Tokyo Disney Trip Report

[kc5grw]

Pre-trip
I got scheduled for a very sudden trip to the Philippines to assist in a new factory start-up with my employer. The trip was originally scheduled for 3 weeks, cut back to 2, then extended back to 3 weeks while I was in the Phils. The new factory is being built in the Clark Special Economic Zone on the old Clark AFB. I had decided that since I was already going to be flying through Japan that I needed to stop in Tokyo for a few days on the way back from the Phils. The beginning of my Tokyo adventure began with a harrowing taxi ride from Clark to Manila on Saturday 10/18. The only driving rule in the Phils is there are no rules. It is about a 2 hour ride from Clark to Manila and the flight out of Manila to Narita is 9am so my employer put me up in The Peninsula at Manila Saturday night prior to my Sunday morning flight. Very nice hotel and not entirely unreasonable, at least the corporate rate wasn’t; 5300PHP for the night (a bit over $100). My ride to the airport is 6:20am Sunday. I get to the airport and check-in was painless. I was on the last day of my 21 day limit for being in the Phils without a visa but had no problems getting through passport control or customs. The International 1 terminal in Manila is not exactly modern. They did have wireless internet provided by either JAL or NWA. The seats were horrible perforated steel torture devices. 2 hours before boarding. Yikes.

Day 1 – Arrival in Tokyo
I arrived in Tokyo from Manila approx 2:30pm Tokyo time. Getting through immigration and customs was pretty painless and quick. I got some yen out of an ATM before I left the airport, got a ticket on JR rail to the Bakuro-cho station where my hotel was located. The train station is below the airport terminal and was real easy to get to. The train ride from Narita to Tokyo was about 80min. I made it to my destination station and got oriented to find my way out. Only problem at this station was the lack of escalators to get to street level to I had to drag my 60lb suitcase up several flights of stairs. Good thing here was that the exit from the station was right next door to the Comfort Hotel Higashi Nihombashi where I was staying. I had thought about trying to stay at one of the Disney resort hotels, but the cheapest rate I could find would cost me more for one night than what I was paying for 3. The bill for the 3 nights at the Comfort Hotel was 28800Y. Which was really pretty good considering it is essentially downtown Tokyo. I was 2 stops away from Tokyo station on the Sobu line. I got checked in and proceeded to the room. The room was well appointed, but very small. It was fine for myself because all I really needed was a bed. I think the room was about as wide as my trailer, but my trailer is longer. There was a 27" HD TV in the room and from what I could tell all the channels were broadcast in HD. All Japanese though, so I had it on occasionally for the noise. The hotel also had very good wired and wireless internet connections with a small desk and chair and a dorm size refrigerator. The bathroom looked like a plug in module and reminded me of my trailer bathroom just slightly larger. Standing in the bathtub/shower I had roughly 5 inches between the top of my head and the ceiling, I am 5'11".

This would be a challenge for really tall people. After getting somewhat settled in the room it was now about 5:30pm and nearly dark in Tokyo. I took out exploring the city on foot. Tokyo is a very clean, very safe feeling city. I wandered around for almost 3 hours, putting on about 6.5miles. Lots of people out walking and bicycling. Bicycles are very popular in Tokyo and you need to keep half an eye out so you don't get run over.

I stopped for a bite to eat at Yoshinoya which is an international chain with quite a few restaurants in CA. The food was quite good and not very expensive, I think about 600Y for a ginger pork dish. On the way back to the hotel I stopped in a 7-11 at the base of the hotel and picked up some snacks and beverages.

Day 2 – Tokyo Disneyland
I had set my alarm for about 6am. I figured I would get downstairs and eat some of the free breakfast. After a shower and IP call home I really needed to be on my way to the park so I skipped breakfast in the hotel. I made it back underground to the train station and got on the incredibly packed train into Tokyo station. It was rush hour in Tokyo. This is an attraction in and of itself. At Tokyo station I had to change trains from the Sobu line to the Keiyo line for Maihama station which is the resort gateway station. Wow, unless you have seen it, you cannot imagine the number of harried Japanese workers rushing through Tokyo station. I didn’t get any pictures of rush hour, but I did get some during later in the day which shows how busy Tokyo station is. The train to Maihama station was much less crowded since it was going out of Tokyo. I
got to Maihama station shortly after 8, the park opened at 8. I got off the train and decided to make a quick trip through the store that was on the way to the Disneyland entrance.

There are definitely a lot of things for sale here that you don’t see in the stateside parks.

When I got to the ticket booths, there were lines about 10 people deep at each station. I didn't really think too much of that since they moved relatively quickly. I paid 10000Y for a 2 day pass. This is not a park hopper. The Tokyo passes work a bit different than passes in the US parks. The 2 day is good for days at either park but you must specify which park on which day. For me it was Disneyland on day 1 then Disney Sea on day 2. They have longer passes available that do give you a hopping option but only on the 3rd and longer days. While in line I noted the attractions that were closed, It’s a Small World, bummer, I don’t care what you think of it, a trip to Disneyland/MK just isn’t complete without a trip through It’s a Small World.

I got through the gates and into the World Bazaar.

This would be the equivalent of Main Street in the Magic Kingdom although it did not evoke the same feeling that I get when walking into either CA Disneyland or Magic Kingdom. In the bazaar area I turned right to take the passage toward Space Mountain.

At this time I was passing the Center Street Coffeehouse and decided I should eat. You'll be happy to know that Disney food is the same everywhere, way overpriced and not necessarily all that great. I had a Mickey pancake, yogurt with strawberry jam and coffee for 820Y. The yogurt and coffee were fine, the pancake had the texture and taste of foam rubber. After breakfast it was time to make my way for a FP for Space Mountain. At this point it was about 9:30, 1.5 hours after park opening. My FP return time was 10:55. I decided to go through Star Tours since it was no wait.

The ride is pretty much the same as the Florida ride, but I think the video is a little different. The biggest difference is that all of the dialogue is in Japanese. About the only audio in the parks that isn't in Japanese are the songs. I made it out of Star Tours and decided to head over to the Haunted Mansion to see how long standby was, 120min too long.

I couldn’t get another FP until 10:55 so I decided to walk over to Splash and the ride hadn't opened yet.

I walked up to the Beaver Brothers Explorer Canoes to look around and snap some photos.

Walking back toward the entrance of Splash I noticed it was now open, but the line had grown exponentially. I decided I would pass. I checked out BTMR and it was already at 2 hours standby.

I decided to ride the river boat to kill some time. It was a nice ride and gave a good view of Westernland and Adventureland areas of the park.

I then made my way over to Pirates of the Caribbean which was only about a 30min wait which put me in my FP return window for Space Mountain. The ride is similar and maybe a little longer a lot of stuff is the same, but some is different from the FL ride. All of the speaking parts are in Japanese, the song yo ho is English.

 

[kc5grw]

After pirates it was time to head back over to SM. It was also time that I could get a second FP so I stopped by Haunted Mansion. It is 11am and the standby line is over 2 hours and my FP had 7:05pm return. Okay so what I heard was true, Tokyo Disneyland is very popular with the Japanese. This is a Monday in October. The early Let's Go Villains parade was just wrapping up and you couldn't stir the people with a stick.

I managed to finally work my way through the crowd and back to Space Mountain. The ride here 2 per row, unlike the FL ride, the queue didn't seem quite as detailed either but possibly because the FP line and standby lines aren’t parallel like the FL ride.

The ride was very similar, but I though it may have had a section that was faster for longer than FL Space Mountain. After Space I decided to go check out the other attractions, no go, everything was 120 min or longer. Sorry I just don’t do long lines. At this point I decided that I would see if a Dole Whip existed here, no joy, although you can get pumpkin ice cream, and some sort of Tapioca float thing.

In my search I made it through the Toon Town area of the park. Similar attractions as the MK park as far as Mickey’s house, Minnie’s house, etc.

Additionally in this section is a Who Framed Roger Rabbit Toon Town.

Walking through the parks I notice lots of popcorn carts. Me thinks the Japanese like popcorn. I saw salted, sea salt, curry, chocolate, strawberry, cappuccino and a few other flavors of popcorn and it seems like everybody has a bucket or box of popcorn. Turkey legs were also a big seller it looks like. Given the really grim outlook on catching any of the other major rides I decided to make it a day of parades and people watching. The only attraction that I felt was a must see for this trip was Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion and I had my FastPass for that.

In the search for the elusive dole whip I managed to look through some of the souvenir shops and make it over to the Coca-Cola Refreshment Center where I got a black pepper hot dog, fries and a coke for 830Y. The hot dog was actually really good, not quite the same thing as a hot dog in the states, much better actually, almost like a sausage. The fries were good and the Coke, was, well, a Coke. I sat and ate and watched people. The fashions in the park were varied and quite interesting.

I saw lots of students running around in their school uniforms. In the states most kids wouldn’t be caught dead outside a school setting in their uniforms.

As I’m am finishing lunch I look up and there are these 3 extremely tall Japanese women. Oh wait those aren’t women. OMG, I’m not sure I really needed to see the Japanese cross dressers, wow, where'd they come from. After finishing my food and amusing myself with the sights it was now time for the Jubilation parade, a special 25th anniversary parade for Tokyo Disneyland. I think every major character was in the parade.

After the parade I walked around to check out the attraction status, still no joy. I happened to walk up in front of the castle and discovered some CMs taking guest pictures in front the castle. I got in the line that was now only about 4 people deep and had my picture taken with my own camera.

I made sure to email that to my daughters who have let me known that it is truly bad form for dad to go to Tokyo Disneyland without them. I make another loop around the park and decide it is time to find a spot for the second running of the Let’s Go Villains! parade. I found a half empty bench in an ideal spot on the parade route outside of Tomorrowland Terrace. The Japanese are much more polite and respectful when it comes to parade watching. They start staking out their seats way in advance, but the folks sitting at the edge of the parade route stay seated. None of this jumping up when the parade comes just because you think you might miss something even though you are right at the edge. In fact they kind of enforce the stay seated policy with only people that will not have anybody behind them being allowed to stand. The Let's Go Villains is a Halloween parade with the villains trying to take over the party and Mickey and company being the heroes. It was a pretty good show. After the parade I decided that it was time to grab a snack and check attraction status again. I grabbed a Mickey Smile(Mickey waffle like thing with pumpkin custard filling) and a coke for 550Y. It was a decent snack, but was not as pumpkiny as I expected (is that a word). There were a number of pumpkin flavored items available in the park keeping with the Halloween theme. The park was well decorated for the Halloween theme; pumpkins and ghosts abound everywhere.

I didn’t see many costumes from the guests in the park. I made my way over to Splash got in the standby, which didn't have a wait posted at the end of the queue, made it up to the wait sign in a couple of minutes and decided that 150min was a little to long. With my HM FP return at 7 and it being about 4:45 by now I decided what the heck I'll kill some time and get in standby for HM and ride it twice. The sign said 120min. after 30 min in line I knew the sign was wrong and bailed. I decided at this point it was better to stake out my parade seat for the Tokyo Disneyland Electric Parade right in front of HM. The parade started at 7:30pm and parade began right next to the HM so as soon as the parade went by my position I'd be in my FP window and already be at the mansion. I really enjoyed the parade. The music started much the same as the old CA Disneyland Main Street Electrical Parade. It really brought back some memories. The parade also added some newer music during the last half. I remember seeing the MSEP when I was a kid. I loved that old parade, but it just can't compare with what they can do with music and lights now. The parade finished and I hop over to the HM to use my FP. This is my first time getting to see the Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion, pretty neat. My oldest daughter is a NBC fanatic and would definitely love this.

After coming out of HM it was time to go find a spot for the Banzai Villains parade and the fireworks show, Dreams. I found a decent spot in front of the Crystal Palace,

only partially obscured the fireworks which take place between Disneyland and Disney Sea so both parks enjoy the same show. I had expected the fireworks to be over the castle but soon realized that the large spotlight pointed straight into the sky was actually point of origin for the fireworks. I can't say that I was very impressed with Dreams, it was a very short show and did not evoke the same emotions that the MK shows do. My DD 15 even made this comment upon viewing the video that I had captured of the show. It was nothing compared to any of the fireworks shows at MK or Epcot. The Banzai Villains parade was up next and was basically the same as the earlier Let’s Go Villains parade except all lit up and the plot of the story has changed a little. It was now it was time to do some shopping to get stuff for my girls back home. I made it out just about closing time, 10pm. I'm beat at this point so catch the train back to Tokyo station, then another back to Bakuro-cho.

 

[kc5grw]

Day 3 - Tokyo Disney Sea
I get up this morning the same time as yesterday, but Disney Sea opens at 9am instead of 8am like Disneyland. I skipped breakfast again and managed to get to the gate prior to opening. They don't let you through the gate into the park until exactly 9am. I noted this punctuality later in regard in parade etiquette; you may only place a ground cover down next to the parade route 1 hour before parade time. I watched a lady try to put hers down 1 minute early and she was told to wait the 1 minute. I made it through the gate and snapped a few pictures on my way to get a FastPass for Tower of Terror.

After picking up the FP with a 10:30 return, I headed toward Indiana Jones and Temple of the Crystal Skull, snapping pictures along the way.

I made it to the ride and it was pretty much a walk on at that point, maybe 10 minutes wait. The ride is pretty good, uses the same type of vehicle that Dinosaur at AK uses. There were elements of several of the movies in the attraction, most notably the big boulder from Raiders coming at you, the ride was very enjoyable. After exiting Indy I went over to Raging Spirits to ride it, it is a roller coaster with a 360 degree loop.

Theming was good and I enjoyed the ride although I wasn't sure if I was going to get to go. I'm a big guy and I guess the poor little CM at the attraction didn't think I would fit. Understanding Japanese here might have helped a bit. Anyway another CM guided me back to a little hidden area where they have a mockup of a ride vehicle to put you in to see if the restraining bar will close properly. After that was confirmed the CM led me in through the back to get on the ride, there wasn't much of a wait to begin with, but I got led right to the front for all of the hassle they put me through. The ride was good, not a real thriller of a coaster like at Six Flags or Universal but the theming was good, it was fast and the loop was fun. After I got off Raging Spirits I made my way to Journey to the Center of the Earth.

The advertised wait time was 20 minutes that was about right, maybe a little less. The attraction queue had a lot of cool stuff, but you missed some of it because the line was so short and didn’t wind through the entire queue area.

This ride was a bit deceptive, you start off thinking it is going to be something like the Indy ride, in fact the first part of ride was much the same style, then you think the ride has ended and all of a sudden your shot out in roller coaster fashion down the side of Mount Prometheus. This was a great surprise. It was a little brief but added a real cool element to the ride. After getting off of this ride I headed over to Storm Rider since my FP time for Tower of Terror hasn't come yet.

The wait here was about 20minutes, it is a large simulator type ride like Star Tours, but the vehicle is quite a bit larger. The plot of this ride has you flying into a Typhoon to deploy a weapon that explodes and kills the Typhoon. Of course things don't work out right and there is some excitement. One notable difference in the effects here was that when it was raining, it was raining, you just didn't get hit with a little spritz of water it was a very brief rain on you type of experience. Now that I finished with Storm Rider it was time for the Tower of Terror.

The hotel external appearance is a bit different than the Florida attraction and the theming centers around an explorer named Hightower who brought back a cursed Tiki doll from an expedition. Once the doors open to the ride vehicle you recognize the same setup as in the FL ride. One of the drops on this ride seemed considerably longer than the drops in the FL tower, had some serious air time going on. The ride took longer than anticipated because the car I was in queue for developed a problem and they moved us to another car. Now it is still before noon and I have finished all of what I would consider the headliner attractions. This has been a very different experience from yesterday's wall to wall people at Disneyland. I now decided to head over to the other side of the park again to catch Sinbad’s Voyage. This is a boat ride with animatronics similar to Small World. It follows the story of Sinbad on his travels. After Sinbad I needed a snack and decided to try a Sultan's Sundae which was coconut soft serve on jellied fruit (which was basically fruit chunks in a blue-gray looking gelatin. After my snack I head over to Magic Lamp theatre for that show. This is a combination live action/3D film performance with some added affects. This is also one of the 2 shows here that is available with subtitles in different languages. I decided to try it out and was given a little hand held display that displayed the dialogue in English. It's a neat idea, but constantly diverting your attention to the screen takes your eyes of the show for an instant. Next I headed over to Triton's place which is an indoor area that has some kiddy themed areas, the Little Mermaid Theater, a shop and restaurant.

I caught the Under the Sea show here and was quite impressed. I opted not to get the subtitle device because it was just too distracting in the last show. I haven't actually seen the Nemo show in AK, but I think this is similar in that you have performers carrying large puppets in the show. Ariel of course was a a real person. The one really impressive part of the show was that it was almost all done in the air. Most of the performers were supported by harnesses and it gave you the feeling that you were under the sea with the performers. At this point I had pretty much hit every attraction that I wanted to see. It was about 2pm now and the Legend of Mythica show on the bay started at 2:30. I grabbed a Goyza Sausage Bun on the way across the park to try something different, it was a sausage in a light somewhat chewy breading, 550Y for this and a coke. The Legend of Mythica show was performed on the Mediterranean Bay with various watercraft and also dancers on shore. It was a good show even if I couldn't understand the dialogue. The only real problem with the show was the fact that it was in the afternoon with the sun somewhat behind the performance so what should be vibrant colors lacked contrast. After the show I walked around the park a bit and looked through some of the shops. I made my way back out to the front by the big rotating water covered Earth globe and had my picture taken with my camera in front of the globe. I spent the rest of the afternoon just relaxing and taking in the sights. For dinner I ate at the Sailing Day Buffet, 2800Y for all you can eat. The fare was a variety of dishes from Disney Parks around the world.

It was early, 4:30pm so I don't think they had everything out yet that would be available for dinner. They had added another serving line during the time I was there. The selection was good though and I ate my fill. When I entered the restaurant it was nearly empty, by the time I left at 5:30pm it was filling fast. I made it out and took a few evening shots and captured Mount Prometheus erupting.

It was now time to scope out a location for the BraviSEAmo! show at 7:30p. I managed to find a spot right on the harbor that offered a clear view of show. More people watching ensued as I waited for the show. I found myself becoming increasingly amused at the fact that I couldn’t understand a word that the CMs were saying when they were speaking instructions to the surrounding crowd. I just hope they weren't relaying anything really important. 7:30 rolled around and the show started. This show was performed entirely on the water and is the tale of love between a water spirit and fire spirit. Lots of water fountains and fire all sequenced to the music.

This is an incredible show. It is definitely a must see if you are ever at Tokyo Disney Sea. The show can definitely stand on its own compared to some of the shows at WDW. That pretty much ended my 2 days at the Tokyo Disney Resort.

All that was left to do was make my way back to the monorail to take me back to the gateway. The monorail around the resort is 250Y to ride, no matter where you get on or get off.

While you can walk from Maihama station to the Disneyland entrance, you must ride the monorail to and from Disney Sea. 500Y total for both trips. You probably can walk, but the route is not obvious.

Day 4 – Imperial Palace Gardens
This was my last day in Tokyo. I slept in this morning, 7am LOL. Check out time was 10am so I got cleaned up and everything packed and ready to go. Got downstairs and turned in my room key about 9:45. My flight back to Dallas is not until 6:30pm so I have some time to kill. I haul my stuff back down to the train station and get a 130Y ticket to take me to Tokyo station. At Tokyo station I find a locker, 500Y, to cram my stuff in so I can explore Tokyo for a few hours. I leave Tokyo station and walk a short distance to the Imperial Palace grounds. You really can’t see much of the palace, the majority of the property is restricted access. You do have a view of a number of the old Edo buildings especially if you tour the Eastern Gardens. The palace grounds are quite meticulously landscaped with a lot of manicured trees and such. I walked around the perimeter of the grounds and through most of the Eastern Gardens. It took about 3 hours. The gardens themselves appear to be very popular to Tokyo workers. I was there near lunch and saw quite a few people taking their lunch breaks on the grounds. Admission to the gardens is free. The gardens themselves are very peaceful and serene. It’s quite a contrast with the surrounding city. In fact you really can’t hear the bustle of the city while in the gardens. I left the palace grounds and walked around the immediate area surrounding Tokyo station I didn’t have a lot of time left before I had to get the train back to Narita Airport. It was a good thing I decided to wrap up my sightseeing early. I was a bit too hasty in grabbing the next train to Narita and ended up having to make 2 changes to get to the airport finally. Had I been more attentive I would have grabbed the right train and not had to make the changes. It wasn’t that big of a deal though. I did notice that a number of Japanese also had struggles with the trains at times. I guess part of the confusion is that trains with different routes run back to back on the same lines. 1280Y is the fare from Tokyo to Narita Airport. Even with my minor foibles on the trains I was very impressed with how efficiently everything ran and would love to see that system in Dallas. Once in the airport I stop by Currency Exchange and change out the majority of my remaining Yen. I make my way to the American Airlines check-in and get my boarding pass and get rid of my suitcase. A couple of hours wait at the gate and then a 10.5 hour plane ride and I am back in Dallas 3.5 weeks since I left. The flight arrived at DFW 3:20pm Wednesday after departing NRT at 6:25pm Wednesday. (Let’s do the time warp again…) Getting through immigration and customs took a bit of time since about 4 international flights arrived at DFW all at the same time. I find the driver I had ordered and sit back for the ride across Dallas during rush hour. Wow, where’s my train. When I get back to my house it is still earlier Wed than when the flight left Narita. My wife and girls are obviously glad to see me as I am pretty much mauled at the curb. That pretty much wraps it up.

One thing I will say about my time in Tokyo is that even though I don’t speak any Japanese, it was not that difficult. Japanese schools teach English and while most Japanese do not speak English well, they understand a little. I really didn’t have any major problems. Don’t let the language barrier stop you from planning a trip and if you have the time beforehand attend classes or pick up some Japanese language program before you leave. This was a very short notice trip for me so I didn’t have a lot of time to learn any of the language.

 

[2goofycampers]

Great trip report and pix Mike, thanks for taking the time to share.

 

[VACAMPER]

Great report Mike!

 

[Princess victoria]

Yep you were right


Not taking me was bad form

 

[TheFlame]

Thank you for sharing and taking the time to post such a great trip report and WONDERFUL pictures!

 

[bwvBound]

Great trip report, thanks! I'm still kicking myself that I didn't visit on my one free day when on business travel in Yokuska. (My excuse, "I didn't know I was having a day off ... ")

 

[Seewhatimesdone]

Great report! Tokyo DisneySea is just something else

 

[kc5grw]

Disney Sea was a great park. I was really surprised that the crowd levels were so low given the fact that Disneyland was wall-to-wall people the day before. Really made for a great time in the park.

 

[chief19spixi]

WOW !!! Great report!! I love the pics!! thanks for sharing

 

[Mrsjvb]

The major difference between the two parks is Disney Sea is more about the shopping and eating, while TD is all about the theming and the rides, which is why the crowd levels are ALWAYS so disparate. when we lived in Japan, we would go every year.

I miss it and those pics are a terrific reminder of why I do!

 

[RvUsa]

Awesome report! Way to go Mike, glad you had fun, and great pics.

 

[PolynesianPixie]

Really great TR! I was excited to hear about the Indy ride...when DD and I were in Paris we really wanted to do that one, but they shut it down the day before we got there for repairs! oh well! Maybe we'll get to it in Tokyo one day!

Thanks for sharing your experience!

 

[loveDmouse]

Thanks for the great report and pics. Looked like a neat trip!

 

[ram101]

Awesome report!!! Thank you for sharing.
Wish to one day get to a Disney park outside of the US but....maybe when I retire and all the kids are doctors they can pitch in for a trip for my wife and I!! LOL Yea sure..

Just curious if you recall what the exchange rate (yen to $) was while you were there...

 

[kc5grw]

The exchange rate was right at 97Y/USD while I was there.

 

[ram101]

The exchange rate was right at 97Y/USD while I was there.

OUCH

 

[DaddyDon]

Thank's .....I loved your pictures! All way's wondered what Disney looked like out side of U.S.A.Thank you for letting us all have a look.

 

[LeeLeeLuvsDisney]

Great report! Thanks for sharing. It's getting me excited for our upcoming trip.