Day 5 (Thursday 5/19)- Off to Tokyo Disney theme parks- Second stop: Tokyo DisneySea!!

We woke up the following morning well rested and ready to hit the next Disney Park- Tokyo DisneySea! This park opened in 2001- it is only located in Tokyo, and I had never been to this park before. From the reviews I had read online prior to leaving for Japan, many say that this Disney park is more geared for teenagers and adults due to the nature of the rides- faster and thrill-seeking. You can also purchase alcoholic beverages here (you cannot at Disneyland).

Tokyo DisneySea has 7 different "worlds":
1. Mediterranean Harbor- reminiscent of Italy, including a fake Colosseum and Parthenon

2. American Waterfront- I felt like I had stepped back into the the 1930's

3. Port Discovery- Looks to the future/futuristic decorations

4. Lost River Delta- Puts you in a remote region somewhere in the depths of South America. You feel like you're in a rugged, remote outpost

5. Arabian Coast- You feel like you're on the set of Disney's Aladdin

6. Mysterious Island- Contradictory to its name, this is not an island at all. It is built on the side of Mount Prometheus, which is the park's centerpiece (think: Cinderella castle to Disneyland) and most prominent feature. Mount Prometheus is an active volcano, so you'll see steam coming from the top and escaping from the cracks on the side of the volcano. The landscape is rocky

7. Mermaid Lagoon- Lots of dreamy colors and huge emphasis from Disney's Little Mermaid. You feel as though you've landed in King Triton's lagoon. It had a lot of rides and you really felt like you were in the movie Little Mermaid



After we entered into the park, we saw this huge globe with water all around it
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When you first walk into DisneySea, the first world you enter is Mediterranean Harbor. The entire area looked like Italy, the music was Italian (think: music in Olive Garden), and they even had gondola rides in the river. Little cafes and bistros lined the harbor, and the lampposts looked old and rustic.


Even Goofy was wearing Italian garb:

There weren't that many rides here, except for the gondola rides, a steamer line in the river, and Fortress Explorations (which were many consecutive buildings with lots of Italian art).


Our first few FastPass rides we wanted to hit were Journey to the Center of the Earth and 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. I absolutely detest underwater rides, and have this huge fear of underwater creatures. I won't even jump into the lake because I have this (irrational) fear that fishes will bite my toes off. I know, silly, but I can't shake it off. This was considered a popular ride, and although I was scared, I know I would regret if I didn't go once (and I knew Darin was excited to ride it).

As we made our way from Mediterranean Harbor to Mysterious Island (where the Journey and Sea rides were), we passed the Colosseum

I don't know what it is, but DisneySea (as well as Disneyland) had all flavors of popcorn, and the Japanese was gobbling it up! Flavors included Black Pepper, Curry, Strawberry, Milk & Tea to name a few



Heading into Mysterious Island...

Here we entered under the Mount Prometheus volcano to go to the Journey to the Center of the Earth ride. We didn't take any pictures, but we loved this ride and it was one of the most thrill-seeking rides we went on

Here is the 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea submarine tank we went on. Definitely some scary stuff under the sea on this ride

As a side note, we were recommended to try the "Gyoza Sausage Bun" snack, but we were so full, and we never did end up trying it :(

This ride was one of Darin's favorites called the Raging Spirits. It's difficult to see, but there was smoke and fire just shooting randomly from this attraction

Some other notable attractions:
Aquatopia- Think bumper cars on water

By mid-afternoon, we were ready for a refreshing cold treat


We met with some famous Disney characters throughout the park.
The Chef from The Little Mermaid

The Genie from Aladdin

Duffy the DisneySea bear- We were walking through the park, and we saw this HUGE line of people waiting. We assumed it was another popular Disney character, and when we passed it, we passed this teddy bear character. We had no clue who this character was. Darin said- "Do you want to take a picture with it? She looks popular". I didn't want to waste my time taking a picture with a teddy bear I had no idea about. When we returned to the hotel mid-day to take a break, we hopped online and read about the bear. The story goes that when Mickey Mouse was about to travel off to Sea, Minnie gave him a Teddy Bear so he wouldn't feel alone... thus, the creation of Duffy the Bear. Which explains why there were so.many.people carrying about Duffy Bear dolls, had Duffy Bear charms, and wearing Duffy Bear purses.

I really loved Sinbad's Storybook Voyage- This ride shows Sinbad's story and adventures of his voyage. It was so creative, very well done, and the music fit in with the theme

Tower of Terror- The graphics were outstanding, and the ride was scary. You think you've dropped down already, and then they surprise you and drop you down 2 more times

Our favorite rides:
Journey to the Center of the Earth (Mysterious Island)- This was awesome! You went from slow "sightseeing" to roller coaster quick in a matter of seconds. This ride takes you down to the earth's core and along the way you encounter strange creatures, crystal caverns, and there were lots of special effects
Indiana Jones (Lost River Delta)- One of our top 2 rides. The carriage that you're sitting in also moves independent of the chassis. This enhances the movement you feel on the attraction. I wished we had ridden this one more time
Raging Spirits (Lost River Delta)- We went on this coaster twice (Darin loved it so much)! It is the only Disney coaster that has a 360 degree loop, and was a very smooth ride
Sinbad's Storybook Voyage (Arabian Coast)- This reminded me of Disneyland's It's A Small World, but has a storyline to it and the details were amazing. A creative feast for your eyes.
StormRider (Port Discovery)- Another favorite- we both laughed so hard, we enjoyed it that much. StormRider is a full-motion-flight-simulator-based attraction. The added special effects are immersive, enhancing the overall experience considerably. This is an attraction that should not be missed, even by modest thrill-seekers
Ariel's Playground (Mermaid Lagoon)- Ariel's Playground is, in fact, a playground for the youngsters, but we thoroughly enjoyed it, and felt like we were "Under The Sea"
Tower of Terror (American Waterfront)- Darin didn't end up riding this, but I did and have no regrets. The queue winds through a warehouse holding additional treasures and artifacts, and you finally reach your destination: the service elevator that will take you up to the penthouse. Unlike any other service elevator I've been in, this one is equipped with about 20 seats, each seat having its own automobile-style three-point seatbelt. After you're belted in, your ride to the top begins. On the way however you encounter the statue Shiriki and experience firsthand its terrifying power. After the statue casts its spell, elevator doors open and you get a bird's-eye view of DisneySea from high up in the tower. The view doesn't last long however, as the elevator suddenly drops in a freefall! Of course you stop short of crashing to the ground, and eventually wind up safe and sound back at the ground floor. Although the "freefall" element may put some people off, the stops and starts of the freefall are very smooth and in and of itself not particularly scary. As mentioned earlier, it's the superb, multi-layered buildup to the freefall that makes it so dramatic. Although the "thrill ride" portion of the attraction lasts only a few moments, the attraction as a whole is truly exhilarating and—unless you just don't like thrill rides—something that should not be missed.


We enjoyed another wonderful weather (73 degrees and non-cloudy), and while there were people, a Disney employee told me it was not crowded at all. We were so lucky. Going mid-week was a great idea, and we couldn't have asked for better weather. While there were less rides/attractions at DisneySea, the rides were definitely more thrill-seeking and the creative details were outstanding. It had a more modern and updated feel to it (than Disneyland), and if we had to choose between the 2 parks, Darin and I both agreed we liked DisneySea more. All the rides (despite being more thrill-seeking) were very smooth and we didn't get a headache at all.

We were impressed how clean the parks were, even at night's end. We constantly saw workers picking up debris, sweeping up fallen leaves, and the visitors respected the designated smoking areas.

Disclaimer: I took way more pictures than what I've shown here on the blog. The blog post doesn't touch the details that were put into this theme park, nor does it showcase all the rides we went on.