Tokyo DisneySea
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LocationTokyo Disney Resort, Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Coordinates35°37′36″N 139°53′17″E / 35.62667°N 139.88806°E / 35.62667; 139.88806
StatusOperating
Opened4 September 2001 (2001-09-04)
Operated byThe Oriental Land Company
ThemeNautical, exploration and adventure
Area176 acres (71 ha)
WebsiteTokyo DisneySea official website (English)

Tokyo DisneySea (東京ディズニーシー, Tōkyō DizunīShī) is a theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, just next to Tokyo.[1] It opened on 4 September 2001, at a cost of 335 billion yen.[2] 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.[3]

History

Plans for a second Disney park in Tokyo were first conceived in 1987. Initially, these plans included a park similar to Disney's Hollywood Studios (then Disney-MGM Studios), to be called Disney Hollywood Studio Theme Park at Tokyo Disneyland. This idea was later scrapped in 1992. During the creation of the park, the Walt Disney Company and the Oriental Land Company had to compromise on certain design elements of the park due to cultural differences, such as the park's entrance focal point.[4] Ground was broken on October 22, 1998 and the park opened on September 4, 2001. Upon opening, Tokyo DisneySea became the ninth park of the twelve worldwide Disney theme parks to open. It has an overall nautical exploration theme. The idea for the park can be traced to a proposal to build a second theme park in Southern California called "Port Disney" in Long Beach, California, with the RMS Queen Mary as the main attraction.[5] The idea was scrapped after Disney endured financial trouble with the Euro Disney project. Later the idea was passed on to the Oriental Land Company to expand their resort.

In 2002 Tokyo DisneySea won a Thea Award from the Themed Entertainment Association for the concept, design, and construction of the theme park. The award was presented at El Capitan Theater in Hollywood, California.[6]

In October 2019, both Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea were temporarily closed due to the threat of Typhoon Hagibis.[7] On 28 February 2020, Oriental Land announced a temporary closure of Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea from 29 February to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.[8] The closure, originally slated to expire in mid-March, was later extended twice, with the latest extension being until 1 July 2020.[9]

Park layout and attractions

There are currently seven themed lands, or "ports of call". The entrance to the park is Mediterranean Harbor, which opens up to six more nautically themed ports: American Waterfront, Lost River Delta, Port Discovery, Mermaid Lagoon, Arabian Coast, and Mysterious Island.[1] An eighth port of call Fantasy Springs is currently under construction with an expected opening in June 6, 2024.[10]

Mediterranean Harbor

Re-creation of Venice at Mediterranean Harbor

Mediterranean Harbor is the entrance "port-of-call" and themed as an Italian port city, with Venetian Gondolas that guests can board and ride.[1] Littered throughout the port are various shops and restaurants.[11] Mediterranean Harbor's layout differs from the entry "lands" of other Disney parks as it is a large "V" shape rather than a main street that leads to a hub (as found in Disneyland's Main Street, U.S.A. or Disney's Hollywood Studios' Hollywood Boulevard).[12] To the right, the path leads to Mysterious Island, and to the left, the path leads to the American Waterfront. Built into the architecture of the port is Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta; the hotel serves as a full-scale reproduction of the various buildings of Portofino and Venice's ports and serves as the southern berm (or border) of the park. The design choice of combining a real hotel within the themed park areas helps to further the illusion that (as either a park or hotel guest) you are in an actual city; since the hotel is a functional building (rather than a 'set facade' -- the general standard in theme park designs) the effect of onlooking hotel guests, that may observe the park from hotel's rooms, balconies, and terraces serve in adding a level of kinetic authenticity in passing for an authentic Italian villa for park visitors, while the hotel guest enjoys the harborside views and novelty of location.[13][14] Mediterranean Harbor also features Soaring: Fantastic Flight, a flying simulator, and Fortress Explorations, a large-scale interactive play area for guests that features exploration-themed activities and attractions.

Mysterious Island

Mysterious Island is a "port-of-call" within Mount Prometheus, the giant volcano known as park's centerpiece and most prominent feature. It relies heavily on the storytelling of Jules Verne and, specifically, the mythology of the volcano fortress mentioned several times in the books called "Vulcania". The Mount Prometheus ride, Journey to the Center of the Earth, employs technology similar to Epcot's Test Track.[1] The smallest "port of call", its two attractions are amongst the more popular: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, a dark ride, being the second. Despite its name, Mysterious Island is not an island; it is built into the side of Mount Prometheus, which is part of the show building for the two attractions. The architecture in this port is of Victorian style.

Mermaid Lagoon

The interior of the building housing many of Mermaid Lagoon's attractions.

Mermaid Lagoon is home to the characters of The Little Mermaid. The facade is made to resemble King Triton's palace and features seashell-inspired architecture. This "port of call" is mostly indoors and illuminated with cool, dim lighting to recreate the feeling of being underwater. Attractions include Flounder's Flying Fish Coaster; Scuttle's Scooters; Jumpin' Jellyfish; Blowfish Balloon Race; The Whirlpool; all of which are children's rides. Also in this area are Ariel's Playground, which is a children's playground and extensive walk-through attraction that recreates the various settings in the movie; and the Mermaid Lagoon Theater, which formerly houses King Triton's Concert, a musical show featuring live actors, large-scale puppetry and Audio-Animatronics that recreate the story of The Little Mermaid.

Arabian Coast

The main courtyard in Arabian Coast.

Themed after Aladdin, this area is inspired by an Arabian harbor and the "enchanted world from 1001 Arabian Nights". There are five attractions in the land: Sindbad's Storybook Voyage, an indoor dark ride boat ride whose art direction seems to be (at first glance) a variation on "It's a Small World" (with its own theme song, "Compass of your Heart", composed by Alan Menken); Caravan Carousel, a double-decker carousel that holds over 190 passengers; Jasmine's Flying Carpets; and the Magic Lamp Theater, which houses a combined live-action/animatronic based magic show with a 3D movie featuring the Genie.

Lost River Delta

Located at the rear of the park, the dominant structure in this "port of call" is the ruins of an ancient Mayan pyramid which houses the dark thrill ride, Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull. Also in the Lost River Delta is the DisneySea Steamer Line which transports guests back to Mediterranean Harbor, Out of Shadowland, a live theatrical show that follows Mei, a young girl lost in a world of shadows who finds confidence and strength through her sojourn there. Furthermore, the Lost River Delta contains an Intamin roller coaster named Raging Spirits, which opened in 2005 and is similar to Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril at Disneyland Park in Paris.

Port Discovery

This "port of call" is home to the fictional 'Marine Life Institute' and is themed in a retrofuturistic style; Port Discovery houses two attractions: Aquatopia, a boat ride that uses LPS tracking (the 'trackless' technology also used in Tokyo Disneyland's Pooh's Hunny Hunt) to move and spin through a lagoon amid waterfalls and whirlpools, and the 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge DisneySea Electric Railway, an overhead electric trolley that transports riders to and from the American Waterfront. On 12 May 2017, the land became home to Nemo & Friends SeaRider based on Finding Nemo/Finding Dory which replaced the former StormRider simulator.[15]

American Waterfront

Toyville Trolley Park section of American Waterfront.

This "port of call" represents the northeastern seaboard of the United States in the early 20th century. It features two themed areas, an "Old Cape Cod" section, and a "New York Harbor" section. The land is dominated by a large passenger ship, SS Columbia, which is usually the site for various shows and events. Guests have the option of riding the area's "Big City Vehicles" which roam the streets of the area. It also features the 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge DisneySea Electric Railway, which takes passengers from The American Waterfront to nearby Port Discovery. The port has a Broadway-themed theater which plays the show "Big Band Beat", which features 1940s-style swing jazz performed by a 12-piece band, as well as 20 singers/dancers.[1] The port's most popular attraction is the Tower of Terror, an elaborately themed free-fall E-ticket ride.[1]

Toy Story Mania is an interactive 4-D theme park attraction located at the American Waterfront in a new area called Toyville Trolley Park.[16] It is inspired by Disney Pixar's Toy Story. The attraction opened on 9 July 2012.[17] Guests wear 3-D glasses while riding spinning vehicles that travel through virtual environments based on classic carnival games. There are shooters on the vehicles to let guests to shoot targets in those 3-D games like "egg toss" and "balloon pop".[16]

Fantasy Springs (Future)

The Oriental Land Company announced in June 2018, an eighth "port of call" named Fantasy Springs will be added. At an estimated construction cost of ¥320 billion it is the parks most expensive expansion so far. Furthermore, with a development area of approximately 1,506,947 square feet (140,000 square meters) it is also the parks largest expansion. Fantasy Springs will comprise three areas themed to the films of Frozen, Tangled, and Peter Pan. There will be a total of four new attractions, three restaurants, and a new luxury hotel situated in the park itself.[18] The entire area will be connected to the existing park through a pathway between the ports of Lost River Delta and Arabian Coast.[19]

The expansion was originally scheduled to open in fiscal year 2023 (April 2023 to March 2024). However, in October 2022, The Oriental Land Company announced that "due to the extension of the project's construction period, which was impacted by delay in productions overseas, as well as restrictions placed on logistics and border measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19" the opening date of Fantasy Springs had been pushed back to June 6, 2024.[20][21][22]

Attendance

Tokyo DisneySea reached the milestone of 10 million guests in 307 days since its grand opening, which is a record among theme parks worldwide.[23] The previous record-holder was Universal Studios Japan, 338 days after its opening.

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
12,100,000[24] 12,413,000[25] 12,498,000[26] 12,004,000[27] 12,663,000[28] 11,930,000[29] 12,656,000[30] 14,084,000[31] 14,100,000[32] 13,600,000[33]
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Worldwide rank (2020)
13,460,000[34] 13,500,000[35] 14,651,000[36] 14,650,000[37] 3,400,000[38] 5,800,000[39] 13

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rob Owen (9 October 2011). "Japan's Disneyland a little different". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on 10 January 2012. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
  2. ↑ "Tokyo DisneySea Project (1988 to 2001)". Oriental Land Company. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  3. ↑ "Theme Index Museum Index 2022". Themed Entertainment Association. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  4. ↑ "Tokyo DisneySea Project | History / Chronology | About Us | Oriental Land Co., Ltd". www.olc.co.jp.
  5. ↑ "Tokyo DisneySea". Theme Park Insider.
  6. ↑ "Themed Entertainment Association Thea Awards". Themed Entertainment Association. 2002. Archived from the original on 19 December 2002. Retrieved 4 October 2009.
  7. ↑ Abell, Baliee (13 October 2019). "Tokyo Disney Resort closes due to Typhoon Hagibis". Inside the Magic.
  8. ↑ "Tokyo Disneyland to close through mid-March on coronavirus concerns". CNBC. 28 February 2020. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  9. ↑ Yasharoff, Hannah. "Tokyo Disneyland, Universal Studios Japan extend park closures over coronavirus". USA TODAY. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  10. ↑ Oriental Land Co., Ltd., Publicity Department (27 October 2022). "Tokyo DisneySea® Large-Scale Expansion Project Names Announced for the New Areas of Themed Port, Fantasy Springs, and Disney Hotel" (PDF). Oriental Land Co., Ltd.
  11. ↑ Russell, Chick (May 2010) [3/12/10]. "Explore Tokyo DisneySea" (PDF). SimonSeeks (1). Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
  12. ↑ Pendry, Cheryl (16 July 2009). "Tokyo DisneySea: The Most Amazing Disney Park Ever?". Passporter Theme Park and Travel Reviews. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  13. ↑ "Tokyo Disneyland Hotel MiraCosta". TripAdvisor.com. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
  14. ↑ Tiemann, Amy (8 October 2007). "DisneySea blends Disney imagination and Japanese style". cnet News. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  15. ↑ "New "Finding Nemo" attraction coming to Tokyo DisneySea Park in Spring 2017, StormRider to close". Inside the Magic. 19 May 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Toy Story Mania". Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  17. ↑ ""Cinderella" Attraction and Toy Story Mania! Coming to Tokyo Disney Resort". Joe's Tokyo Disneyland Resort Photo Site. 7 May 2009. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  18. ↑ "New Themed Port at Tokyo DisneySea to be Named Fantasy Springs". Disney Parks Blog. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  19. ↑ Jones, Matt (1 February 2020). "Tokyo DisneySea Expansion "Fantasy Springs" Opening in 2023". TDR Explorer. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  20. ↑ Niles, Robert (26 October 2023). "Tokyo Disney's Fantasy Springs gets its opening date". Theme Park Insider. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  21. ↑ Newsdesk, Laughing Place Disney (30 January 2020). "Tokyo DisneySea Delays Opening of Fantasy Springs to Fiscal Year 2023". LaughingPlace.com. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  22. ↑ Oriental Land Co., Ltd., Publicity Department (27 October 2022). "Tokyo DisneySea® Large-Scale Expansion Project The New Themed Port Fantasy Springs Changes Regarding the Opening Date and Investment Amount" (PDF). Oriental Land Co., Ltd.
  23. ↑ O'Brien, Tim. "DisneySea bolts to 10 million. (In Brief)." Amusement Business 15 July 2002: 8. General OneFile. Web. 21 April 2015.
  24. ↑ "TEA/ERA 2006 Global Attractions Attendance Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association/ERA. 2007. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  25. ↑ "TEA/ERA 2007 Global Attractions Attendance Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association/ERA. 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  26. ↑ "TEA/ERA 2008 Global Attractions Attendance Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association/ERA. 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  27. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2009 Global Attractions Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2010. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  28. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2010 Global Attractions Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  29. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2011 Global Attractions Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 October 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  30. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2012 Global Attractions Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  31. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2013 Global Attractions Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 June 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  32. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2014 Global Attractions Attendance Report Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  33. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2015 Global Attractions Attendance Report Report" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  34. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2016 Theme Index and Museum Index" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  35. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2017 Theme Index and Museum Index" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2017. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  36. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2018 Theme Index and Museum Index" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  37. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2019 Theme Index and Museum Index" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  38. ↑ "TEA/AECOM 2020 Theme Index and Museum Index" (PDF). Themed Entertainment Association. 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  39. ↑ "Events & News". Themed Entertainment Association. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
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