Tokyo DisneySea Itinerary in 2023


I’ve been visiting Toyko DisneySea for over a decade, and this Park still blows me away. My Tokyo DisneySea itinerary shows you how to conquer this wonderful Disney Park in one day. You’ll experience the best attractions, entertainment, and food.

I consider Tokyo DisneySea the pinnacle of Disney Parks around the globe and is a park you cannot miss.

This itinerary takes you through the highlights of the Park. You won’t see and ride everything, but you won’t feel like you’ve missed out. Ideally, you’ll visit for two days, but I’ve designed this itinerary to allow flexibility.

Tokyo DisneySea is a gorgeous park, so I recommend slowing down to soak the immense detail. Take a moment to appreciate this masterpiece between attractions, shows, and food.

With that said, let’s get planning!

Entrance to Tokyo DisneySea

When to Visit Tokyo DisneySea

Tokyo DisneySea opened on September 4, 2001, beside Tokyo Disneyland, and it’s a unique Disney experience you won’t see anywhere else. I recommend making this Park a priority, and if you only have one day to experience Tokyo Disney Resort, then use my guide to decide between DisneySea or Disneyland.

Tokyo DisneySea is a popular park, and in 2024, it’ll become even more popular with the opening of the Park’s most significant expansion, Fantasy Springs. The Park is busy most of the year, so learning how to navigate the crowds is vital.

Window display at Emporio (the main shop at Tokyo DisneySea)

Deciding the best time to visit depends on if you want low crowds, better weather, or experience a specific seasonal event. My guide on the best times to visit Tokyo Disney Resort answers all these questions!

This itinerary assumes you’re visiting on a weekday on a non-holiday. If you’re visiting when it’s busy, you can take out things as you see fit.

Now, let’s talk about tickets for your Tokyo DisneySea itinerary.

Tokyo DisneySea Tickets

You’ll need a Park ticket to visit Tokyo DisneySea. I recommend buying your tickets ahead to ensure the dates you want don’t sell out. Tickets for Tokyo DisneySea are available through the official Tokyo Disney Resort website, where you should try buying tickets first.

If you have issues with the Tokyo Disney Resort website, I recommend buying your tickets through third-party Klook.

For more on Tokyo Disney Resort tickets, see our comprehensive ticket guide!

Once you have your tickets, you can begin planning your day at Tokyo DisneySea.

Plan Your Day

Venetian Gondolas and Mount Prometheus

Can you do Tokyo DisneySea in one day? You can see the highlights in a single day, but it’ll take at least two days to see and do everything. With my Tokyo DisneySea itinerary, you’ll be able to experience a lot.

As mentioned, Tokyo DisneySea is a unique experience, so I’ll show you want things you need to see for yourself. I’ve broken this section down into morning, afternoon, and evening, to help you better digest all this information.

This isn’t a strict itinerary, so I recommend adjusting it for your own personal needs. I’ve designed this to allow flexibility and spontaneity while still seeing what makes Tokyo DisneySea so wonderful.

Keep in mind that Tokyo Disney Resort no longer has FastPass. There’s now StandbyPass, Disney Premier Access (Paid FastPass essentially), and Entry Request. I recommend reading up on these services, as I’ll reference them through this guide.

As of this writing, no attractions are using StandbyPass, but that could change.

Morning

Tower of Terror from the Monorail Station at Tokyo DisneySea

The morning is the most vital part of your Tokyo DisneySea itinerary, arrive early, and the rest of your day will go much more smoothly.

Eat breakfast before you leave your hotel. You don’t want to waste time eating in the first hours inside the Park.

Arrive at least an hour before the scheduled Park opens at the gates of Tokyo DisneySea. My preference is the left-side gates (facing the Park). To get there, take a right when you exit the monorail station. You avoid other guests who come from the bus and shuttle stop on the opposite side.

Once you’re scanned into the Park, you first want to immediately scan everyone’s ticket into the Tokyo Disney Resort app. Having one person scan everyone’s physical ticket into their app is the easiest. Then they’ll be able to manage StandbyPass, Disney Premier Access, and Entry Request for everyone.

When you’re in line for your first attraction, try the Entry Request for Big Band Beat in the later afternoon.

Riding your first attractions

For the first attraction, you’ll have to choose between “Toy Story Mania!” or “Soaring: Fantastic Flight.” These are both high wait time attractions. I recommend Soaring as the queue is the best of all the versions and has unique aspects you won’t find at the other Disney Parks. If you’ve done “Toy Story Mania!” in other Disney Parks, don’t feel bad for skipping it, as it’s precisely the same.

Toy Story Mania!

Both “Toy Story Mania!” and “Soaring: Fantastic Flight” offer Disney Premier Access to skip the line for ¥2,000 (about $13 USD). This is an option if you don’t want to wait in the long standby line.

At around 10 AM, you’ll want to make a same-day dinner reservation for a sit-down restaurant. This is when you’re able to make reservations right at the restaurant. You can also do it on the website, but it’s a pain. My recommendations are Magellan’s or Ristorante Di Canaletto.

Journey to the Center of the Earth

After that, you’ll knock out these attractions to help free up your time for the rest of the day:

  • Journey to the Center of the Earth
  • 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
  • Tower of Terror

If all goes well, you should have all the most significant attractions done so you can take more time for the other attractions, food, and entertainment! If the Tower of Terror has a high wait time, you can leave it for later in the day or closer to closing time when the wait times can drop. The Tower of Terror is the best-themed version of this attraction and can’t be missed.

Now that the morning portion of your Tokyo DisneySea itinerary is complete let’s move on to the afternoon!

Afternoon

Sindbad’s Storybook Voyage

For lunch, you have a few options, and I recommend the following counter-service restaurants:

For more on restaurants, see my review and recommendations guide.

Depending on where you are, make your way to Arabian Coast and begin knocking out more attractions in the back of the Park:

  • Sindbad’s Storybook Voyage
  • Indiana Jones
  • Finding Nemo SeaRider

Check the schedule for the following seasonal show in the Mediterranean Harbor. These are limited-time shows during seasonal events like Halloween, Christmas, Easter, etc. There’s usually a show in the afternoon.

Tokyo DisneySea Electric Railway

When making your way back to the front of the Park, take the Transit Steamliner if you’re in the Lost River Delta or the Tokyo DisneySea Electric Railway from Port Discovery to the American Waterfront. These are relaxing ways to traverse the Park and make for incredible scenery!

Relaxing in American Waterfront.
Relaxing in American Waterfront.

Once you’ve seen the afternoon show, take the time to do some shopping and snacking. The shops get crowded at the end of the day, and it’s an unpleasant experience. You can put your shopping in a locker at the front of the Park (there’s no delivery to your hotel), so you don’t have to carry it around all day.

As for snacks, here are a few recommendations:

  • Green Alien Mochi (Mama Biscotti’s Bakery in the Medterrian Habor)
  • Sea Salt Monaka Ice Cream (Arabian Coast snack cart)
  • Black Pepper or Soy Sauce and Butter Popcorn
  • Spicy Chicken Leg (Lost River Delta)
  • Gyoza Dog (Nautilus Galley in Mysterious Island)
Top View Green Alien Mochi Tokyo DisneySea
The green alien mochi is delicious and possibly the cutest dessert in Japan.

Snacks are constantly changing at Tokyo DisneySea, so watch my YouTube channel as I cover many snacks! You’ll finish the afternoon portion of your Tokyo DisneySea itinerary and move on to the evening!

Evening

Mediterranean Harbor, where “Believe! Sea of Dreams” is performed

In the evening, you want to make “Believe! Sea of Dreams” a priority, a nighttime spectacular in the Mediterranean Harbour that starts on November 11, 2022. The show typically starts around 19:40, but check the official website. Make sure your dinner reservation is around 17:00 to 18:00 to give yourself enough time.

Afterward, you can work on any other attractions you missed or take the time to soak in all the details you may have rushed by during the day. My favourite ports at Tokyo DisneySea are the Medterrian Harbor and the American Waterfront.

Tower of Terror at Tokyo DisneySea

An important note is that standby lines for attractions may be cut off before the Park closes, depending on the wait time. For example, if the Tower of Terror is 90 minutes, the standby line may get cut off at 20:30 (with a park close of 21:00) or even earlier.

Finish off the Day

S.E.A. Banner near Fortress Explorations at Tokyo DisneySea

I love to close out my day exploring Fortress Explorations in the Mediterranean Harbor, where Magellan’s is at Mount Prometheus. Or, if time permits, try to grab a drink at the Teddy Rosevelt Lounge.

That’s it. You did it! You may not have done everything, but you can leave knowing that you did your best for your visit.

For more on Tokyo Disney Resort, see our free planning guide for more in-depth information.

Tokyo DisneySea FAQ

Mermaid Lagoon at Tokyo DisneySea

Here are questions that we see asked quite often about Tokyo DisneySea!

Do Cast Members speak English at Tokyo DisneySea?

Not every Cast Member speaks English, so learning a few Japanese phrases is recommended to make things easier. However, if you see a Cast Member with “English” on their name tag, that means they speak some English. They may or may not speak fluent English.

Is one day enough at Tokyo DisneySea?

Yes, you can do the highlights of Tokyo DisneySea in one day. If you want to experience everything, you’ll need at least two full days.

Is Tokyo DisneySea worth it?

Tokyo DisneySea is a unique experience and the only Disney park in the world. It’s worth visiting.

More Things to Do in Tokyo

My recommendations for things to do in and around Tokyo! Plan a day at the Hello Kitty theme park, Sanrio Puroland, and an afternoon at the popular TeamLab Planets TOKYO. Take a tour around Tokyo with the convenient hop-on and-off bus. Spend a rainy afternoon inside Japan’s largest indoor theme park, Tokyo Joyoplis, near Tokyo Disney!

More on Tokyo Disney Resort

Tokyo Disney Resort Guidebook

Are you planning a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort? If so, you need our digital guidebook! Our guidebook is the most comprehensive resource available, covering everything you need to know about the park, including tickets, hotels, restaurants, attractions, shows, seasonal events, and more! With our guidebook, you’ll be an expert on Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea before you even set foot in the Parks. You’ll know what to expect, where to go, and what to do. You’ll also be able to avoid the crowds and make the most of your time.

TDR Explorer Guide to Tokyo Disney Resort 2023GET YOUR GUIDEBOOK NOW

Get tickets for Tokyo Disney Resort

It’s vital to buy your tickets ahead of time for Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea. Read our comprehensive guide on tickets to learn how to purchase tickets. For recommendations on SIM cards, portable Wi-Fi devices, travel insurance, cheap flights, and hotel bookings, read our travel resources page.

Learn more about Tokyo Disney Resort

Want more Tokyo Disney content? Browser our dedicated page for everything Tokyo Disney Resort!

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13 Comments

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  1. New York Deli Review at Tokyo DisneySea | TDR Explorer

    […] New York Deli is a delicious counter service restaurant in the American Waterfront at Tokyo DisneySea. As the name indicates, they specialize in Deli sandwiches. Their signature sandwich is the Mile High Deli Sandwich (or Mile High Deli Sando in Japanese). An average meal will cost you just under ¥1000, although that is not including adding a delicious alcoholic beverage to your meal. Here’s our review of this beautifully themed restaurant at Tokyo DisneySea. […]

  2. Lovely

    Thank you so much for the information it did help us as we traveled to Tokyo Disney Sea. After going and working hard to make the most of it, I must say I don’t see how anyone could spend so many days there. We enjoyed our time but to me Tokyo Disneysea is form over function. The rides are beautiful, well prepared, thoughtfully presented but then the ride itself is, meh. We thoroughly enjoyed Tower of Terror, but all the other rides were either a bore or just ok. We were very thankful for the fastpasses because if we had to watch the posted 70 minutes for some of the rides we might have cried ?

  3. heiko

    You wrote “Once you’re scanned into the Park, you first want to immediately scan everyone’s ticket into the Tokyo Disney Resort app. Having one person scan everyone’s physical ticket into their app is the easiest. Then they’ll be able to manage StandbyPass, Disney Premier Access, and Entry Request for everyone.”
    Assume that’s not necessary if I buy all tickets through the app from my phone. Assume than I have all tickets already in my app and can instantly request StandbyPass, correct?

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