Is It Cheaper to Visit Tokyo Than Disney World in 2026?
In response to recent Walt Disney World price increases for 2026, many fans are claiming: “For the cost of a trip to Walt Disney World, I could visit [insert international park].” Is this actually true? This post ‘fact checks’ that assertion, doing the math on airfare, accommodations, admission, food, and line-skipping.
It is certainly true that vacation dollars go further at Disney’s international parks. Not only are they less expensive, but they’re home to incredible attractions and lands like the new World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland and Fantasy Springs at Tokyo DisneySea. Just take a look at our Rankings of the Best Disney Theme Parks in the World!
This isn’t to say the U.S. parks are slouches or that you shouldn’t visit. “The grass is always greener” and all that. Some of our Japanese friends dream of visiting Walt Disney World, and wish they had Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Slinky Dog Dash, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, Avatar Flight of Passage, and more. The last decade has been very good to Walt Disney World fans, even if we don’t always appreciate it.
Before delving into this comparison, context is necessary. One is median wages and household income are significantly higher in the United States than Japan. The target demographic for each destination is domestic tourists, not international ones, so local economics drive pricing as each strive to maintain a sufficient pool of “income qualified” guests.
Another is the strength of the respective currencies. Honestly, this is the difference-maker right now in a comparison of costs at Tokyo Disney Resort vs. Walt Disney World. This is really a story of the U.S. dollar versus the Japanese yen.
The yen has recently fallen to an 8-month low against the dollar at 152:1, and is likely to remain in that territory following the election of Sanae Takaichi as prime minister in late October 2025. She has called for fiscal stimulus and supports keeping the Bank of Japan’s key interest rate at its current level as the public struggles with high living costs. If anything, the currency could fall further to the 160 yen zone.
To put this into perspective for those are are unfamiliar with traveling to Japan or foreign currency, a good/normal rule of thumb used to be a 100:1 exchange rate. Now, it’s above 150:1. I’m no mathematician, but that’s a massive improvement. It’s also on top of the lower baseline prices in Japan.
This is great news for Americans traveling to Japan, and it presents a window of opportunity that’s been open for far longer than we expected. The next couple of years should (still!) be a great time to visit Tokyo Disney Resort with the exchange rate good-to-great by historical standards.
This is great news for Americans traveling to Japan, but it doesn’t apply to everyone. Don’t walk into a supermarket in Japan and shout about how “cheap” everything is in there. That won’t win you many friends. People who live in Japan and are paid in yen have a different perspective on this topic.
Point being, this makes comparing prices at the domestic parks to the international ones is apples to oranges. We love Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea and think they’re generally better than the U.S. parks, but that conclusion doesn’t require a price comparison to “prove the point.”
We’re going to set all of that aside–but just know that it’s not a straightforward comparison. Explaining the why of it is beyond the scope of this post, which exists to determine whether an American Disney fan can fly halfway around the world to Japan and still have a cheaper vacation than traveling partway across the U.S. to Walt Disney World.
Whether you want to fly halfway around the world or visit Japan in the first place is also another question entirely. As with anything, your mileage may vary. Let’s set all of that aside and dig into this Tokyo Disney Resort vs. Walt Disney World cost-comparison…
Airfare: Tokyo vs. Orlando
Flights are frequently viewed as the insurmountable obstacle for visiting Tokyo Disney Resort. If you search from a regional airport in West Virginia on Christmas Eve (returning on New Year’s Eve), you might conclude that all dates from all airports cost $5,571 roundtrip. Of course, that’s not reflective of average flights costs, just as it wouldn’t be for airfare to Walt Disney World.
Cheaper airfare is actually what prompted this post. I have airfare alerts set through a handful of different websites and my email has been blowing up with notifications lately, including from cities I’ve never seen before. It used to be the case that inexpensive airfare was possible out of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. Now, those prices are even lower–but there are reasonable options from elsewhere.
For whatever it’s worth, we’ve frequently paid around $600 roundtrip for flights from Los Angeles (here’s a deal for $521 roundtrips for now through February 2026). Our general rule is that we pay out of pocket for anything under $900, and use miles for flights above that. The only time we’ve paid more is when not flexible with dates.
One thing we’ve noticed in the last few years with airfare to Japan is that it’s typically cheapest when inside 6 months. Oftentimes, last minute flights have the lowest prices of all. We’ve almost never found the best prices over 8 months in advance. This has been consistently the case, even with Japan hitting record inbound visitor numbers.
Ascribing a value to flights is a challenge since they’re so dependent upon travel dates and your home airport. At the absolute maximum, the cost should be LAX-TYO + LAX-your home airport (and you can do a stopover at Disneyland!). Flights to Japan will be more expensive than prices the vast majority of tourists would pay to get to Walt Disney World. For this comparison, we’re doing a party of 4 and setting the per-person cost to Tokyo at $900 and to Orlando at $200.
Here are the airfare totals:
- Round trip flights to Tokyo: $3,600
- Round trip flights to Orlando: $800
The whole ballgame here is essentially whether lower costs on everything else in Japan can close this $2,800 gap. Of course, that difference increases or decreases based on your party size–you’ll have to do the math for yourselves. I also don’t think the gap is actually that large (it never is for us!), but I want to give Walt Disney World every advantage possible so as to avoid accusations of bias.
Monorail Loop Hotels
For years, we’ve recommended visitors on a budget eschew the Disney-branded hotels in favor of the Tokyo Disney Resort Official Hotels that are on-site and offer monorail access to both parks. To draw a Walt Disney World comparison, these would be like putting the Swan & Dolphin in the Contemporary’s location.
We have stayed at every single one of these, but favor the Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay or the Hilton Tokyo Bay. We almost always book the latter since Sarah has Hilton Diamond Status, which gets us free upgrades, breakfast buffet, and concierge lounge access for meals. We have logged more stays at this hotel than just about anywhere.
Both of the Hilton and Sheraton would be Deluxe Resorts by Walt Disney World standards–so long as you get updated rooms (Ocean Dream at the Sheraton; Celebrio at the Hilton). The Sheraton’s modern rooms are newer, but I have a soft spot for the Celebrio rooms at the Hilton. Honestly, I’d pick these new rooms at the Hilton or Sheraton over the Incredibles rooms at the Contemporary; both are easily superior hotels as a whole to the Contemporary.
Since most of the above airfare deals encompass dates in Winter 2026, I’m going to choose January 18-24, 2026 as the dates to price out hotels.
This favors Walt Disney World, since that’s one of the cheapest rate seasons for resorts and there’s currently a 25% off deal. I want to err on the side of giving Walt Disney World every possible advantage, as I don’t want anyone to claim this comparison is biased towards Tokyo Disney Resort.
For those dates, Hilton Tokyo Bay is 159,409 yen, or $173.90 per night after tax. It’s also more expensive than the almost-inevitable Black Friday flash sale that Hilton will offer. By contrast, the Sheraton is roughly $200 per night after tax.
Nevertheless, I’m also throwing Toy Story Hotel (it’s sold out for 2 dates in this range so the below is an estimate) into the comparison. Even if they were the same price, we’d book the Hilton over Toy Story Hotel (don’t tell Megatron, world’s #1 Woody fan), but feel it’s only fair for a Disney vs. Disney comparison.
Here are the hotel totals:
- Tokyo Disney Resort Hotel (Hilton): $1,043.45
- Tokyo Disney Resort Hotel (Toy Story Hotel): $1,845.90
- Walt Disney World Resort Hotel (Contemporary): $3,253.80
Just like that, we’ve come really close to bridging the gap!
Park Tickets
As discussed in our Tokyo Disneyland Discount Ticket Tips, tickets can sell out in advance. We highly recommend purchasing at least a couple weeks in advance from TDR directly or via authorized TDR ticket seller Klook (especially useful if your credit card has issues with the TDR site).
Full single-day park tickets cost 7,900 yen to 10,900 yen for adults, which is approximately $52 to $72. Tokyo Disney Resort has not yet resumed sales of multi-day tickets or Annual Passes.
For our dates in Winter 2026, tickets are $55 per day for adults and $31 to $49 for kids. Tokyo breaks down guest ages as follows: adults are guests ages 18 & over; Junior is ages 12-17; child is ages 4-11. Guests ages 3 & under are free. Throughout this post, we’ll assume the family of 4 in question is 2 adults, one junior, and one child.
For 5 day tickets, here are the totals:
- Tokyo Disney Resort tickets: $950*
- Walt Disney World tickets: $3,116.39
*This is an approximation based on past dates; Tokyo Disney Resort has not yet released January 2026 tickets, so I can’t go through the checkout for precise pricing.
For Walt Disney World, we priced out 5-day tickets. For Tokyo Disney Resort, that’s the cost of five 1-day tickets.
These are all one park per day tickets, since that’s all TDR offers currently. It is possible Walt Disney World will offer a 4-park ticket deal around this time next year–but we wouldn’t count on it, as winter is becoming increasingly popular. However, it would be cheaper to purchase that.
The per-day cost also does decrease for Walt Disney World with longer duration tickets, but even 10-day tickets in August or September are still more expensive than single-day Tokyo Disney Resort tickets. The gap does narrow considerably, but TDR still wins. (It would be a different story for international guests who can purchase 14-day Walt Disney World tickets, as the per-day cost is lower on those.)
Line-Skipping: Lightning Lanes vs. Premier Access
Paid FastPass has (sadly) spread to Japan, and is available at popular rides and entertainment at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea. Known as Premier Access, it’s their version of Individual Lightning Lanes. Tokyo Disney Resort also still has a version of free FastPass, now known as Priority Pass. (Learn more: Guide to Priority Pass & Premier Access at Tokyo Disney Resort.)
We have not bought Premier Access for any attraction, instead using early mornings and late nights to knock everything out (including multiple rides on Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast) without much issue. However, if you’re a first timer with limited time, it’s likely that you will purchase it for one ride at Tokyo Disneyland and 3-5 rides at Tokyo DisneySea. (Yes, that’s quite the imbalance–due largely to the new Fantasy Springs at TDS, and a far better lineup of free Priority Pass attractions at TDL.)
Premier Access costs $10 to $13 per ride, so budget about $30 per person per day to line-skipping at Tokyo Disney Resort. That’s a rough estimate, it could be higher if you opt to purchase Premier Access for entertainment or other attractions (we wouldn’t recommend that).
It’s probably fair to say the average guest will spend about the same on line-skipping at Walt Disney World as they would at Tokyo Disney Resort via a combination of Lightning Lane Multi-Pass and Single Pass. Since we don’t purchase any of these options, for the most part, and since they’re entirely optional at both destinations, I’m not going to include them as a line-item.
Just know that “about $30/day/person” is going to be around the average for both. Frugal travelers can get that to $0, whereas high rollers can easily clear $50.
Counter Service Restaurants
Food is less expensive at Tokyo Disney Resort. If you’re just purchasing an entree, you can often do so for $6 to $8. Hungry Bear Restaurant is my favorite counter service spot for curry in either park, and it charges ¥900 for the curry on the left and ¥1,100 for the port cutlet curry on the right. That’s a total of $13.20 for both bowls.
Special sets are also available that include drinks and desserts, and these typically cost $10 to $14 at Tokyo Disney Resort. By contrast, entrees at in-park restaurants at Walt Disney World typically cost $11 to $15. There are no special sets, so you’re looking at spending an extra $9 or so for drinks and desserts.
We’re not going to include those here, despite them increasing the gap, as drink and dessert sizes aren’t comparable. Also, we don’t typically buy these things, anyway. Here’s how the comparison breaks down, doing adult meals for all 4 guests in the party:
- Counter Service Meal (TDR): $28
- Counter Service Meal (WDW): $48
Of course, this is just one meal. The difference increases over the course of multiple meals and days.
Buffets: Crystal Palace vs. Crystal Palace
This buffet exists in the exact same building in both Magic Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland. The key differences are that no Winnie the Pooh characters are present and the cuisine is better at Tokyo Disneyland. In addition to meats, sushi and seafood, Crystal Palace also has a formidable dessert lineup. The little green mochi are, to borrow a phrase from Joey, where we win our money back.
The Crystal Palace buffet costs 5,000 yen per adult or 1,500 to 2,500 yen for kids. There is no tipping in Japan, so that’s the out the door cost. By contrast, Crystal Palace at Walt Disney World costs $64 per adult and $44 per child plus tax and tip. Here are totals for our fictional family of four:
- Crystal Palace at TDL: $58
- Crystal Palace at WDW: $236 (before tax & tip)
Suffice to say, the gap is significantly larger on buffets than counter service restaurants–but this isn’t apples to apples given that one is a character meal and the other is not.
Table Service Restaurants: Magellan’s vs. California Grill
It’s a very similar story with full table service restaurants, right down to there being no apple-to-apple comparisons. The two restaurants where we dine more than any others are Magellan’s and Ristorante di Canaletto, both in Tokyo DisneySea. Our last meal at the latter, a waterfront Italian restaurant, cost $23 per person for individual pizzas and tiramisu. This is equivalent to a ~$50 meal at Via Napoli.
The special set we’d order at Magellan’s costs $40 for a bread course, one starter, one entree, one dessert, and drink. This is like a fancier version of California Grill at Walt Disney World, which cost approximately $110 out the door per person the last time we dined there. Here are the totals:
- Magellan’s at TDS: $160
- California Grill at WDW: $336 (before tax & tip)
Table service menu prices are more expensive to begin with at Walt Disney World, but ~20% tips on top of those already higher prices also make a really big difference. If you do a lot of sit-down dining, the value proposition at TDR improves considerably. However, we wouldn’t recommend doing many table service meals if it’s your first trip to Japan–there’s so much to see and do! (Magellan’s is a must, though.)
Tokyo vs. Walt Disney World: Cost Comparison Conclusion
Ultimately, it should be clear that Tokyo Disney Resort can be cheaper than Walt Disney World for the average American family of 4 that has to travel to both destinations. I hate math, so I’m just going to add up the costs of airfare, accommodations, and admission. Almost everything else, including things we omitted–like souvenirs and transportation–will likely cost less in Japan.
Choosing the higher-tier hotel (Toy Story) at Tokyo Disney Resort, the total for just those components comes to around $6,400. The total for Walt Disney World is just under $7,200. We could easily do cheaper hotels at both, but the difference is only one of those (Hilton Tokyo Bay) would be on the monorail loop. With that said, Pop Century or Caribbean Beach are on the Skyliner, and they’d be significantly less expensive than Contemporary.
Food is going to vary too much from family-to-family, but I cannot fathom a scenario in which it’s more expensive to eat at TDR–it should be around half the cost of Walt Disney World. If you’re more inclined to do table service restaurants or buffets, you’ll come out way ahead at Tokyo Disney Resort. This is doubly true with real world dining in Japan, where it’s not uncommon to spend $20 per person (out the door) for a fairly nice meal.
Of course, you can get both of those numbers higher or lower. Choose the Hilton or Sheraton, and it should drop for Tokyo Disney Resort. Have trouble finding flight deals, and it could soar for Japan.
You could also opt for a cheaper Value Resort at Walt Disney World, but the “problem” with that is there are budget hotels that are <15 minutes from TDR and cost well under $100 per night. The salient point is that there are ways to cut costs for both–you’re just probably more familiar with the methods for Walt Disney World.
Going with a longer duration, as we would recommend for both destinations, does increase the per-day basis of tickets at Walt Disney World. That also dilutes the per-day cost of airfare to Japan. Walt Disney World is actually more likely to win with a shorter trip as a result, but who is realistically doing a long weekend in Japan, anyway?
Unless you truly torture the math to produce the conclusion you want, it’s difficult to overcome the cheaper costs for accommodations and tickets at Tokyo Disney Resort. And again, the above budgets don’t even take food into account, which could end up being about twice as expensive (give or take) at Walt Disney World.
Not to mention the reality that you’re likely spending time elsewhere in Japan, where there’s an abundance of amazing low-cost or free activities. It’s hard to replicate than in Central Florida, with the exception of manatee watching and a handful of other things. Most of the things you’ll want to do around Orlando are touristy, with prices to match.
Tokyo Disney Resort is cheaper than Walt Disney World, but in the past, the gap was never this wide. Unless you were a solo traveler, couple or lived in California (in which case, you could do Disneyland instead of WDW), it was almost impossible to overcome airfare. It won’t always be this way. Right now is a uniquely great time for Americans to visit Japan to take advantage of our stronger currency and greater purchasing power.
This means that you won’t just encounter “cheap” prices at the parks–you’ll find them pretty much everywhere you go. That will remain true so long as the exchange rate continues to be historically favorable and around the 130 to 160 yen to dollar level. As a threshold matter, this assumes you’re able to score reasonable airfare, are comfortable traveling internationally, and have the desire to visit Japan.
Of course, not everyone is willing or able to travel internationally to Tokyo Disney Resort. But if you read this deeply into the topic, we’re guessing you’re at least on the fence. In which case, you should absolutely do it. In the decade-plus that we’ve been effusively praising Tokyo Disney Resort and recommending Japan to anyone who would listen, we’ve heard from maybe 3-4 people who were disappointed, and literally hundreds who said it exceeded expectations–many even called it the trip of a lifetime.
Anyway, just some food for thought if you’ve been curious about visiting Japan but assumed it was out of reach. Not only is it potentially in reach, but now is a fantastic time to go between the strength of the dollar and new Fantasy Springs. It also might be a good time to take a break from Walt Disney World, with no new major attractions on the horizon until 2027! For everything else you need to know, we have a ton of resources in the links below.
Planning a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort? For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Tokyo Disneyland & DisneySea Trip Planning Guide! For more specifics, our TDR Hotel Rankings & Reviews page covers accommodations. Our Restaurant Reviews detail where to dine & snack. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money post. Our What to Pack for Disney post takes a unique look at clever items to take. Venturing elsewhere in Japan? Consult our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan and City Guide to Tokyo, Japan.
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of the cost comparison of traveling to Tokyo Disney Resort vs. Walt Disney World? Have you visited Japan in the last few years? What was your experience with the strong dollar and weak yen? How did you feel about the value proposition of Tokyo Disney Resort? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
If one was even fantasizing about a once in a lifetime Japan trip. What would the recommended amount of days be to feel like one saw the highlights plus was able to feel like they had the time to soak it all in without feeling overwhelmed?
Would it be 5 total days, or even more, for Disney? How many for Tokyo, Kyoto? Other must visits or honorable mentions?
Check out the “How Many Days?” section of our planning guide: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/tokyo-disney-trip-planning-guide/
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but that provides a few rules of thumb that depending on the total duration of your trip. Have fun!
TDR is like the Nexus in Star Trek, once you go you want to go back again and again (just stay away from holidays). Easy to get around, all types of food is available, the language barrier isn’t that bad (better in the cities) and it’s less expensive than here in the US. Recommend a few days in and around Tokyo and if you can, travel to other areas as well.
Leave room in your suitcase for popcorn buckets.
This is great info and really well timed for us since we’re pencilling out a spring 2025 Japan trip right now! I was wondering if anyone on this thread had an opinion whether the TDR resort hotels work as a “base” for seeing other areas near Tokyo? Or should we plan on switching hotels? We’d be there a week and would budget 3 days for TDR – leaving 4 days for other sites of interest.
It depends on where in/near Tokyo you want to go. Keep in mind TDR is in Chiba prefecture, not Tokyo. From TDR you will likely need to take the train 7 stops to Tokyo station and go from there to where ever else you want to go. The annoying part is this train line is a long walk through the station to get to the other trains so that adds in time as well (especially if you get lost, which I did a few times). I would suggest looking on a map at the other places you want to go in Tokyo. Switching hotels might be a pain, but it’ll likely save you time, especially if the places you want to go are on the western side of Tokyo.
Thank you, C!
Just want to add that I agree completely with C. We always switch and recommend the same. Times on Google Maps can be deceiving–you’re looking at an easy hour commute to pretty much wherever you want to go in Tokyo. We tried to do an “extra” day in the city last time, and it was an unmitigated disaster (really the only one of the trip) due to “technical difficulties” with the baby.
If you want one location, you’re best off staying along the JR Maihama Line a couple of stops from TDR. Lots of good budget hotel options along there, albeit with smaller-sized rooms. Great for solo travel, not so much for families.
Tom, I think you mean the JR Keiyo line. There’s no JR Maihama line!
Worth noting that it’s possible to transfer at Shin-Kiba or Hatchobori (stops on the Keiyo line) to the Tokyo subway. I was a local for many years and always do this because I hate the Tokyo Station transfer so much.
Agreed, the Tokyo transfer is a long walk with luggage.
Hi Tom, thanks for the great info! We just booked a vacation package in the Toy Story Hotel to take advantage of the unlimited access to Fantasy Springs. I avoided Japanese spring break and booked March 17, 18, 19. I’m hoping there will be cherry blossoms after we are done at Disney. But now we are looking for airfare, and there don’t seem to be many cheaper flights at that time. We fly out of SLC, but it is easy enough to get to the West Coast if we need to. Have you used ZIPAIR? I’m not familiar with the airline. Any other airline recommendations for Cherry Blossom time?
I have not used ZIPAIR, but have several friends who have and all reported positive experiences.
On the one hand, it’s a low-cost carrier. On the other hand, it’s own by JAL, so it’s legit. Not sure what I’d do, but you might have difficulty finding cheaper flights during sakura season.
Hi Lori, sounds like a great trip. You may have some luck by flying through Vancouver (YVR) .
If you are fortunate you could get direct flights with respectable layovers . YVR is the jumping off airport for most flights out of Canada to Asia.
Have a great holiday !
Hi Lori , again,
Also noticed some direct flights to Japan from Calgary ( YYC ) . Since SLC and Calgary have regular service – going through YYC to Japan could also be an option.
We flew ZIP in Aug from California and were very happy with it. Just read the fine print on what is included. (Not much) and be prepared. Service was excellent and we packed very light (it was Aug and hot) planes were almost new and comfortable. Crew is Japanese and excellent service. Would absolutely fly them again
Great article we are planning our first TDR trip this coming April. With the changes that were just made to the TDR vacation packages do you no longer recommended them given the Fantasy Springs pass has been discontinued?
I haven’t really done a deep dive on the newer ‘Enjoy Attractions’ VPs, but I’m inclined to say they are–once again–not worth it starting in April 2025. I guess it depends upon how access with Fantasy Springs shakes out, how difficult it is to book Premier Access (or whatever line-skipping options exist), and your budget.
If you’re willing to pay a premium for convenience, the VP will probably still be a worthwhile option.
Thanks for the article! This is really making me consider this more for my family of 4, and combining it with some other sightseeing in Japan.
What time of year would you recommend going? Ie would it be worth it to go during cherry blossom season or would that make it a lot more expensive and crowded?
Also, I would be worried about jet lag and cranky tired kids (they are currently 6 and 9). Would it be worth it to wait a couple years until they are older?
Here’s when we recommend going to TDR: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/tokyo-disneyland-crowds-tips/
Honestly, though, I’d probably base my dates more around when’s a good time to visit Japan, especially Kyoto. Here’s the article on our sister site about that: https://www.travelcaffeine.com/when-visit-kyoto-japan-best-worst-times/
Certainly not all kids are equal, but we travelled a few times to Europe with my daughter when she was that age and never had an issue with jet lag. Certainly, Asia is a different story but I’d bet you’d be fine.
How many attractions are there at Tokyo Disney? One could easily spend an entire week at WDW. But are there enough attractions in Tokyo to even make a proper comparison between the two?
I did 3 full days and 2 sort of half days and felt I had seen what I wanted but didn’t do everything. I’m going back for 3 nights in late February.
Tokyo Disney is more in the Disneyland Resort in terms of how to treat it though. you can go there for a while and go back to it but it’d be a shame to miss out on the reat of what Japan or LA in dosneylands case has to offer and just visit there. you want to do at least some nights in at least Tokyo and Kyoto and then other places if you have the time.
Why compare deluxe hotels to the Japanese ones? Obviously All-Stars are cheaper.
If the All Stars were on the monorail loop–as is the case with the hotels we’ve used in Japan–we’d make that comparison.
There are hotels in Japan that are significantly cheaper than the All Stars that are closer to the parks.
Hello Tom,
Maybe this is a question suited for your travel blog and not Disney, but we are very excited for visiting all the parks around the world. We plan to do Paris next year and maybe Japan in two or three years. But the long flight makes me a little anxious more than anything else on the travel. Any tips for the flight? Thank you.
Not sure where you’re traveling from, but if a direct flight is an option I would recommend booking that even if it costs a bit more. Not having to stress about missing a connection and having a shorter travel day makes a huge difference. Similarly, I would stick to one of the larger carriers rather than a smaller or budget airline, that’s a personal preference as I find seating and customer service on budget airlines can be spotty (it’s very “you get what you pay for” in my experience).
For the flight itself, pack several entertainment options in case the in-flight entertainment is not to your liking. Podcasts, books, tv shows downloaded on a tablet, etc. But honestly, as much as possible I try to sleep on the plane (easier said than done) as I find that helps me with the time change. You are going to want to try and stay awake until as close to local bedtime as possible to help reset your internal clock. Also, dress in layers! Plane cabins are often cold, but sometimes they aren’t, so you want to have some pieces you can take on or off depending on how you feel.
Jared hit literally everything that I would’ve.
When it was just the two of us, I had zero issues whatsoever with international flights. Now it’s a tad more difficult, but that’s mostly in worrying that Megatron is going to be disruptive to other passengers. The time flies by faster than you’d expect.
I was quite nervous about the flight as well. We’ve flown 6-8 hours to Europe several times, but a 13-hr flight from Toronto to Tokyo had me worried. It ended up being just fine! We did the things Jared suggests and managed without a problem.
Thanks for all the replies =)
Regarding Hilton Tokyo Bay according to their website the rooms are being rennovated from Januar 9th-March 19th. I don’t know if this affects the value of it in trip but after March 19th I would imagine this makes it even more of a good bet assuming they don’t hike the prices because of it of course.
As a Brit given airfare is high for me I am definately finding it cheaper to do Japan then World. I am a ‘Whale’ in Disney terms as I often do 10-14 night trips to World but a whole 18 night trip to Japan in February next year is likely to cost me the same or less as my 10 night Disney World Trip in Janary this year even with a food deal and gift card given by Disney for staying there.
Great analysis Tom. We went to Japan this summer and absolutely loved the parks. We are DVC so paying for accommodations hurt but it was absolutely worth it. I think your “unwilling” is also really key. I am in a few Japan and TDL FB groups and many people cannot get past the language, culture differences or the flight. That is a barrier to any travel then beyond the USA. We flew Zip this summer from California and it was a fantastic experience. After we got back my husband got an email offer for less then $300 each way from either LA , San Jose or SFO. He was ready to book again! Aside from Disney we did Kyoto and Tokyo and with our two teens and fell in love with the country. (Kyoto was my favourite) . We also found very very few Western tourists anywhere and it really made it feel like we were getting to be a part of Japanese life rather then just observing as an outsider. My kids mastered the subway the first day and of course were enamored with 7/11. Just reading THIS blog makes me want to go back!
Oh great…
living in the Seattle area, Tom is “challenging” me to head for Tokyo.
Can’t find out if they have the “Salute” Program there.
And Shades of Green helps offset the hotel expenses at WDW.
Still, the food and admission costs appear to be less in Tokyo.
Food for thought, anyway.
I’m really curious as to whether it would be cheaper for you. Shades of Green is significantly cheaper than the monorail resorts (although it’s not really a monorail-adjacent resort now that access to the Poly is gone), and the Military Salute tickets are a great deal.
You will feel right at home at TDR, though. I’d say about half the westerners there at any given time are military families–perhaps a higher percentage on weekends and holidays!
My family has proven out THE “WDW is more expensive than….” in Europe over the past three years. 10, 11 and 16-day trips to Amsterdam, Italy, and France have cost 40%, 70%, and 100%, respectively, the cost of our 10-day 2022 stay in the Cabins at Fort Wilderness. Each European trip included centrally located, better-than-WDW’s-“deluxe” 2-BR Airbnb’s, some fine dining, museums, tours, activities and entertainment, rental cars, 1st class rail travel – genuinely wonderful experiences. That 2022 WDW trip included 4-days Genie+, 2-signature meals, no character dining, and a rental car. My family’s upcoming trip to WDW this February is threatening to outpace the cost of each of these trips, even after halving our usual plans for dining out, and eliminating LL’s from the budget. I do sincerely love WDW, but international travel can be uniquely magical while costing a lot less.
Those are some wild comparisons. I believe it, though, knowing what we’ve paid to visit Europe and Asia.
Having APs and access to those room discounts is a huge difference-maker when it comes to my perception of WDW pricing. I still do a double-take when looking up ticket costs (I had to price out the comparison here 3 times just to confirm the gap was THAT large).
Hey Tom! On another subject, not sure if you’re familiar with the RSVLTS brand, but tomorrow at 4 pm eastern they are dropping Muppets Christmas shirts. I know you’re a big Muppet fan, so I thought I’d pass on the info.
I love the muppets!
I’m familiar with it to the extent that I have several friends who swear by RSVLTS, but I’ve never bought anything from the brand out myself (shirts seem kinda pricey and rarely discounted). Thanks for the heads up about the Muppets Christmas Carol shirts–I found the social media post promoting them!
One question–do their drops typically sell out quickly, or can I buy at my leisure (within a day or so)?
Sell outs depend on the prints / themes. Anything Disney tends to be quite popular. Bigger sizes sell out quicker. You can earn points on purchases, which can be redeemed for discounts. They are pricey, but the fabric and quality are excellent. Also, they usually have a Black Friday sale.
LGB seems to constantly have better fares from Orlando than SNA (Orange County).
Anyway, I was on the last of a long series of Japanese-American tours from Portland exactly a year ago. Prices in Japan were wonderful, so our group stayed at especially nice hotels and I shopped happily. I’m familiar with Tokyo and Kyoto, which certainly helps, but transportation and much other signage is provided in English, transit is excellent, and there’s plenty to do. I’ve gone past Disney several times.
Appreciate the article – good reminder that costs at the location can make up for the increased travel costs.
As a family of 5 in New York we just haven’t been able to make the math work for the cost of flights given they also have to fit around the schedule of 3 kids in 3 different schools and different activities, etc whereas almost also relatively cheap flights from the NYC area to Florida.
Someday we hope to make it work though
We are making our first trip to Japan in May of 2025. Air with miles, premium economy one way and business on the way back. Planning 1 day DL and 2 at DS with 4 nights hotels. Currently booked at the Hilton for what amounts to about $1100 or $275 per night, which seems expensive. I guess I can keep my eyes open for sales and such. Do you think it’s so high because it’s so far out? I can keep my eyes open for sales and such too.
Was also considering a Vacation Package when they go on sale next month but all just changed again and no longer include unlimited FS rides.
When in May? If it’s before (or including) May 5, it’s going to be about that expensive–that’s during Golden Week.
If after that, it’s because you’re so far out. For the last 3 weeks of the month, I’m seeing Hilton Tokyo Bay for $225/night (pre-tax) and other monorail loop options at $180 to $210.
Regardless, I’d watch for Black Friday sales. I’m not 100% sure that Hilton did one last year, but they used to do them for Asia every Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
Thanks Tom. I’m looking at May 19-23 and I’m Hilton Gold. The per room cost is about 35k per night before the taxes and service charge with total about 172k yen with taxes and service charge included.
Sheraton doesn’t seem to have any king bed rooms which stinks. Will def keeps my eyes peeled for black Friday sales.
I’ve done this same math problem, but I appreciate reading your numbers as well! Is it coincidence that the next email in my inbox after the one from DisneyTouristBlog was a google flight alert for $710 flights from CMH to Tokyo? Unfortunately, the low price dates I’ve seen (like those you have above) do not correspond to the school dates that we have off right now.
I second the recommendation for Magellan’s. That was the best meal we ate in TDL/TDS.
Wow, that’s an excellent price from the Midwest!
Getting nonstop airfare alerts over the last couple of weeks is what prompted this post in the first place. Once I got up to over two-dozen emails that were NOT from LAX, I figured it was time to revisit this topic. It’s been kind of crazy seeing so many smaller airports that aren’t on the West Coast get great deals. At the same time, I’m getting alerts for LAX to airports in Japan other than Tokyo and Osaka. Great time to travel to Japan!
Also, from my area of the country, finding $200 flights to MCO is a thing of the past. $3-400 seems the norm now. 🙁
“Also, from my area of the country, finding $200 flights to MCO is a thing of the past. $3-400 seems the norm now.”
I know that’s increasingly the case, but I just paid $225 for LGB-MCO flights and wanted to give the advantage to WDW whenever possible just to prove that TDR is less expensive–relative to WDW–than a lot of people think.
I would seriously consider it except the following. Airfare mentioned is probably coach(bad enough domestically, worse for a lot more hours) If anything happened to me over there, my sister couldn’t handle the emergency. Possibly visit Universal instead?
Very fair points! Zipair often has deals on its premium seats; they’re also more affordable on Delta or United if using miles. However, paying out of pocket for the nicer options can be a non-starter. It would be for us–we’ve never flown first class (etc.) internationally.
I think how much of a problem this is depends on what airline you are flying with. We went to visit friends in Thailand last year and I was very stressed about the seating situation as I’d never been on a flight that long (14 hours NYC > Tokyo, then another 6 to Bangkok). We flew with ANA and found economy shocking comfortable, much more so than on domestic flights. And the flights were still a pretty good deal at $1k/person roundtrip (from the East Coast).
Jared is 100% correct. ANA and JAL offer a ton of leg room, and great service; we try to fly with them whenever codeshare is available.
My favorite airline (by far) is Singapore, and I also like Cathay Pacific. No deals for either right now, but they pop-up from time to time.
my problem with a Tokyo trip is that the language barrier makes it a lot more difficult. I don’t know a word of chinesse, Japanese, or French. If I did I would thoroughly enjoy going to these other parks as I have been to wdw every year sometimes several vacations a year to disney world since 1971. The two times we cross countried to Disneyland was a total eye opener. I have heard it was a lot more compact but I couldn’t believe they had a stay at castle inn and suites was basically right across the street.
I think you’d be surprised by how little of a language barrier there is. All signage is in English, it’s easy to understand most attractions since they’re largely a visual medium (or you already know the stories), and the computers we all carry in our pockets make translation simple.
Unless you’re going to the Japanese countryside, the language barrier is mostly a non-issue.
I agree with Tom! We speak a little French, but nothing in Japanese beyond a few words we learned (hello, thank you, etc.). We had very little difficulty in Japan in general thanks to smartphones and none at all at the parks.
I’ve visited the parks in France, Japan, and China. I know less than 10 words in each of those languages and got around fine. You’d be surprised how far you can go with little more than hello, thank you, please, and excuse me. And now Google Translate and maps exist-which greatly simplify a lot and didn’t even exist the first time I went abroad.
The need-to-know stuff (attraction signs, menus, transportation) is all bilingual. Attractions rely on visual storytelling, so language knowledge doesn’t matter. Guest Relations will have English-speaking staff available in the event of an emergency. A lot of food ordering is done by pointing to what you want.
People imagine the language barrier to be this insurmountable thing, but it’s really not.