Day 9: Tokyo (Disneyland)

Hello everyone,

Today we had a very special experience planned – especially for Ramona: We had tickets for Tokyo Disneyland. Ramona was very excited, and even though I’m not a die-hard Disneyland fan, I was curious to see what the Japanese version had to offer.

For orientation: There are two Disney parks about 20 minutes east of Tokyo – Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea. Both parks are located right next to each other. DisneySea is considered more spectacular and offers more rides, but we wanted the classic Disney experience and therefore chose Disneyland. Important to know: Tickets are available exclusively online, there are no ticket counters on site. Additionally, there are evening tickets available from 5 PM, which cost about half – ideal for visitors who mainly want to see the fireworks. There is also the option to purchase so-called Priority Tickets. These allow for significantly reduced waiting times at many attractions. We did not have Priority Tickets and only had to wait once for 60 minutes and another time for 40 minutes. That was manageable, and we were probably lucky with the crowd, despite the good weather.

In any case, our day started quite early, and Ramona had a constant grin on her face. We walked to the metro around 9 AM, and the ride to the park took just 50 minutes – upon arriving at the park, Ramona bought those unmistakable Disney ears as a headband right outside the park, presumably to enhance the experience. She constantly wanted to put chipmunks on my head, but I successfully resisted. Inside the park, we had no waiting time at the entrance – we were right in. And what can I say: The park is a parallel universe. The buildings are, as expected, designed in typical Disney style – there are castles, various themed areas from Winnie the Pooh to Lilo & Stitch, and numerous Disney characters walking around the park, many of whom imitate them surprisingly convincingly. Ramona was thrilled 🤗

A true highlight was definitely the attraction “Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast.” You sit in oversized teacups and ride through iconic scenes from the movie Beauty and the Beast for about eight minutes. At first, that sounds not very spectacular, but the execution is impressive: Instead of moving on fixed tracks, the cars move freely in space, controlled by hidden technology. The moment when the Beast transforms into a prince is particularly impressive – a visual illusion that almost feels real. The movement of the cups to the music is also perfectly synchronized – almost like a dance. Ramona captured the entire ride on video.

For those interested: There is a video of this attraction on YouTube. The actual ride starts at minute 6:30 – absolutely worth watching: https://youtu.be/5rMc3FOsqBs?si=gJ3jEI5mRKMXVJR6

After seven hours in the park, we were quite exhausted. So exhausted that even the legendary Disney fireworks couldn’t entice us, and we didn’t want to wait another 3.5 hours for it. And of course, we wanted something decent to eat; the Mickey Mouse pizza from the park didn't tempt us 😅 after all, we had culinary tastes that were used to something else by now. We were talking about Kobe skewers, gyozas, and ramen. So: out of the park, into the metro, back to Tokyo. And since the day was already wild enough, we played it safe and treated ourselves to Abura-dō again – our tried-and-true oil noodles. Sloppy, spicy, perfect. Just what you need after stumbling around Disney World for hours.