BasiltheBatLord
Well-Known Member
A man rushed onto the parade route during today's Christmas parade, he was forcibly detained and carried away by cast members and the parade was halted for 6 minutes.
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Miscellaneous Tokyo Thoughts
- Thread starter Animaniac93-98
- Start date
Maybe for locals who visits frequently and evaluate their experience in yen, but for us foreigners who only visit once in many years, it was still as good as ever. I visited recently after Japan reopened to self tourism in October but before the Wakuwari discount started, so it was a sweet spot. It was not crowded being on Wednesday.
Due to the weak yen everything was 'cheap' for a foreigner starting from the tickets. I was able to get a great deal from a travel agent for only US$40 for a day. I didn't notice any degradation in food quality compared to last time I visited TDR in 2015, granted I ate in different restaurants, but the food I had at Gaston Tavern was better than the Queen of Hearts I had in 2015. The curry popcorn, little men mochi, some popping candy Baymax soda drink I tried were all delicious.
Everything was clean, well maintained and looked recently renovated (many facades got repainted since 2015 and looked more 'new'), the locals sat down for parades so it made viewing a lot easier compared to other Disney parks. Yes there were no dancers, but I got to watch it properly. Looking at the locals dressed up in elaborate princess costumes (many better in quality than Disney's itself) for Halloween was a highlight.
This may sound ironic but I actually enjoyed TDL better without the fastpass. Maybe thanks to new Baymax and BatB ride, all the crowds were congregated there and everything else other than Splash Mountain had less than 25 minutes line. Whereas on my 2015 trip (also on a weekday), the lines on some of the same rides would have exceeded 50min thanks to a fastpass line. If back in 2015 I waited 5 min for rides I had a fastpass and 40-50min for rides I didn't have one, this time I waited about 10-25 min for each. So the same total time in queues but without fastpass I went around the park at a leisurely pace in a logical sequence. Whereas with fastpasses in 2015 I had to criss-cross across the park multiple times depending on where fastpass availability was, which made it more tiring. Obviously BatB had a massive wait time, but there was premier access. For someone who only visits TDR once in few years, I am glad for this option as vacation time is precious. Didn't get on Baymax ride, but never planned to as it was too kiddie for my taste.
Overall it was a better experience than both my pre-COVID 2019 Anaheim trip and 2015 TDR trip, but for much less price (after currency translation). Other than no dancers in parade, everything else felt better and cheaper than my 2015 trip. Understand for locals it felt like prices have increased and for getting less, but for a foreigner I only felt what a great bargain you get compared to the US parks without noticeable downgrade. If anything the new BatB area is a huge upgrade, and the BatB ride much better riding in person than watching on youtube (I was covered in goosebumps getting off, so much nostalgia for the music).
I can't speak for TDS since I only had one day to visit TDR so picked TDL for the new BatB area.
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Soleurs
Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
Good choice, Wakuwari is packing the place again. I'm really glad you enjoyed your trip. It's always a different perspective for tourists vs locals, personally I enjoyed my time at Disneyland in May this year much more than any visit I've had at TDR since pre-COVID.
One of the most common complaints I heard was that TDR was too locals-focused, and should cater to tourists more. And I know some people who are regular visitors to Japan and are very pleased with the new changes that allow them to spend more to get things done that used to be available equally to everyone. But, in my opinion, go figure that with (as of 2019) 91% domestic guests and 63% in the immediate area around the park, it would be more biased towards local and repeat visitors.
On that note, I see Americans who benefit from the weak yen dismissing the concerns of the locals entirely (esp. on Twitter, see unnamed news site in particular) because they can't fathom the idea that we aren't somehow benefiting and should be grateful to OLC for the scraps they've thrown us locals since 2020.
For us, we largely want our seasonal events back, and we'd like a fair shot at things without having to pay exorbitant amounts of money. The way 85% of the harbor is locked off for DPA/Packages during Believe is very off-putting, there's virtually no way to see it for free without dedicating the vast majority of the day to sitting on the far periphery. There's still so much cost-cutting we've seen on our end, and so much we lost that the park feels barebones, like a visit to Walt Disney World.
The return of some sort of AP would also be nice.
EPCOTCenterLover
Well-Known Member
Would it have killed Disney to add a few well placed, minimal movement Na'vi into Pandora at Animal Kingdom? That and a few Pandorian animals inside the land would have made a good land much better.
BasiltheBatLord
Well-Known Member
Something interesting I've noticed:
In the past couple months both TDR and USJ have started showing fully mask-less guests (actors) in commercials and promotional videos, including indoors and on attractions. Despite the fact that both parks are still enforcing near absolute mandatory masking rules with no sign of change anytime soon.
In the past couple months both TDR and USJ have started showing fully mask-less guests (actors) in commercials and promotional videos, including indoors and on attractions. Despite the fact that both parks are still enforcing near absolute mandatory masking rules with no sign of change anytime soon.
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Soleurs
Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
I've asked around about this to both OLC and USJ people, they were anticipating being able to lift their mask mandates (or at least officially relax the outdoor one rather than the current wishywashy versions) as early as in October/November because the government was very quickly moving towards reclassifying COVID, then the current wave hit and those plans shifted. I think just today in the news they confirmed that reclassification would come by April because the Kishida cabinet wants to use all the COVID money for that big boost in the defense budget they keep talking about.
Both parks essentially allow you to not wear a mask outside, unless you're in a queue. I wouldn't be surprised if the mandates lift or ease further at least by March or April. From what I understand, both parks are very interested in lifting their mandates because hiring Cast/Crew Members is incredibly difficult when they have to stand outside in the unbearable summer heat/humidity wearing a mask the entire time.
What rides (if any) currently offer single rider?
In 2019 I only remember Splash and Indiana Jones.
In 2019 I only remember Splash and Indiana Jones.
PiratesMansion
Well-Known Member
Raging Spirits also has historically. They were also doing a trial Single Rider for Big Thunder back in June 2019.
BasiltheBatLord
Well-Known Member
Single rider was suspended post-pandemic reopening and at least as of late 2022 Disneyland was still not doing any single rider. Can't comment on if it's changed since then.
Worth noting that USJ did bring their single rider back in 2021 if I remember right.
The official website still lists Indiana Jones as the one ride to have single rider. Not sure if that's actually true or not.
Single rider is why I was able to ride Splash and IJA as many times as I did last trip.
SweetDuffy101
Well-Known Member
Minnies besties bash has started.
even though the quality is still tokyo.
the theme song is a banger and one of the best ones that they've released in recent years.
Theme song is "We Love Minnie"
Here is the Tokyo DisneySea version of the show,
Minnie We love You!
even though the quality is still tokyo.
the theme song is a banger and one of the best ones that they've released in recent years.
Theme song is "We Love Minnie"
Here is the Tokyo DisneySea version of the show,
Minnie We love You!
Nice to see Mickey & Minnie Hug and Kiss again in both TDL & TDS!!! Progress!!!
montydysquith-navarro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- No
Looks like the Tokyo Bride is now a manifestation of Constance H., complete with 5 strands of pearls and floating wedding portraits. No axe though...Hmm, is their Bride also named Constance or did they merge the 2 characters together (foreshadowing of sorts)? Because the character design has her wearing Constance's dress and pearls (but still has the beating heart and candlestick in lieu of her axe), and the character description seems Constance-y.
View attachment 680333
View attachment 680335
The actual figures in the Mansion:
(L-R): The Bride, Tokyo Disneyland; Constance Hatchaway, Magic Kingdom
More subtle changes to the Tokyo mansion can be found here:
BasiltheBatLord
Well-Known Member
Looks like the Tokyo Bride is now a manifestation of Constance H., complete with 5 strands of pearls and floating wedding portraits. No axe though...
More subtle changes to the Tokyo mansion can be found here:
Wow, don't think anyone saw that coming. Particularly given how rare it is for TDR to alter their classic attractions. I assume this is coinciding with the whole Haunted Mansion backstory game thing which debuted recently.
PiratesMansion
Well-Known Member
Looks like the Tokyo Bride is now a manifestation of Constance H., complete with 5 strands of pearls and floating wedding portraits. No axe though...
More subtle changes to the Tokyo mansion can be found here:
Ugh. One of the best things about Tokyo's Mansion was that it was Constance free.
I suppose it's still better than flat out importing the scene from the US parks, but still. Why?
tanc
Premium Member
I definitely think it has to do with the event more than anything. I hope she will be resorted to her original glory.
CraftyFox
Well-Known Member
Japanese Twitter users have been saying that the whole Story Beyond seems to be poorly translated from English to Japanese, which has lead to some confusion. There was some minor controversy over the ballroom dancer character, Harland, as their romantic interest was described with masculine pronouns: "Harland was leaving America love him". Is Harland supposed to be gay? Was this a translation error? I'm not a native speaker so I can't really say.
Soleurs
Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
There was one puzzle that involved the answer being “seven” but it was spelt “sevn” so I got stuck for like three hours. Lots of people on Twitter also got stuck on that same problem, I saw reports of it for most of the day. Either an incredibly small amount of effort was put in or they had a bad translator, which would be somewhat unusual for OLC.