If you've looked at wait times for Disney or Universal in Japan recently you already know the situation. Japan has a an assortment of theme parks and amusement parks that deliver a great day out without the chaos of over tourism. A few worth knowing about:
Fuji-Q Highland in Yamanashi sits right at the base of Mount Fuji and has some of the most intense roller coasters in the world. Takabisha holds the record for steepest drop on a coaster. Crowds are manageable compared to the big two and the views alone are worth the trip.
Nagashima Spa Land near Nagoya is massive and almost completely unknown outside Japan. Steel Dragon 2000 is one of the longest roller coasters on earth and the park has a full waterpark attached for summer. Domestic tourists love it, but international visitors almost never go.
Yomiuriland in Tokyo is underrated for a half day. Good coasters, a waterpark in summer, and easy to get to from central Tokyo. Locals go here when they want a theme park without the pilgrimage that Disney requires.
The honest reason these places don't get more attention is that they don't have the IP. No Mickey, no Mario, etc. But if you want to ride coasters and have a fun day without spending half of it in a queue, any of these will deliver that better than the big two on a busy day.
by JPjoy_Official
10 comments
Takabisha actually doesn’t hold the record anymore it’s 2nd place, but is still a sick ride and Fuji-q is a great park!
We have 0 waiting time at Disney. Just go a little bit later.
Why fly to Japan for US theme parks?
How crowded would FujiQ be on a random Wednesday in mid May?
We liked Yomuiriland, but only visited pre-Pokemon. I’m not sure how crowded it is after the Pokemon expansion.
We also like Hirakata Park.
We have a young daughter, so we’re not after huge thrill rides, although she does love roller coasters and drop rides.
There’s actually a lot of IP Collaborations in those places. It’s mostly tied to their own media, and the collabs are usually limited‑time events.
FujiQ has an area for Naruto and Thomas the Tank Engine. Not sure if it’s still there, but they had Attack on Titan ride in there too a year or so ago.
Yomiuriland has done collaborations with various vtubers and animes. Hololive and Jujutsu Kaisen are probably the most well known ones that were done in recent years.
Nagashima Spa Land is the only one I haven’t been to. Looks like their current event is about a popular illustrated encyclopedia book about extinct animals aimed at kids..?
An unconventional alternative could be Harry Potter Studios in Tokyo. It’s obviously not an amusement park but it still has interactivity and plenty of immersive experiences. It’s easy to spend half a day exploring the sets and props. Even as a casual Harry Potter watcher, I’d highly recommend
I second Yomiuriland, it’s such a nice little theme park with amazing views of Tokyo from the top of Bandit rollercoaster (which is also amazing for its age).
I’m not one for rides . But I love Sanrio Puroland .
I went to Nagashima a couple of weeks ago and it was great! Mostly locals there but its very easy to get there from the Meitetsu Bus terminal in Nagoya.
Longest I waited for any ride was 25 minutes. Most of the time it was a 10 minute wait for each ride but this was all on a Tuesday.
The main issue was that one of the main coasters, Steel Dragon was shut the whole day due to the wind and some other coasters were shut for most of the day.
There’s also a spa resort and pretty big shopping outlet right next to the park.
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