Must-Do Tokyo Disney Rides U.S. Visitors Shouldn’t Miss

My family just got back from a week long vacation in Tokyo, Japan. Being the Disney fan that I am, you can bet that we spent some of our time visiting the two parks of the Tokyo Disney Resort - Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea.

Tokyo, and indeed all of Japan, has so much to experience that you really shouldn't spend the bulk of your time at theme parks, even at one that is arguably the best Disney park anywhere in the world. As a result, we had to limit our time at Tokyo Disney to just two days total (one day in each of the two parks).

But it's impossible to do or see it all at Tokyo Disney in two days - or even three or four! Many American visitors will likely find they are similarly time crunched. If you don't have the kind of time you might have on a Disney World vacation in Florida (and maybe not even the kind of time you spend at Disneyland in California), making the most of your time at Tokyo Disney Resort is essential. For my family, that meant focusing on hitting the truly unique attractions at Tokyo Disney, including the rides that have the same name but very different executions than their U.S. counterparts. 

I did extensive research before our trip and developed a list of must-dos and like-to-do Tokyo Disney rides. Thankfully we were able to experience everything on our list except the couple of attractions that were down for refurbishment.

If you are an American guest headed to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea, here are the rides and attractions you should prioritize as well.

(Stay tuned: If you are looking for the best strategy for getting on as many of these rides as possible, I'm going to be publishing a guide to the line hacking tips we used to make the most of our time at Tokyo Disney Resort very soon!)

Top Unique Rides in Tokyo Disneyland Park

Tokyo Disneyland is a classic Disney castle park with many lands (like Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, and Frontierland) that will look familiar to American guests who have experience with either Disneyland park or the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. As a result, there is some ride duplication. Here are the rides that will be totally new to U.S. guests or different enough from back home that they are worth experiencing.

Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast

• Location in park: Fantasyland
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: Disney Premier Access (¥2000 - about $13)

Right in the heart of Fantasyland in Tokyo Disneyland is Beast's Castle, and inside is the most grand dark ride Disney Imagineers have ever built. The attraction starts with a pre-show featuring the exceptionally smooth and realistic Audio Animatronics of Belle and the Beast. Guests then board trackless ride vehicles (teacups that both spin and tip) and glide through the most beloved scenes of the movie.

The attraction opened in 2020 and is the most popular of any ride in Tokyo Disneyland park, with lines that sometimes exceed 2-3 hours. But it's an absolute must-do, so rope drop it or pay for Premier Access (buy it first - it will sell out!). My husband and I exited the ride with our jaws hanging open. It's really that good.

The Happy Ride with Baymax

• Location in park: Fantasyland
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: Disney Premier Access (¥1500 - about $10)

The Happy Ride is the exact same ride type as Alien Swirling Saucers in Hollywood Studios's Toy Story Land and Mater's Junkyard Jamboree in Disney California Adventure (with more turntables). But don't make that a reason to skip it. Why? The Japanese love Baymax. A whole lot. That love creates a really infectious energy on this attraction that brings it to the next level. The ride is set to a catchy soundtrack as well, with cast members jumping up and down to the beat. The happy ride, indeed!

Monsters Inc. Ride & Go Seek

• Location in park: Fantasyland
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: 40th Anniversary Priority Pass (free)

Monsters Inc. is one attraction in Disney California Adventure that many guests (myself included) tend to skip. But don't skip its much-more-impressive cousin in Tokyo Disneyland!

This attraction has some of the same scenes from California, but improves upon the original with an interactive element similar to Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters or Toy Story Mania. Ride vehicles are equipped with flashlights that guests shine on the hardhat logos throughout the ride. But unlike those other attractions, there's no score kept. Instead, the flashlights activate animatronic effects on the ride. Monsters pop out in unexpected ways making the ride a surprising delight.

Pooh's Honey Hunt

• Location in park: Fantasyland
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: 40th Anniversary Priority Pass (free)

Pooh's Honey Hunt was the first attraction anywhere in the Disney universe to use the trackless ride vehicles that have become standard today (in rides like Mystic Manor at Hong Kong Disneyland, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, and Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway). The sets and scenery are much larger scale and grander than the Winnie the Pooh rides elsewhere in the world, and the ride vehicles do a lot more (but I won't spoil exactly what!).

We sadly visited Tokyo at a time when Pooh's Honey Hunt was down for refurbishment, so we didn't get to experience it yet for ourselves. But when it is open, it still remains one of the most popular rides in Tokyo Disneyland so prioritize it accordingly.

Splash Mountain

• Location in park: Fantasyland
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: Older kids, Teens, Adults
• Shortcut to ride: Disney Premier Access (¥1500 - about $10)

Splash Mountain is currently being re-themed into the much-anticipated Tiana's Bayou Adventure in Florida and California. A lot of American visitors will be surprised to find that the original Splash Mountain lives on indefinitely, however, in Tokyo Disneyland.

There is of course longstanding controversy and concern over the ride and the movie upon which it is based, but that's a discussion for another time and place. What I think American visitors will be able to appreciate about Splash Mountain in Tokyo Disney is seeing just how immaculately the attraction has been maintained there. Every Audio Animatronic works. That's something I personally hadn't witnessed in a decade or more in the U.S. parks as the rides deteriorated.

The ride is available for Premier Access purchase, and we were pleased to find it was still available for sale even in the early afternoon when we visited - long after most other attractions had sold out. Bonus that guests likely won't get that wet on Tokyo's version of the attraction. The "splash" is more of a heavy mist thankfully - no soggy sneakers!

Honorable Mentions

If you are able to get through the truly unique attractions above and have more time to spare, I highly recommend trying these additional rides, experiences, and attractions in Tokyo Disneyland.

• "it's a small world": The ride experience is similar to other versions around the world, but Tokyo's version has far more Disney character dolls than the Disneyland version. We loved spotting the characters including Moana, Rapunzel, and Hercules. Bonus that the attraction often has a short standby wait and a colorful facade and boarding area.
• Country Bear Jamboree: Florida may be getting a new version, but the OG version of this attraction lives on in Tokyo Disneyland. Complete with one of the bears singing "Mama Don't Whip Little Buford" in Japanese (!), this show is a weirdly wonderful mash-up of American and Japanese cultures.
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Highly similar to the Disneyland version, but the pirates still chase women and the not-so-PC redhead scene lives on in Tokyo.
• Tiki Room: Tokyo's version features Stitch!
• Space Mountain: The current version that we rode (that is pretty similar to US versions) is closing for good on July 31, 2024, but it's having a special themed sendoff in the interim. Look for a completely new version in 2027 that will surely earn a spot on this list.

Top Unique Rides in Tokyo DisneySea Park

Tokyo Disney Sea is widely regarded as Disney's best theme park anywhere in the world. Part of what makes it so amazing is that it is truly unique, with numerous attractions visitors can't find in other parks. That makes it a bit of a challenge for American visitors since nearly everything is new to them! With limited time, here are the headliner and E-ticket attractions that should be the focus of your visit.

Journey to Center of the Earth

• Location in park: Mysterious Island
• Thrill Level: Thrilling
• Best Ages: Older Kids, Teens, Adults
• Shortcut to ride: Disney Premier Access (¥1500 - about $10)

Set within the volcano that is the focal centerpiece of Tokyo DisneySea, Journey to the Center of the Earth is part dark-ride and part coaster. The attraction takes guests deep underneath the earth's surface into a weird and sometimes terrifying subterranean world.

Our family thought this ride was the most truly unique attraction we experienced at Tokyo DisneySea. I would say it has elements from rides as diverse as Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Navi River Journey, and Splash Mountain (although how that could be won't make sense until you ride it yourself!). The attraction's drops and speed aren't really any faster than Big Thunder Mountain, but because the ride is in the dark with terrifying characters, it may feel much scarier. It was too much for my younger child but the rest of us would have liked to have ridden multiple times to take in all the visuals.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

• Location in park: Mysterious Island
• Thrill Level: Mild to Moderate
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: 40th Anniversary Priority Pass (free)

Right next to Journey to the Center of the Earth is another Jules Verne inspired attraction. While this ride shares a name with an attraction that was in Walt Disney World when I was a child, it is vastly different. It's much more mysterious with creepier creatures and a story line that diverges from Disney's 1954 film based on the novel.

The unique ride vehicles seat six, with pairs of guest sharing one of three portholes. Guests can operate a flashlight to illuminate the dark corners of the sea's depths and get a better look at the creatures beneath. The ride movement is pretty mild, but the visuals are a little scary so evaluate it carefully with particularly sensitive little ones!

Tower of Terror

• Location in park: American Waterfront
• Thrill Level: Moderate to Thrilling
• Best Ages: Older Kids, Teens, Adults
• Shortcut to ride: Disney Premier Access (¥1500 - about $10)

Stay with me here. I know there is a Tower of Terror in multiple Disney parks around the world. But other than the drops themselves, the ride is totally and completely different in Tokyo DisneySea.

There is no Twilight Zone theming and the ride hasn't gone the way of Guardians of the Galaxy like Disneyland's former version either. Rather, the attraction has an elaborate and decorated queue with a pre-show that tells the tale of Harrison Hightower, a member of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (whom Disney geeks may notice bears a striking resemblance to Disney Imagineer Joe Rohde). The tower was cursed after Hightower plundered an idol from a tribe in the Congo.

The drops themselves are noticeably milder than the Florida version, although not enough that we would have taken my thrill ride averse 10 year old on it. But the story, queue, and pre-show make it a true gem.

Aquatopia

• Location in park: Port Discovery
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: None

Aquatopia is definitely not quite a headliner in the way that Journey to the Center of the Earth or Tower of Terror is, but it was the sleeper hit of the unique attractions we experienced at Tokyo DisneySea. The attraction uses trackless ride vehicles that remind me a bit of a much-improved version of the old Luigi's Flying Tires in Disneyland. They are set atop a thin film of water, dashing and spinning in between water spouts and waterfalls that threaten to douse guests at any moment (spoiler alert: you won't actually get wet).

The ride only has a standby line with no available shortcuts, but that keeps the line moving and often quite short. We rode it with just a 20-25 minute wait during the busiest part of the afternoon (when it was posted at 30 minutes). It's a quality attraction to fit in between Priority Pass and Premier Access reservation times - especially with kids.

Nemo & Friends SeaRider

• Location in park: Port Discovery
• Thrill Level: Mild to Moderate
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: 40th Anniversary Priority Pass (free)

Nemo & Friends SeaRider was one of my son's top ride picks from our time in DisneySea. Guests are shrunk down to the size of a fish and then are sent to explore the underwater world at the Marine Life Institute. Familiar animated pals Nemo, Dory, Marlin, and others are part of the story.

The attraction is a screen-based simulator similar to Star Tours, but set within a much larger theater ride vehicle. SeaRider moves less than Star Tours with fewer thrills, making it rideable even for kids as young as preschoolers as long as they meet the 90 cm (35.4 inch) height requirement.

Sindbad's Storybook Voyage

• Location in park: Arabian Coast
• Thrill Level: Mild
• Best Ages: All ages
• Shortcut to ride: None

Sindbad's Storybook Voyage was the one must-do DisneySea attraction on my list that was sadly down for refurbishment during our visit. I know it would have been my son's favorite, as it is is a slow moving boat ride through animatronic character scenes with inspiration from attractions like "it's a small world" and Pirates of the Caribbean. Check out Disney Tourist's Blog full Sindbad's ride review which praises its catchy song and quality Audio Animatronics.

Coming Soon: Fantasy Springs

On June 6, 2024, a brand new land called Fantasy Springs will be opening in Tokyo DisneySea. That land will have multiple new and unique attractions that American visitors will want to prioritize. While details are still forthcoming, keep these four attractions on your must-do list (and start planning for the long lines and complex logistics that they will bring!):

• Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey: Boat ride expended to be quite different from Frozen Ever After in Epcot.
• Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival: Dark ride in gondolas through the scenes of the movie Tangled.
• Peter Pan’s Never Land Adventure: 3D attraction where Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, and the Lost Kids rescue John from Captain Hook.
• Fairy Tinker Bell’s Busy Buggies: Help Tinker Bell deliver packages throughout the fairy valley, featuring different seasons.

Honorable Mentions

If you are able to get through the truly unique attractions above and have more time to spare, I highly recommend trying these additional rides, experiences, and attractions in Tokyo DisneySea.

• Soaring: Fantastic Flight: The ride is almost identical to Soarin' Around the World in Florida and California. But the queue and pre-show are decidedly not. Instead, the queue features great thinkers in history who contributed to the discovery of flight. The pre-show features a member of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers - no chief flight attendant Patrick here!
• Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull: Similar to the ride at Disneyland but with enough that is different that it's worth a ride for anyone who enjoys it there. It's noticeably not as jerky or bumpy as Disneyland's version (a negative for my thrill ride loving older child but a positive for my thrill ride averse younger one).
• Venetian Gondolas: There's no ride like it in the Disney universe, but if you've been to Venice for real or even to The Venetian in Las Vegas, you've done something similar. We did it for the park views and especially appreciated the cultural mash-up of Japanese gondoliers calling out "Ciao!"
• Raging Spirits: The only coaster with an inversion at Tokyo Disney Resort, but we skipped it as it's not that highly rated and is similar to (the equally poorly reviewed) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril coaster in Disneyland Paris. That said, completists and/or thrill ride lovers may want to prioritize it!