As a couple, our Japan story began a few months before we were married. Call it early 2011. We were interested in going to Disney World in Orlando for our honeymoon. We’d both visited the Most Magical Place on Earth, but our experiences there had been mixed so we were excited to try it under better conditions — which we did in October and November of that year. To prepare for that trip, we requested, and Disney sent us, a promotional DVD of enticements to stay in Disney hotels, eat at Disney restaurants, buy Mickey ears and generally empty our pockets for the House of Mouse. And if that weren’t enough of a sales pitch, the DVD included commercials for Disney’s foreign parks as well. We were gobsmacked by our first glimpses at what was then a decade-old park called Tokyo DisneySea, the second gate in a Japanese Disney complex designed and built by Imagineers but owned and operated, to exacting Japanese standards of quality and service, by a corporation called The Oriental Land Company.
Lordy, what a park! Many experts consider Tokyo DisneySea the finest theme park ever devised and crafted by human beings, even after the opening of Shanghai Disney, Universal Beijing and Orlando’s newest park, Epic Universe. What’s so great about it? The question should really be, Is there anything about Tokyo Disney Resort that isn’t objectively fantastic? Imagine a Disneyland not only run by Japan’s famously perfectionist service professionals, but populated by thousands of intensely polite, enthusiastic, order-loving Japanese guests. Even on hot, crowded, summer days, Japanese Disney fans queue up patiently, keep the noise level down, even dress up in costume (a practice usually forbidden in American Disney parks due to all-too-reasonable safety and security concerns). Tokyo Disneyland may surpass the original as the best Disney “castle park” anywhere. DisneySea, which sits on the coast of Tokyo Bay, deploys Disney imagination and Tokyo technology (and yen — so many millions of yen) on a collection of maritime-themed lands, attractions, hotels, restaurants and shops that put even EPCOT World Showcase in Orlando to shame.
We watched that promotional DVD with our jaws hanging open, then watched it again and again, vowing to visit those parks as soon as humanly and economically possible. As we all know, though, tickets from the U.S. to Japan are notoriously expensive, and any trip to a Disney resort is logistically daunting. Of course we had no intention of going to Japan and seeing only American Disney IP, so that added multiple layers of complexity and expense to the project. Years went by and we’ve been lucky enough in the years since then to visit Las Vegas, Paris, New Orleans, Venice, Florence, Rome, Reykjavik, Montreal, New England, New York City and much of Thailand, along with return trips to both American Disney resorts. I say this not to brag but to marvel at how incredibly privileged and fortunate we’ve been. Not for one second do we take any of it for granted, which is a big part of why I do everything I can to share our adventures with you. Japan will be no exception.
Because it’s happening, Gentle Reader; it is finally, finally happening. We’d been planning to travel to Mexico this fall, which is why we studied Spanish on Duolingo this year and not Japanese. (Despite cramming, I know as much Japanese now as I knew of Thai last fall, which is to say: chotto. Nid nid. Un poquito. It’s embarrassing. I’m packing Google Translate and two Nihongo phrasebooks.) Then a certain anti-Latino president lucked back into office, because yeah, that’s the timeline we selected, and we started to think maybe Americans wouldn’t be greeted warmly in Mexico City or Oaxaca. A travel vlogger on YouTube mentioned something about the surprisingly low cost of traveling to Japan in the mid-2020s, and that piqued my interest. It turns out the Biden administration helped the U.S. pull out of the pandemic recession faster than most other Western democracies — and Japan. As a result, the yen is performing downright feebly against the U.S. dollar right now, so if you can swing those pricey airline tickets, now’s exactly the right time to visit the Land of the Rising Sun. Of course a lot of Americans are doing exactly that, but even so, the Tokyo Disney Parks are still attended mostly by the Japanese, which keeps things like food and hotel costs (relatively!) low. As my beautiful wife Amanda and I make comfortable livings and chose not to have kids, our two-and-a-half-week trip to Japan, including four full days in the Tokyo Disney Resort, won’t send us straight to the poorhouse. We even lucked out when President Pedo visited Japan last month but somehow managed not to create an international conflict (though he did at one point wander away in a moment of senescent confusion, only to be guided back to reality by Japan’s new — and first female — prime minister).
In years past, I’ve stolen time from my travel schedule to post photo essays documenting our travels. You seemed to enjoy those, and I like creating them, but on this trip I want to devote all my time to really taking it all in. Obviously I’ll still snap what will probably be hundreds of photos and videos, and I’m looking forward to sharing those with you upon our return to the States. In the meantime, I’ll post images and videos to social media, but with very little context or explanation. You can track those on Instagram and Facebook as the month progresses. When I arrive home a few days before Thanksgiving, watch for longer entries here. I’ll walk you through everything we’ll learn and enjoy about Japan’s amazing society and its explosion of ultra-high-tech, pop-culture-y goodness, not to mention restaurant meals and other experiences that’ll probably leave us wondering where they’ve been all our lives. (Japan, by the way. That wasn’t a trick question. It was Japan. They were all in Japan.) I can’t wait to tell you every little thing. Until then, our full itinerary is below to help you identify the locations and attractions you’ll see in our photos. Let us know in the comments what you’re most excited about discovering, and I’ll try to manage my writing and photographic efforts accordingly.
Japan Month is finally here! I’ll be in DisneySea a week from today! By the way, I absolutely would not be doing this, nor would I enjoy it even a hundredth as much if I did, were it not for the fact that I’m married to my all-time best friend and favorite worldwide travel companion. Over the last few months, we’ve begun referring to ourselves with ironic winks as “the most fun couple you know.” Granted, that probably isn’t true, especially if you’re the most fun couple we know, but at least it gives us something to shoot for — and, as other couples online and in real life have done for us, you might be inspired by our international fumblings to go out there and chase crazy adventures for yourself. I would love that. If you do, remember to bring us along as your own virtual stowaways!
JAPAN ITINERARY (Nov. 8-24, 2025)
Saturday, Nov. 8: Leave SeaTac 8:00 p.m., spend the night in Vancouver, BC.
Sunday, Nov. 9: This long leg of our air journey crosses the International Date Line toward Tokyo. While aboard, fill out the quarantine questionnaire distributed by the flight crew. Fill out a personal effects and unaccompanied articles declaration form. Quarantine, customs inspection. SIM card. Suica cards near JR turnstiles. Use takkyubin (easy shipping service) to send most of our luggage to our first hotel?
Monday, Nov. 10: Arrive 4:20 p.m. at Terminal 1. 6:10-7:08 p.m., take Limousine Bus #18 from Narita Airport to the Disney Ambassador Hotel. Grab dinner at Ikspiari (Ippudo Ramen), then Uber or cab to TeamLab Planets by 8:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 11: Tokyo DisneySea. Arrive 45 minutes before “Happy Entry 15” time. Upon park entry, make an entry request for Big Band Beat, book a Priority Pass for Indiana Jones, and use a Premier Access to ride Frozen Journey. DPA for Rapunzel. Peter Pan. Mysterious Island for 10,000 Leagues (sadly, Voyage to the Center of the Earth is under refurbishment). Port Discovery for Aquatopia and Nemo & Friends. Snack through Cape Cod to the American Waterfront. Lunch at Teddy Roosevelt Lounge, 12:30 p.m. Electric Railway. Fortress Explorations. Mediterranean Harbor. Dinner at Magellan’s, 6 p.m. Sunset gondola ride? Harbor show? Tower of Terror. Arabian Coast, Sinbad. Soaring, Transit Steamer, Busy Buggies, Magic Lamp Theater, top of Caravan Carousel, Mermaid Lagoon.
Wednesday, Nov. 12: Switch to our Park View room at Hilton Tokyo Bay, Tokyo Disneyland. Arrive 45 minutes before “Happy Entry 15” time. Upon park entry at 9 a.m., security a Priority Pass for Pooh’s Hunny Hunt. Beauty and the Beast (might need Premier Access). Entry request for Mickey’s Magical Musical World. Pooh. Monsters, Inc. (might use Priority Pass). Haunted Mansion. Big Thunder Railroad. Lunch at Eastside Cafe, 12:50 p.m. Snack in World Bazaar (waffles or pastry). Single-rider at Splash Mountain; explore that area. Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade. Harmony in Color parade. Country Bear Jamboree. Western River Railroad or Mark Twain at sunset. Pirates and dinner at Blue Bayou, 6:10 p.m. Jungle Cruise. Happy Ride With Baymax. Peter Pan, Star Tours, Pinocchio.
Thursday, Nov. 13: Tokyo DisneySea again. Counter service for lunch (Vulcania?); 6:10 p.m. Restaurant Sakura.
Friday, Nov. 14: Tokyo Disneyland again. Hungry Bear Restaurant and Queen of Hearts Banquet Hall (both counter restaurants).
Saturday, Nov. 15: sleep in, then take the Keiyo Line to Nishi Shinjuku Hotel Mystays near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo proper. It’s an eight-minute walk from there to Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. Dinner at Samurai Restaurant Time.
Sunday, Nov. 16: Asakusa (Senso-ji Temple, walk to Nakamise Dori shopping street). Kabuki-ch? (Golden Gai yokocho, Fuunji Ramen). Karaoke at Champion Bar.
Monday, Nov. 17: Harajuku (Meiji Jingu Shrine), Odawara Station to Hakone (shipping most of our bags to Kyoto). We’re spending that night at the very traditional Madoka no Mori Ryokan, which has in-room onsen and a spectacular view of Mount Fuji.
Tuesday, Nov. 18: Open Air Museum, Hakone Ropeway. Grab a three-hour bullet train to Hotel Resol Trinity Kyoto. Nishiki Market.
Wednesday, Nov. 19: Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Golden Pavilion, Ryoanji Temple and Zen garden. Okonomiyaki at Katsu.
Thursday, Nov. 20: Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine, Nijo Castle near our hotel, Gion (Maruyama Park, Gion Corner), Pontocho Alley.
Friday, Nov. 21: Kiyomizudera Temple, followed by a 64-minute train ride to Swissôtel Nankai Osaka. Shinsekai District, Dotonbori.
Saturday, Nov. 22: Namba Yasaka Shrine, Osaka Castle, back to Tokyo Shibuya Station. Lunch at Bricolage? Hotel Fukudaya, Tokyu Foodshow [sic … also, sick].
Sunday, Nov. 23: Shibuya Scramble, Shibuya Sky, Roppongi Art Triangle, the Tokyo Imperial Palace grounds, Akihabara Electric Town.
Monday, Nov. 24: Jiyucho stationery shop, Harry Harajuku Terrace. Ueno Park and the Tokyo National Museum or anything we missed. Fly home at 6:15 p.m., arrive 2:31 p.m. the same day in the manner of latter-day Marty McFlys. Sugoi! (That’s Japanese, or Nihongo, for “awesome sauce!”)
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