We spent most of today in Tokyo Disney Sea. The fact that I started to write this post before 9:00pm local time indicates that the day was a bit shorter than yesterday.
Tokyo Disney Sea is part Animal Kingdom, part Disney’s Hollywood Studios and, oddly, part Universal Studios Islands of Adventure. It is divided into 7 “ports:”
Mediterranean Harbor – This is the first area you encounter coming in. There are no real rides here, but a lot of shopping and food. It is very reminiscent of Universal’s Portofino Resort in Florida. The globe in the photo is just inside the ticket gate, but just outside the front of Mediterranean Harbor.
- Mysterious Island – Home to two large rides: Journey to the Center of the Earth and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. It is all inside a volcano, which erupted around 7:00pm with fire and smoke. The photo below shows the volcano just beyond Mermaid Lagoon.
- Mermaid Lagoon – Home to rides for kids, including an underground area called Triton’s Kingdom. Got the Little Mermaid references yet?
- Arabian Coast – Sinbad, Aladdin, Genie, Jasmine. It has a two-story carousel and a Sinbad ride that is very much like It’s a Small World.
- Lost River Delta – Home to two large rides as well: Indiana Jones Adventure and Raging Spirits. The first is very much like the Dinosaur ride at Animal Kingdom, same technology with a different story. Raging Spirits is a roller coaster with a 360 degree loop.
- Port Discovery – Storm Rider is the primary ride here, sort of a larger version of Star Tours or Body Wars. Same idea, bigger room. The story is that you are on a plane flying into the “storm of the century” to diffuse it. As you can imagine, things don’t go smoothly.
- American Waterfront – Streets of old New York, just like you’d find in Hollywood Studios. Also, it’s also home to Tower of Terror.
Starting with Mediterranean Harbor front-and-center (which has its own Epcot-like fireworks that we didn’t stay for) you make your way from port to port with changing landscapes and viewpoints.
Knowing that Tuesdays are light days in the US parks, we weren’t expecting big crowds, but the lack of crowds at all was a bit surprising. Fast Passes were turned off for most lines. We waited more than 15 minutes only once – for Storm Rider – primarily because the ride broke down in the middle. Everything else was 15 minutes or less. We walked right on Tower of Terror. Try to do that midday at Hollywood Studios.
I think my wife and kids liked the park, but I’m really not too positive. There isn’t a ride at Tokyo Disney Sea that is comparable to Splash Mountain or Space Mountain. Journey to the Center of the Earth has one surprise thrill, but after your first time, you know it’s there. Raging Spirits really wasn’t that exciting. Joey and I noticed it slowed down repeatedly rather than keeping its speed. It doesn’t hold a candle to the Rock N Roller Coaster in Hollywood Studios. Indiana Jones was predictable, given the similarity to Dinosaur. Even Tower of Terror was toned down. It didn’t seem to drop as far as in Florida and went up and down only three times. I can honestly say that there wasn’t one ride that I desperately wanted to go on a second time.
That much said — the scenery was spectacular. Disney gets everything right, including fake barnacles on pier posts. The park really is on the water, so you see cruise ships, oil tankers, and other boats in the background. Note the photo with Terror of Tower in the background. That’s looks like a real port. We had no issues getting around. Food was everywhere, at regular Disney prices of course. I think we spent $40 on lunch and another $40 on dinner. We did see sea salt, caramel and strawberry popcorn today. All were quite good.
I’ll also throw into a few photos here of the Disney Monorail. Despite requiring payment to ride, it is really done quite well, with stops at both parks, the hotel row, and the Japan Rail Station that connects Disney with the rest of the country. Disney really makes it very easy. As you can see, both the windows and the handles are shaped like Mickey.
Tomorrow we’ll do some Disney shopping in the morning, before heading to the airport just after 1:00pm local Tokyo time. Our flight leaves Narita at 4:35pm, and we arrive in Newark at 4:30pm local time to change planes. We make it to St. Louis at 9:47pm. To put that all in St .Louis time:
- Wednesday breakfast at 7:00pm Tuesday.
- Leave for the airport just after 11:00pm Tuesday.
- Depart from Tokyo at 2:35am Wednesday.
- Land in Newark at 3:30pm Wednesday.
- Land in St. Louis at 9:47pm Wednesday.
So – when you are struggling with your “long day” on Tuesday or Wednesday, think of me and smile. Think of the e-mail, voice mail, and meetings waiting for me, and smile again.
