finally in April the Hilton was a smidge cheaper and we changed over there as we had a very good stay there in 2017. Really enjoyed our second stay there, too, but also treated us to club level and those rooms are fairly newly renovated. Some rooms at the Hilton do look very ancient…

Yes we did the same for the Hilton. Booked 11months out and rebooked it at least 4 times as prices fell. The last booking change was only a few weeks before our trip.

 

[Seltzer76]

When we planned our first trip to Japan I noticed that many hotels were not available for booking until closer to the trip.

I would recommend to keep checking prices regularly. We originally booked in December for our June trip at the Sheraton as that was cheaper than the Hilton. The rebooked the Sheraton a few times as prices fell (in Yen, not just that the exchange rate improved). Always kept checking the Hilton, too. And finally in April the Hilton was a smidge cheaper and we changed over there as we had a very good stay there in 2017. Really enjoyed our second stay there, too, but also treated us to club level and those rooms are fairly newly renovated. Some rooms at the Hilton do look very ancient…

I think they were renovating some rooms at the Hilton while we were there. The happy family magic suite we stayed in looked newish…not brand new, but very good.

 

[Camonkeygirl]

Checking hotel prices is a good point. I have rebooked my stay several times and managed to save almost $200 us from the original booking.

 

[Camonkeygirl]

When you arrived in Tokyo, how long was the wait for immigration? I am trying to figure out the time I need to look at the Limo bus to the park, as I am staying at the Sheraton Grande Toyko Bay, with a 5 pm entry ticket

 

[Flossbolna]

When you arrived in Tokyo, how long was the wait for immigration? I am trying to figure out the time I need to look at the Limo bus to the park, as I am staying at the Sheraton Grande Toyko Bay, with a 5 pm entry ticket

I think it depends if it’s Narita or Haneda and very much it depends on time. We waited 45 minutes at Narita at 5:50 pm. But after us several plans seemed to land and much more space was filled up, so I think they waited well over an hour.

 

[Camonkeygirl]

I think it depends if it’s Narita or Haneda and very much it depends on time. We waited 45 minutes at Narita at 5:50 pm. But after us several plans seemed to land and much more space was filled up, so I think they waited well over an hour.

I am flying into Haneda, landing at 4:45 pm