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April 14, 2015 - Day 4 - Tokyo Disneyland

Started off the morning early again.  Had some time so walked around the Hilton a bit and checked my email.  Headed for Disneyland around 8:30am for the 9:00am opening via the Resort Line.  Arrived about 15 minutes before the gates opened.   Once we entered some of the group went to guest relations for guidemaps and I headed for Monsters Inc for FastPasses.   The group caught up to me and we waited about 15 minutes in the Standby Line for Monsters.   Next walked onto Star Tours and then continued into Tomorrowland.  Tried our luck in the Lottery and won tickets to Once Upon a Dream.  Then continued on through Tomorrowland visiting the stores and restaurants.  Walked by Cinderella Castle and into Fantasyland.  Passed through the Queen of Hearts Banquet Hall and then went for a voyage on Small World.   Walked back through Tomorrowland and picked up a FastPass for Buzz Lightyear on my way to use my Monsters Inc one.   Met the rest of my group at the Pan Galactic Pizza Port for some food then our plan was to use the Buzz FastPass but the return line was backed up so we skipped it and headed for One Man’s Dream II.   There were no lotteries today so it was first come, first serve.  We arrived about half an hour before the show.  After the show passed back through World Bazaar stopping for a waffle at the American Waffle Co.  then continued on into Adventureland.  Went for a cruise on Pirates since it was a walk on followed by the Jungle Cruise and the Western River Railroad.   Once back walked through Adventureland and caught a performance of The Enchanted tiki Room: Stitch Presents “Aloha E Komo Mai!”.   Walked along the Rivers of America and through Westerland for a while.  Stopped to take in a showing of the Country Bears and as we came out the rainy day version of the parade was passing by.  Caught the end of it then walked quickly through Fantasyland to catch the entire parade as it made its way toward Toontown.  Turned around and walked back through Fantasyland to rejoin my group near the Haunted Mansion.  Paid the ghosts a visit then walked around Westernland and back into Fantasyland to grab a bite to eat at the Queen of Hearts Banquet Hall.  After dinner waited about 15 minutes for Peter Pan then walked onto the Castle Carrousel.  Walked through the Cinderella’s Fairy Tale Hall then ventured back out into the rain and stopped by Philharmagic  After the movie went on Pinocchio’s Daring Journey then hiked out to Toontown.  Walked around the residential area stopping at Goofy’s Paint ‘n’ Play House.  Then continued on to the Downtown area and went for a spin on Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin.   Walked back through Tomorrowland and stopped for a snack at the Tomorrowland Terrace then walked onto Buzz Lightyear.  After Buzz returned to World Bazaar and spent about 45 minutes walking around taking pictures before deciding to call night.  Walked back through the rain to the Disneyland Resort Line and took it to Bayside Station then the shuttle bus back to the hotel to wrap up my evening.

 

Thoughts & Observations
  • Today the forecast called for only a 90% chance of rain!   It started off with a light drizzly and slightly warmer, nothing like yesterday.    It rained most of the day but we did have a couple brief periods of no rain and drizzle unliked yesterday which was a constant rain.    This meant another long day in the rain at the park.  The good news again is the lines were extremely short and we could roam the park and go on just about anything with a minimal wait.

  • Arrived at the parks about 15 minutes prior to opening and the lines were not bad again.  We were in the park and walking through a crowded World Bazaar.  Once through the first half hour or so of the day the crowd spread out and was not really noticeable to me.  I think the low crowd and a park being build for large crowds, meaning wider walkways and a lot of queue space combined with my sense of normal being Disneyland gave this impression.

  • I went straight to Tomorrowland to get FastPasses for Monsters Inc. Ride & Go Seek!  There were a fair number of guests heading with me but nothing like yesterday and the Toy Story group.   We ended up with a 10:40am return time, not bad.   The standby line was short so we hopped in that and gave it a try.  Your ride vehicle looks like a small tram (small being the key word it is very tight).  You have a flashlight and when you shine it on a logo it triggers something to happen.. ranging from a light, to sound, to a figure appearing or doing something.   I thought the concept was great and the interactivity was fun.  The execution with the jerky trams was not good.  The ride was anything but smooth and combine that with the tight fit it made the experience less than ideal. 

  • Star Tours the Adventures Continue is the same as the US Parks but in Japanese.  Nothing too different jumped out to me.  Interesting to note even with no crowd or line they still had all the simulators  running.

  • I tried my luck and won a seat for Once Upon a Time this evening.   I was hoping the rain would let up by then.  Unfortunately due to the solid rain falling I left the park and did not see the show.  From my room I did notice it was running in the rain though.

  • It’s a Small World seemed a mix of Anaheim and Orlando to me.  Nothing too noteworthy jumped out to me. It was just kind of there.  The music was on the loud side and the mix/quality did not seem the best to me.

  • Ate lunch at Pan Galactic Pizza in Tomorrowland.  It was ok, thought yesterday’s at DisneySea was slightly better. 

  • Because of the light crowds there was no lottery for One Man’s Dream II.  So I showed up about 30 minutes before the show and had no problem getting a decent seat.  I really enjoyed the original One Man’s Dream show at Disneyland years ago so I was looking forward to this.  The show did not disappoint.  It featured a large cast, a lot of characters and a mix of Disney and Pixar films highlighted.  The dialog was in Japanese but most of the songs were in English or so well known you could fill in the lyrics.  Being a typical character show in one respect meant you really did not need to understand the dialog to get the drift of the show.

  • Stopped by the Great American Waffle Company for a snack.. and like the waffles at other parks around the world these were met with a thumbs up.. they were fresh, still hot and tasted good.

  • After the waffles we walked into Adventureland.   The first area you come to is New Orleans.. and Pirates.  It was very surreal to walk up to the front entrance of Pirates.. no bridge or separation.  Also no river in the vicinity.   The ride itself was again a mix of WDW and Disneyland.  It seemed slightly longer than WDW but shorter than Disneyland. 

  • The Jungle Cruise was updated last year and is called the Jungle Cruise: Wildlife Expeditions now.   The sets looked great and there is even some music now.   Unfortunately it is only offered in Japanese so I have no idea the jokes or spiel but the skipper was really into it and extremely animated.   The other guests really seemed to be enjoying what she was saying.

  • The Western River Railroad is in Adventureland too.   Here the steam trains are an attraction where you ride round trip around some of Adventureland then the Rivers of America and Westernland.  You also go by the Primeval Dinorama (no Grand Canyon here).  The trains are smaller (both in terms of the number of cars and the space in the row).  I enjoyed the tour.  Others thought it was a little long and they were not as interested.

  • The Enchanted Tiki Room in Tokyo has been taken over by Stitch and it is called the Enchanted Tiki Room: Stich Presents “Alohe E Komo Mail!”   I thought this was ok.. Stitch fits the Hawaiian/Polynesian theme but I still enjoy the classic show more.  This attraction had English subtitles available via a handheld device.  This was helpful.  

  • Stopped by the Country Bear Theater to see a show.  Most of the show is in Japanese but several of the songs are in English.   I always enjoy the bears so this was great! 

  • As we were heading into the Bears they made an announcement that the regular Hippity-Hoppity Springtime parade was cancelled due to the rain and in its place something else.. I missed what they called it but I assumed it was like Disneyland’s rainy day parade.. nothing too interesting.. some characters in covered cars on the parade route maybe.  Well I came out of the Country Bears and it was raining still full size floats were rolling by.  Turns out the rainy day version means no show stops, no dancers/performers on the ground really, but still the floats and characters and the sound track playing.  All in all it was a very impressive substitute.  I caught the last few floats and then walked quickly to the end of the parade route to try for a second pass and pictures.

  • Ate dinner at the Queen of Hears Banquet Hall.  It was quiet this evening .  Ended up with the rotisserie chicken and it was good. 

  • The Haunted Mansion was next on my list.  It seemed on par with the US versions. Nothing drastically different jumped out to me on my pass through.

  • Peter Pan had a short wait so went for a trip to Neverland.   The ride seemed slightly longer than the US Versions. I did not take a video or run a stop watch but the impression was it seemed longer.

  • The Castle Carrousel was operating at reduced capacity.. they only wanted guests on the outer two rows.    No indication of why.  It is sloped so maybe the wet ground?  Or just to give the impression it was busier than it really was?

  • Cinderella’s Fairy Tale Castle is a walk through of the castle.  It was not as good as I expected.  I do not know what I was expecting but I wanted more.   I guess I was thinking the Disneyland walkthrough but with the largeness of WDW.   In the end it was a couple nice rooms and displays but not a lot more. 

  • Mickey’s PhilharMagic  was the same show as WDW and Hong Kong.  I believe the preshow announcements were Japanese but I cannot remember if the little dialog in the show was.. I want to say it was English.

  • Pinocchio’s Daring Journey seemed faster paced, quicker moving ride vehicles, than Anaheim.  Also they seemed smaller.  Nothing about the ride itself stuck out to me.

  • Toontown was strange to walk into.  It is reversed from Anaheim.  The houses are on the right when you enter and then you go into Downtown on the left with Cartoon Spin being in the back.   

  • Goofy’s house houses an attraction called Goofy’s Paint ‘n’ Play which is an interactive game where you can virtually paint the inside of his house.   Since there were no guests around and no wait we gave it a try. The cast member seemed to be looking for the kids in our group as we entered.

  • Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin is the same as Anaheim except in Japanese.  It has the long interior queue too.

  • Grabbed a snack at the Tomorrowland Terrace.. Mickey shaped chicken nuggets.  They were greasy but tasted ok.  After my burger experience at DisneySea yesterday I was a gun shy to try the Mickey shaped burger here.  

  • Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters are basically the same as Anaheim and Hong Kong. 

  • I spent some time this evening walking World Bazaar and taking pictures.  It was very nice being under cover after being out in the rain all day.  The roof does make it seem louder with sound echoing around.   Also it felt smaller even though I know it was not.    Having actual cross streets that take you places was great too.  The downside was I found myself spending less time in the hub.

  • I ended up heading back to the room just after 8:30pm so another relatively early evening but after battle the rain for two days I was soaked and wanted to go warm up.


Pedometer Stats
Miles 6.8
Steps 18,132
Moderate Steps 7,328
Moderate Steps/Time 67
   

 

 

Pictures
Day 4: Part I: Arrival & Tomorrowland Part I: Arrival & Tomorrowland

Pictures from our room at the Hilton and then arriving at Tokyo Disneyland before setting off to explore Tomorrowland.

Day 4: Part II: Fantasyland Part II: Fantasyland

A look around the Queen of Hearts Royal Banquet Hall and then a trip on it's a Small World before returning to Tomorrowland.
Day 4: Part III: One Man's Dream II: The Magic Lives On Part III: One Man's Dream II: The Magic Lives On

An in depth look at the show performed several times a day at Showbase in Tomorrowland.
Day 4: Part IV: Adventureland Part IV: Adventureland

I travel through World Bazaar and over to Adventureland. Stopping by Pirates and New Orleans and then the Jungle Cruise, Western River Railroad and the Tiki Room with Stitch.
Day 4 Part V: Westernland, Rainy Day Parade & Fantasyland Part V: Westernland, Rainy Day Parade & Fantasyland

A walk around Westernland including a visit to the Country Bear Jamboree. Caught the rainy day version of the Hippity-Hoppity Springtime Parade from Westernland and then Tomorrowland. Visited several attractions in Fantasyland - The Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan, and an indepth look around Cinderella Fairy Tale Hall.
Day 4: Part VI: Toontown & World Bazaar Part VI: Toontown & World Bazaar

Closing out my rainy day in Toontown then around World Bazaar.

 

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