Tips and Tricks: Surviving Disney

Raging Spirits - My favorite ride

Do not believe anyone who tells you Tokyo Disneyland is a walk in the park.

Tokyo Disneyland is not all fun and games. It is serious, intense preparation that goes into making sure you go into Disneyland and come out alive. My knee still hurts even though it has been 2 weeks since leaving Disney. The crowds are crazy, the people are crazy, the lines are crazy, and there is just no chill. To those who plan to go to Tokyo Disneyland anytime soon, here are a few tips and tricks to make the most out of your trip. I will split this post into 2 parts: Disneyland and Disneysea.

BEFORE GOING TO DISNEY

1.     Buy your tickets online beforehand.

If you don’t want to spend 2 hours lining up to buy tickets and another hour trying to get into Disneyland, this is your best bet. You can choose to purchase one-day passes or multiple-day passes, it really depends on how much time you have to spend while in Tokyo. For my trip, I purchased the 2-day pass: the first day for Tokyo Disneyland and the second day for Tokyo DisneySea. I felt that 1 day more than enough time to spend in the theme park: in fact, I didn’t feel like going back at all. Enough of crazy queues, hunger, and standing in the freezing cold for me.

The crowd in Tomorrowland

2.     Pack some light snacks

A whole day at Disneyland will, of course, make you hungry – especially in the winter. Fill up a small food container with some sushi or light snacks to eat while you’re there. Even though there are plenty of food stalls around the theme park that sell popcorn, turkey legs, chicken teriyaki, pizza and so on, the lines are C R A Z Y. Skip the queue and grab a quick bite without the hassle!

3.     Plan your route

This is important: download a map of the theme park online and plan which rides you want to go to first. Some rides attract more people than others, so plan your timings as well! Think of which rides you really cannot miss, and other rides that you can let go of. Disneyland and Disneysea both offer this thing called “fast passes” that let you cut the queue, but there are only a limited number of them so you have to be fast! The trick for fastpasses is: If your fastpass collecting time is 9.00am-10.00am, you can only get another fastpass for any ride at 9.00am. Plan out which fastpasses you should get first, and which rides you’re willing to line up for. A lot of planning and preparation goes into this, but also be ready to improvise!

4.     Bring money

I know this goes without saying, but do bring more money just in case. A meal there would cost about 1000 -1500 Yen (RM30-RM55), so you want to be prepared. A hungry trip to the theme park is a miserable trip. Besides, the snacks over there are worth a try if you’re willing to spend a little bit more. Souvenirs at Disneyland and Disneysea are completely different, so you might want to get them already if you really like them.

I ONLY HAVE ONE DAY, SHOULD I GO TO DISNEYLAND OR DISNEYSEA?

If you’re planning for something more mellow and good for your overall cardiovascular health, go for Disneyland. The rides there are more of a trip down memory lane, and are lovely places to go hold hands with your partner. (There are so many couples at Disney) But if you’re planning on extremely exhilarating rides and the intense rush of adrenaline and lots of screaming, go for Disneysea. There are more fast paced rides as compared to mellow ones in Disneysea.

Both theme parks are beautifully designed and so well built, it feels just like being in a dream world. And everything looks so realistic! Throughout the trip I couldn’t help but think “I wonder how they built this” many times. The meticulousness that goes into the building of the place is extraordinary.

WHEN IN DISNEYLAND:

1.     Go early.

If you’re taking the train to Tokyo Disneyland, you will be amazed at the number of people squeezing themselves into the train just to get there! It’s almost unbelievable. The theme park gates open at 8am in the morning, but there are people lining up at the gates as early as 7am just to be in front of the line. It helps to be early there so you don’t have to line up for the first few rides. The craziest thing is – once the gates open, the people are running, literally sprinting towards the rides. And I’m not even exaggerating! I saw a huge crowd running so fast that I thought the place was on fire or something.

Clearly - Disneyland is not all fun and games

2.     If you’re looking for fast paced rides, go counter clockwise.

You’ll get to Tomorrowland first which is where Space Mountain is.

3.     Stay for the night shows!

Disneyland has a fireworks show every night, and if you’re lucky, they will have the special shows where they light up Cinderella’s castle and it is simply breathtaking. Check the site on the morning itself or ask any of the staff members what time the shows are. That way you’d be able to ‘cop’ a spot in the front rows much much earlier.

4.     Buy the R2D2 popcorn boxes

I cannot stress this enough. I was extremely devastated because they were sold out when I decided to visit the popcorn stall. I still cannot get over it. If you do get one and decide you don’t want the popcorn box anymore, my arms are wide open!!!

WHEN IN DISNEYSEA

1.     Go early.

See above

2.     Wear comfortable shoes

Disneysea is a HUGE place – I dare say it’s 10 times bigger than Disneysea. The theme park is designed so meticulously and so realistically; it feels just like you’re in a whole different country. Because you have to travel through ‘different countries’, walking around in high heels or rock-hard shoes might not be the best idea – a painful one, in fact. Put on your most comfortable shoes before you go around exploring.

3.     Have a map with you

Get one of the Tokyo Disneysea maps online or at the counter. Because it’s such a huge place, navigating can be a pain. It’s useful to bring along a map so you know where you should go after your ride.

4.     Use the ‘public transport’ there

There are plenty of varieties for ‘public transportation’ in Disneysea: there’s a transit train and a boat that carries you from one place to another. Maximize the use of this public transport to save time and to reduce walking – in case your feet are already sore.

This message is brought to you by Disneysea

5.     Take lots of photos!

The place is wonderfully picturesque, especially at night when they light up the whole place and it feels just like you’re in Italia. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to take lots of photos and tell your friends that you’ve been to the Arabian coast and Venice in just one day.

The amazing sunset at Disneysea

6.     Layer appropriately

When I was in Disneysea, the weather changed from cold to warm and to really cold really fast. Layer your clothing according to weather forecasts for the day so you won’t have to freeze in the cold and sweat in the sweltering heat.

That’s all for tips and tricks while at Disney. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to ask! Have you been to Disney before? If you have and you wish to share some more tips, leave them in the comments below!