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![]() Cinderella Castle is the icon of Tokyo Disneyland. | |
Location | Tokyo Disney Resort, Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan |
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Coordinates | 35°37′58″N139°52′50″E / 35.63278°N 139.88056°E |
Status | Operating |
Opened | April 15, 1983 |
Operated by | The Oriental Land Company |
Theme | The Kingdom of Dreams and Magic |
Area | 115 acres (47 ha) |
Website | Tokyo Disney Resort Homepage |
Tokyo Disney Resort |
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Theme parks |
Resort hotels |
Shopping, dining and entertainment |
The Oriental Land Company |
Tokyo Disneyland (東京ディズニーランド, Tōkyō Dizunīrando) (local nickname TDL) [1] is a 115-acre (47 ha) theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, near Tokyo. [2] Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside the United States and it opened on April 15, 1983. The park was constructed by WED Enterprises in the same style as Magic Kingdom in Florida and Disneyland in California. [2] It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses intellectual property from The Walt Disney Company. Tokyo Disneyland and its companion park, Tokyo DisneySea, are the only Disney parks in the world not owned or operated by The Walt Disney Company in any capacity.
The park has seven themed areas: the World Bazaar; the four traditional Disney lands: Adventureland, Westernland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland; and two mini-lands: Critter Country and Toontown. Many of these areas mirror those in the original Disneyland as they are based on American Disney films and fantasies. Fantasyland includes Peter Pan's Flight, Snow White's Scary Adventures, and Dumbo the Flying Elephant, based on Disney films and characters. [3] The park is noted for its extensive open spaces to accommodate the large crowds that visit the park. [2] In 2022, Tokyo Disneyland hosted 12 million visitors, making it the fourth-most visited theme park in the world and the second-most visited theme park in Asia. [4]
The idea of a Japanese Disneyland dates back to the late 1950s when Japanese businessman Kunizo Matsuo approached Walt Disney with the idea of a Disney park in Nara. While it is rumored Walt initially agreed to the idea, he later dropped out of it. Matsuo, still determined to open his Disney-themed park, opened Nara Dreamland in 1961, a near replica of Disneyland except without Disney characters or intellectual property. This park would continue to operate until 2006.[ citation needed ]
Masatomo Takahashi of The Oriental Land Company [ clarification needed ] approached Walt Disney Productions with the idea of Tokyo Disneyland in August 1978. Due to the success of the recently opened Disney World in Florida, Disney and Takahashi negotiated, and the initial contract for the construction of Disneyland in Chiba Prefecture was signed in April 1979. [5] Japanese engineers and architects visited California to tour Disneyland and prepare to construct the new park. [6] The construction of the park began a year later and was covered by hundreds of reporters as an indication of the high expectations for the park in the future. The final cost of Tokyo Disneyland was 180 billion yen rather than the projected 100 billion yen. [6]
On February 28, 2020, Oriental Land announced a temporary closure of Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea from February 29 to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. [7] The closure, originally slated to expire in mid-March, was later extended twice, with the latest extension being until July 1, 2020. [8]
The park began English-language gender neutral announcements in 2021. [9]
With a few exceptions, Tokyo Disneyland features the same attractions found in Disneyland and Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. [2]
World Bazaar is the main entry corridor and primary shopping area of Tokyo Disneyland. Despite the use of the word "World" in its name, the general look and theme of World Bazaar is that of early 20th-century America, matching the "Main Street, U.S.A." areas of other Magic Kingdom-style parks. World Bazaar consists of two intersecting "streets": Main Street (the primary corridor running from the main entrance toward Cinderella Castle), and Center Street, which forms a perpendicular line with Main Street and leads to Adventureland in one direction and Tomorrowland in the other. World Bazaar has a permanent canopy covering the Main Street and Center Street areas, designed to protect guests from the elements.[ citation needed ]
Adventureland consists of two distinct yet complementary areas: A New Orleans-themed area and a "jungle"-themed area. It borrows stylistic and architectural features from the New Orleans Square and Adventureland areas found in Disneyland Park in the United States.[ citation needed ]
Westernland is an "old west" themed area, the counterpart of Frontierland in other Magic Kingdom-style parks. The landscape of Westernland is dominated by Big Thunder Mountain, a Monument Valley-style mountain surrounding a mine train roller coaster, and the Rivers of America, a man-made waterway that is home to the Mark Twain Riverboat, Tom Sawyer Island, and numerous live and Audio-Animatronic animals.[ citation needed ]
Critter Country is a small area of the park with the key attraction being Splash Mountain, a log-flume ride which opened in 1992 and is based on the animated sequences of Disney's 1946 film Song of the South .[ citation needed ]
Like other Magic Kingdom theme parks, Fantasyland's central entryway is a castle, in this case Cinderella Castle, a near exact copy of the one in Florida's Magic Kingdom. Lacking any "thrill rides," Fantasyland's attractions are generally dark rides that take visitors through scenes from Disney films such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs , Peter Pan , and Pinocchio .[ citation needed ]
A new Beauty and the Beast sub-section opened in September 2020 as part of the theme park's largest expansion. A dark ride named Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast is housed in the new Beauty and the Beast Castle with Maurice's Cottage and Gaston's Fountain at its entrance. [10] The new section also houses Belle's Village which includes the La Taverne de Gaston eatery, and Village Shoppes selling souvenirs and gifts. [11]
A new stage show venue named Fantasyland Forest Theatre is also part of the expansion. With a capacity of 1,500 people, the venue will introduce a 25-minute Mickey's Magical Music World show. [12]
Like its counterpart at Disneyland, Toontown (called "Mickey's Toontown" at Disneyland) is heavily inspired by the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit . The major attraction here is Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin.[ citation needed ]
A new attraction named Minnie's Style Studio opened in September 2020 as part of the theme park's largest expansion. As a character greeting area, it allows guests to take photos with Minnie who will be wearing a rotating selection of seasonal outfits. [11]
As is the case with other modern-day Disney theme parks, Tokyo Disneyland's Tomorrowland forgoes a realism-based vision of the future and instead features science-fiction fantasy themes. Architecturally it borrows much from the 1971–1993 version of Florida's Tomorrowland. Rides include Space Mountain, Star Tours – The Adventures Continue, and Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters.
A rotating car ride named The Happy Ride With Baymax opened in September 2020 as part of the theme park's largest expansion. The ride is the first Disney attraction to be themed based on Disney's 2014 film Big Hero 6. [13] A new specialty space-themed popcorn shop named The Big Pop also opened on the same day. [12]
2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
12,900,000 [14] | 13,906,000 [15] | 14,293,000 [16] | 13,646,000 [17] | 14,452,000 [18] | 13,996,000 [19] | 14,847,000 [20] | 17,214,000 [21] | 17,300,000 [22] | 16,600,000 [23] |
2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Worldwide rank (2020) | |||
16,540,000 [24] | 16,600,000 [25] | 17,907,000 [26] | 17,910,000 [27] | 4,160,000 [28] | 6,300,000 [29] | 6 |
Since the park opened in 1983, Tokyo Disney Resort has regularly been one of the most profitable Disney resorts. By 1994, over 149 million people had entered through the gates of Tokyo Disneyland, more than Japan's entire population of 127.6 million at the time. [30] In 1996, it employed 12,390 people, making Tokyo Disneyland the biggest workplace in Japan's diversionary outings at that time. [30] Many speculate that Tokyo Disneyland is such an economic success due to timing and location; the theme park lies in a metropolitan area with a population of 30 million and opened at the height of a booming economy where hard-working citizens desired an escape from reality. [31]
Tokyo Disneyland states that one of its main aims is to improve the park and diversify from the limits of the domestic Disney parks. Tokyo Disneyland has recently been adding a national identity within the parks by adding attractions with distinctly Japanese qualities. Cinderella Castle displays the Disney character and story plot yet presents the story through the eyes of the Japanese. Once dominated by Disney Legends, Masatomo Takahashi, the former president of The Oriental Land Company, states this growth and development as one of its primary goals: "We must not just repeat what we receive from Disney. I am convinced that we must contribute to the cultural exchange between Japan and U.S.A." [6]
Disney California Adventure Park is a theme park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. The 72-acre (29 ha) park is themed after Disney's interpretation of California, by the use of Disney, Pixar and Marvel Studios properties. The park opened on February 8, 2001, and is the second of two theme parks built at the Disneyland Resort complex, after Disneyland Park.
Hong Kong Disneyland is a theme park located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay, Lantau Island, Hong Kong. It is the first Disneyland in Asia outside of Japan. The Hong Kong Disneyland is located inside the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and it is owned and managed by Hong Kong International Theme Parks. It is the largest theme park in Hong Kong, followed by Ocean Park Hong Kong. Hong Kong Disneyland opened to visitors on Monday, 12 September 2005 at 13:00 HKT. Disney attempted to avoid problems of cultural backlash by incorporating Chinese culture, customs and traditions when designing and building the resort, including adherence to the rules of feng shui. Notably, a bend was put in a walkway near the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort entrance so good qi energy would not flow into the South China Sea.
Magic Kingdom Park is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. It opened on October 1, 1971, and is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. The official park name has changed slightly over the years, from Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom (1971–1994) and The Magic Kingdom (1994–2017). The park was initialized by Walt Disney and designed by WED Enterprises. The park layout and attractions were based on Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, and are dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters.
Disneyland Park, originally Euro Disneyland Park, is a theme park found at Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. The park opened on 12 April 1992 as the first of the two parks built at the resort. Designed and built by Walt Disney Imagineering, its layout is similar to Disneyland Park in California and Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World in Florida. Spanning 56.656 ha —the second largest Disney park based on the original, after Shanghai Disneyland Park—it is dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters.
Walt Disney Studios Park is the second of two theme parks built at Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. which opened on 16 March 2002. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. Upon opening, it was dedicated to show business, movie themes, production, and behind-the-scenes, but in the 2010s, in a similar manner to its sister park, Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in Florida, it began to distance itself from the original studio backlot theming and entered a new direction of attraction development inspired by iconic Disney stories. In 2019, the park hosted approximately 5.2 million guests. The park is represented by the Earffel Tower, a water tower with Mickey Mouse ears similar to the one formerly located at Disney's Hollywood Studios, which in turn was inspired by the water tower at the Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank, California.
Tomorrowland is one of the many "themed lands" featured at all of the Magic Kingdom styled Disney theme parks around the world owned or licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Each version of the land is different and features numerous attractions that depict views of the future. Disneyland Park in Paris includes a similar area called Discoveryland, which shares some elements with other Tomorrowlands but emphasizes visions of the future inspired by Jules Verne.
Fantasyland is one of the "themed lands" at all of the Magic Kingdom-style parks run by The Walt Disney Company around the world. It is themed after Disney's animated fairy tale feature films. Each Fantasyland has a castle, as well as several gentle rides themed after those Disney animated feature films.
Frontierland is one of the "themed lands" at the many Disneyland-style parks run by Disney around the world. Themed to the American frontier of the 19th century, Frontierlands are home to cowboys and pioneers, saloons, red rock buttes and gold rushes along with some influence from American history and North America in general. It is named Westernland at Tokyo Disneyland and Grizzly Gulch at Hong Kong Disneyland.
Autopia is a race car track Disneyland attraction, in which patrons steer specially designed cars through an enclosed track. Versions of Autopia exist at Anaheim, California and Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. There was also an Autopia at Hong Kong Disneyland on Lantau Island, Hong Kong before it closed on June 11, 2016. Other versions of the attraction can be found at the Magic Kingdom as the Tomorrowland Speedway and formerly at Tokyo Disneyland as the Grand Circuit Raceway. A previous generation of Disneyland's Autopia operated for over a decade at the Walt Disney Hometown Museum in Marceline, Missouri; one of the retired cars is now on display.
Universal Islands of Adventure, originally called Universal Studios Islands of Adventure and later Universal's Islands of Adventure, is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened on May 28, 1999, along with CityWalk, as part of an expansion that converted Universal Studios Florida into the Universal Orlando Resort. The resort's slogan Vacation Like You Mean It was introduced in 2013.
Mickey's Toontown is a themed land at Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland, two theme parks operated by Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and The Oriental Land Company respectively. At Tokyo Disneyland, this land is named Toontown. A similar land existed at the Magic Kingdom until 2011 and was named Mickey's Toontown Fair. Walt Disney Studios Park in Disneyland Paris has a related land called Toon Studio.
Mad Tea Party is a spinning tea cup ride at five of the six Disneyland-style theme parks around the world. The ride theme is inspired by the Unbirthday Party scene in Walt Disney's Alice In Wonderland, and plays a carousel version of the film's "Unbirthday Song". It was one of the opening day attractions operating at Disneyland on July 17, 1955.
The Barnstormer is a junior roller coaster. It is located in the Storybook Circus section of the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort. The Great Goofini's Barnstormer is the successor to The Barnstormer at Goofy's Wiseacre Farm which closed in February 2011 as part of the Fantasyland expansion.
Disneyland is a theme park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney, and opened on July 17, 1955.
Shanghai Disneyland is a theme park located in Chuansha New Town, Pudong, Shanghai, China, that is part of the Shanghai Disney Resort. The park is operated by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products and Shanghai Shendi Group, through a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and Shendi. Construction began on April 8, 2011. The park opened on June 16, 2016. The park operated in its first half-year with a visitor attendance of 5.60 million guests.
Tokyo DisneySea is a theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, just next to Tokyo. It opened on 4 September 2001, at a cost of 335 billion yen. The Oriental Land Company owns the park, and licenses intellectual property from The Walt Disney Company. In 2022, Tokyo DisneySea hosted 10.1 million visitors, making it the eighth-most visited theme park in the world and the third-most visited in Japan.
Celebrate! Tokyo Disneyland was a nighttime spectacular at Tokyo Disneyland that premiered on July 10, 2018, alongside Dreaming Up!, Let's Party Gras, and Hello, New York! as part of the 35th anniversary of Tokyo Disney Resort. The show was produced by Walt Disney Creative Entertainment, under Lead Creative Executive of Parades and Spectaculars Steve Davison.