When I moved to Korea, I knew I wanted to visit Japan to go to Disney Sea. Sadly for me, the month I moved the world shut down due to COVID-19. Three long years later Japan finally opened its borders, and even though it was mid-winter, I knew there was a ticket to Disney Sea with my name on it. Let’s DIVE in (pun intended) to this one-day Disney Sea itinerary.
For those who don’t know, Tokyo has two Disney parks. The first is Tokyo Disneyland, a version of the Magic Kingdom like other international Disney parks. The second is Tokyo Disney Sea, a standalone park that is unique in its themes and rides. The park is water-themed with a large lake and volcano in the middle, and a river running throughout with many fantasy and historically themed realms
TIP: Disney Sea does not have a fast pass system, so you will need to plan accordingly. There is a Standby system that gives you a virtual spot in line to some shops and restaurants. For some shops this is the only way to access them, however, the Standby is not available for rides and attractions.
Tokyo Disney Sea has a dedicated app that allows you to see times of events, wait times on rides, and opening and closing times for stalls. It’s nearly impossible to efficiently navigate the park without it so we highly suggest you download it ahead of time. We like to do as much as possible, so we planned out our itinerary before the day we visited. The park has a few rides that are available elsewhere like Soarin’ and Toy Story Mania!, so we decided to only ride ones that were exclusive to the park or ones we had never been on before.
TIP: some of the wait times can grow to over 2 hours, so you will not be able to ride every E-ticket ride in one day. We recommend choosing 2 or 3 and finding the best times to ride each throughout the day.
Our Itinerary
TIP: The park is open from 9am-9pm, and there are a lot of rides. If you want to ride every ride and do every experience, you need at least two full days, especially in the busy season.
Indiana Jones Adventure
Our first ride was Indiana Jones. We started here because It’s towards the back of the park and the wait was still only 45 minutes at the park opening, which ballooned to nearly 2 hours mid-day. This is essentially the same version of the ride at Disneyland, but it was a first time for us.
The theming was great and the intensity was fairly high. For me, the immersiveness of the queue line was enough to keep me entertained for a long time. We had a total blast, and If you love big rides, this is 1 of 4 that are a must-do.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
This is the first ride that is exclusive to Disney Sea. It is located in the caldera of Mount Prometheus at the center of the park. The theming here is incredible, and the sense of scale is immense. This is My favorite location in the park.
This is a short and simple dark ride that is not very intense, but it is still fun, especially if you love classic novels. The ride was unbelievably dark so we couldn’t get pictures inside, but the scenery around it is amazing. The line is usually short but it’s not necessary to ride if the wait is longer than 30-45 minutes.
Mermaid Lagoon and King Triton’s Kingdom
When you exit the back side of the volcano you are greeted with King Triton’s Palace, which is quite a beautiful sight at night. When you enter you take a path down “under the sea” you are transported into Mermaid Lagoon, a massive area heavily themed around The Little Mermaid.
This is a kid’s area underneath the park with lots of simple rides and themed play areas. Expect to spend a lot of time here if you have kids, but it’s worth a quick visit even if not because of the adorable theming and the famous Sea Salt Icecream that can be found there.
TIP: Disney Sea is known for its amazing snacks. We’ll write a blog about that soon, but in the meantime make sure you grab as much popcorn, gyoza dogs, and ukiwa buns as you can!
Sindbad’s Storybook Voyage
This is another Disney Sea exclusive, a dark water ride that meanders through the adventure of the famous Asian hero Sindbad the Sailor. Don’t worry if you’re not familiar with this character, we weren’t either, the ride is still enjoyable either way thanks to the song “Compass of Your Heart” written by Legendary Disney composer Alan Menken.
This is a very chill ride but the animatronics are pretty great, Sindbad’s tiger is adorable, and the music is way too catchy. If the wait is short this is an easy recommendation.
New Year’s Party
The day we happened to visit was New Year’s Day, so we were delighted to find that there was a special New Year’s celebration. In the middle of the day, the Main Disney Characters floated out into the Mediteranian Harbor to sing some songs from a paddleboat and welcome the New Year with the guests.
While you might not be there on a holiday, there is bound to be an event or meet-and-greet on the day of your visit. Hearing the beloved characters talk in an adorable Japanese voice was so fun, so be sure to check your app to see what is in store on the day of your visit.
Tower of Terror
This ride might seem familiar, but it is actually another Disney Sea exclusive ride. While it shares a name and concept with Disney Hollywood Studio’s version, it follows a completely original storyline and has a very different theming and ride layout.
The ride is just as thrilling though; we went right at sunset and the view over the park was breathtaking. Tower of Terror is an easy recommendation for any thrill seeker, with a medium-long wait time.
Raging Spirits
Located in the Lost River area, this is a small and punchy rollercoaster with several inversions. I decided to sit this one out, but Michael loves coasters and he assures me it was a great ride. While he was up there the fireworks for the special show were firing over the park, giving an awesome view. Because of the inversions this is possibly the most intense attraction at the park, so thrill-seekers only!
Cabeza2000, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Journey to the Center of the Earth
We left on a BANG with Journey to the Center of the Earth. This is often called the best-themed Disney ride, and it’s not hard to see why. Inspired directly from the Jules Verne novel and located in the heart of the volcano, this is an intense dark ride with an incredible storyline, top-tier visuals, and a massive launch out of the firing volcano.
Like Tower of Terror, the peak of this ride has an amazing view of the park, especially at night. This ride is very intense but we think it is the must-do attraction of the park.
Thoughts About The Park
Disney Sea was an amazing experience. Many people try to split their time between both parks, but it would be very hard to get much done in a half day at this park. We have yet to visit Tokyo Disneyland, but we can certainly vouch for everyone who prefers Disney Sea because there are many exclusive rides, immaculate theming and immersion, and the rides are more geared towards adults in terms of variety of content and intensity. Between the two of us, we’ve been to Disneyland, Disney World and Disneyland Paris, and we agree that this is one of the most visually interesting Disney parks.
