Started my day sleeping in until almost 6am.  Got done and went to breakfast at 7am when they opened then posted some stories and prepared for the day.  Left the room just before 8:30am and arrived at Tokyo DisneySea around 8:45am.  Took about 10 minutes to go through security and ticket scan and I was in the park prior to its 9am posted opening still.  Thought about Soarin or Toy Story but both were long and over an hour as soon as times showed up at 9am.  Instead walked onto the Venetian Gondolas then the Electric Railway.  Took a look at Journey to the Center of the Earth but it had already grown to 40 minutes so instead opted for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.  Then traveled to the Lost River Delta for  Indiana Jones which was posted at 25 and took under 15.  Took the steamer to Mediterranean Harbor and then walked around to the American Waterfront area.  Got in the standby line for the first Big Band Beat Special Treat show.  After the show found a spot to watch the Let’s Celebrate with Colors.  After the show hiked out to the SS Columbia to check out the view then decided to go over to Ikspiari for lunch.  Then back to the park.  Some did some shopping and then we took a slow stroll out to the American Waterfront, Cape Cod area.  Took a Transit Steamer for a round trip.  At this point some of the group went to rest and I continued on through Cape Cod and out to Port Discovery then the Lost River Delta.  Stopped by the Arabian Coast to check out the Fantasy Springs entry point then walked by Mermaid Lagoon and through Mysterious Island.  Walked through the Fortress Explorations area and then spent some time along the water in the American Waterfront.  Made my way out to Port Discovery and took the Electric Railway back to the American Waterfront.  Met the rest of my group and visited the SS Columbia again then explored the waterfront area. About 20 minutes before showtime found a spot for Believe! Sea of Dreams.  After the show hung around to see the fireworks but they were cancelled.   Made a loop of the American Waterfront and then headed for the park exit.  The park was closing in 15 minutes and lines were still longer than my patience.  Took the Resort Line back to Bayside Station and walked back to the Hilton to call it a night.

• We decided to leave the room around the same time today as yesterday, 8:30 and arrived at Tokyo DisneySea just prior to opening. Made it through security and into the park right about opening time at 9am.    I had no must see attraction to rush to and the goal was just to enjoy the park.  The only new addition since my last visit is Soaring Fantastic Flight which I would like to see but I was not going to wait triple digits for it, even at park opening it had very long wait as a majority of guests seemed to rush there.  
• I checked the wait times as we were walking in and at 9am they showed up with Soaring and Toy Story already long but everything else looking reasonable.  We instead opted for a leisurely morning visiting some attractions of opportunity with modest waits. 
• I tried for the Entry Request seating for Big Band Beat Special Treat and failed so we decided to get in the Standby line for the first show and watched that.   The show was a nice character show but a shell of its former self with no band, less performers and shorter.  If you had not seen the original you would walk out with a positive reaction but for those of us that had seen the previous versions we left a bit disappointed.
• Overall entertainment at Tokyo DisneySea has not recovered yet.  There is no lagoon show during the day.  There are two character events.   There is no show in the Hanger Stage and the one in the American Waterfront is a character dance show vs a big production.  I did not see any atmosphere entertainment at all, I heard the band was performing throughout the day but somehow managed to miss them.   There were no spring offerings and the 40th were on the lite side.   The evening consisted of Believe! Sea of Dreams which replaced Fantasmic!  I did run into a group of cast members that had a rolling sound system and were dancing with guests to celebrate the anniversary too.
• Let’s Celebrate with Colors is a single boat character encounter to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Tokyo Disney Resort. It features the theme song and a half dozen characters that circle the lagoon several times.    By itself this was an standard character encounter and drew a healthy crowd to both showings. 
• Learned something interesting at lunch.  The Ikspiari vending machines were 20 yen less for Coke than the Disney Resort Line and the Parks machines.     The machines were located just around the corner from each other.
• The Tokyo DisneySea Transit Steamers had a pair of interesting routes happening throughout the day until sunset.  The one departing from the American Waterfront was going round trip.  The second route was cycling between the Mediterranean Harbor to Lost River Delta and you had to disembark at the opposite stop, so no round trips.
• I kept checking Soaring through the day and it was in triple digits dipping down to just over an hour at one point. Still longer than I wanted to spend to see the queue and couple Tokyo customizations to the film.  Maybe next visit.
• The Fantasy Springs walkway looks to be progressing slowly.  It is going to be quite a hike from the park entrance out to the new land.  The entry point is between the Flying Carpets and Raging Spirits attraction.   From in the park you can see a little of the expansion but due to its location not a lot.
• Today turned out to be a picture perfect day at the parks with blue skies for most of the day and some warmth. It was very comfortable to walk around.  The crowds felt average for DisneySea.  It did not feel crowded but the wait times for some of the key attractions were well over an hour and in triple digits most of the day.
• As the sun set it was time for Believe! Sea of Dreams.  I was unsure where I wanted to watch from but I knew I did not have the patience to wait more than 20-30 minutes and I did not want to pay for a spot.  So that limited my choices a bit.  I ended up standing a couple rows back across from the Villa Donaldo shop.  This turned out to be a good compromise of being close to the main lagoon and having a view of the projections on the Hotel Mira Costa and on Mt. Prometheus.  
• Believe! Sea of Dreams replaced Fantasmic! As the prime evening spectacular in the park.  The show lives up to the hype with its use of technology and scope.  The story is all in Japanese so it is a tad hard to follow for those like me that no zero Japanese.   The basic gist is you are seeing a sequence of dreams Wendy is having.    There was a lot going on throughout the show.  They utilize a number of locations for projection mapping plus barges on the water.  I thought the use of all these different types of media and elements was great to see and added up to a good experience.   The view I chose turned out to be great to get a sampling of all the elements.  I was impressed with the large floating screens. The clarity and brightness made them easy to see as they moved around the lagoon.  The effects on Mt. Prometheus were a nice compliment to things and the projections on the hotel added to the show.   On a first viewing, there was a lot to take in and places to look. I look forward to viewing it again. Since it only runs once per evening I will only be seeing it twice this visit if all stays as planned.
  
  Since this show replaced Fantasmic! The question is how does it compare.  I thought it worked for the space and fit more naturally than Fantasmic!  My problem with Fantasmic! was I always compare it to the stateside shows and it was really different seeing it in the round.  I thought Believe! Sea of Dreams was a step forward from a technology perspective and I was more entertained by the show, but again this was a first showing not repeated viewing like the previous show, so we will see how it fares on subsequent viewings.
  
• Fireworks were canceled as seems to be the norm during my visits to Tokyo.   Most nights they do not seem to run.
  

2023 Tokyo Disney Trip Summary

Links from today:

• Pictures: Believe! Sea of Dreams
• Pictures: American Waterfront at Tokyo DisneySea
• Pictures: Let’s Celebrate With Colors at Tokyo DisneySea
• Pictures: 40th Anniversary Dream-Go-Round Tokyo Disney Resort Liner Interior
• Pictures: Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Construction from Resort Line (5/16/23)
• Pictures: Tokyo Disneyland Space Mountain Construction Site From Resort Line (5/16/23)
• Pictures: S.S. Columbia View at Tokyo DisneySea
• Pictures: A Clear & Sunny Morning at Tokyo Disney Resort Today
• All my posts from today

• Tokyo Disney Resort Pictures
• Geek's Blog Tokyo Pictures
• Geek's Blog Tokyo News/Posts