VISITING TOKYO DISNEYSEA WITH KIDS – Quick Tips from a Mom

If you’re like me, your eyes are glazing over from researching things you’re going to do in Japan with your kids.

I get it – you want your family trip to Japan to be perfect! Going to Disneysea will definitely be a hit with your kids, so let’s take a look at how you can make your visit fun, memorable and stress-free!

I’m a mamma of three kids and we love traveling and exploring new places (like Japan) and we’re also big Disney fans! My 9-year-old (almost 10) son and I decided to visit Disneysea over Tokyo Disneyland, and after our visit, I’ve got a few tips that I hope will help you.

Table of Contents

Buy Your Tickets in Advance

Even if you want to ‘play-it-by-ear’ while in Tokyo, you need to buy your Disneysea tickets ahead of time because they can sell out. Don’t wait until the last minute to buy your tickets and definitely don’t show up at the entrance without tickets already on your phone (you can’t buy tickets at the entrance like you can at other Disney parks).

Plan Your Day

Tray with two grilled reuben sandwiches, a cup of fries, and a drink on a wooden table. At Tokyo Disneysea. — *Make plans for rides, but don’t forget to eat! We loved these grilled reuben sandwiches.*

Even if you’re a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants gal (or guy) or you’ve been to other Disney parks, know that Disney in Tokyo is different. And one of those big differences is the crowds.

3-hour waits are not uncommon. If you want to get an idea of what lines are like, take a look at the Disneysea attractions page, which shows current wait times.

We planned on using premier and priority passes to try to go on the following rides:

Raging Spirits
Tower of Terror
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Indiana Jones
Soaring
Toy Storia Mania

We were able to ride all of the above. We used passes and sometimes just waited in line if the line was short enough (for example, Tower of Terror first thing in the morning).

We had time to do more rides but instead chose to wander around, checking out the scenery, browsing the shops, eating, and soaking up Japanese Disney culture.

Helpful Tip: Download the Tokyo Disney Resort app and use it! If you’re familiar with the Disney apps in the US, you’ll be comfortable with this one. You can do all of the same things… keep your tickets organized, see wait times on a map or list, reserve priority passes, buy premier passes, and order food.

Expect Crowds

*At least the long lines were interesting! Here we’re waiting for Journey to the Center of the Earth.*

If you’ve been reading up on Disneysea, you know that there can be insane lines at the park.

You’ll have more fun and feel less overwhelmed if you go in expecting the crazy crowds.

My son and I witnessed the crowds and long attraction wait times, and we did wait in one really long line (Journey to the Center of the Earth). Otherwise, we used priority passes, purchased premier passes, or just skipped the ride.

Arrive Early

People waiting in lines at the entrance to Tokyo Disneysea in Japan. The entrance is a low brown building. You can see the park buildings on the left and part of Tower of Terror on the right. — *Waiting in line at the entrance. The gates had just opened and we were about to go in.*

This is often a given for theme park entry, because you can beat some of the crowds and get some rides in before most people arrive, and the lines get long.

At Tokyo Disneysea, if you don’t get in early and reserve your priority and premier passes (free and paid ‘skip the line’ passes), you’ll be stuck waiting in the unbearably long lines for attractions.

I can’t stress this one enough – get to the park at least an hour before park opening to join the civilized queues. They often open up early, and they did open up 30 minutes early on our visit (8:30am instead of 9:00am). We arrived at 7:45 to join lines that were already 80-100 people deep but grew tremendously in the 45 minutes we were waiting.

We were able to purchase the premier passes we wanted (for the times we wanted) and take advantage of the priority passes.

There was a notable difference in the crowds in the morning (light) and around lunch time (heavy).

Bring Something to Sit On

You may be someone who always brings something to sit on at Disney parks. Mats or muslin blankets are great for keeping your clothes clean while sitting for parades and shows.

You’ll use your mat for those reasons, but also for sitting in line before the park opens and if you want to sit in random places at the park during the day.

There are a ton of adorable mats for sale in Tokyo, and I think they’d make a great souvenir.

Bring Snacks

Yes, you’ll probably want to buy some fun, Disney-themed snacks like the little alien mochi. But, as a mamma, I know it stinks to get hangry (or have your little ones get hungry). Pack something with protein for you (like nuts) and something non-sugary for your kids (they’ll be getting plenty of sugar from the Disney snacks).

We were glad to have snacks in a few unexpectedly long lines, and while we were waiting in line at the park entrance.

Try Something New

People ride on a roller coaster at Disney Sea in Tokyo. It looks like an old mining site in the jungle. — *Raging Spirits*

While it’s fun to compare Disney Japan rides to rides you’re familiar with, take advantage of being at this unique Disney park and try something new!

We chose Raging Spirits and Journey to the Center of the Earth, and if we get a chance to go back (fingers crossed), 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is on our list!

Look at the Souvenir Shops

I highly recommend this, even if Disney merchandise isn’t really your thing. Minus my Disneyland sweatshirt, I’m not big on Disney gear, but the Tokyo Disneysea shops were amazing! I loved the delicate Japanese stationary (pens, pencils, notebooks, journals) and the Tokyo Disney apparel. My son was oohing and aahing over the kitchen utensils and pens.

We ended up purchasing stationary for ourselves and for gifts to bring home.

Even if you don’t plan on buying anything, it’s still worth browsing the shops to see the differences between the Japanese Disney merchandise and Disney merch from the US and other countries.

Soak it In

Boy stands next to lifesize chipmunk character at Tokyo Disneysea. They are on a pedestrian road.

One big thing I realized at Tokyo Disneysea – I spend most of my time at Disneyland hurrying from one place to the next (to get on rides, watch the parade, etc). I knew we weren’t going to be able to do everything at Disneysea in a day, so we picked a few rides we wanted to do and then left the rest of the day free. We filled in our time pockets getting snacks, sitting and chatting, staring out at the park sets, meeting characters, and really just soaking it all in.