With the majestic Cinderella Castle and many attractions themed after classic Disney movies, Fantasyland is a place where fairy tales and dream-like stories come to life. Take a walk around Tokyo Disneyland‘s Fantasyland in this entry.
Tokyo Disneyland’s Fantasyland is a mash-up of various Fantasyland(s) around the world. Given the park’s design concept (to take the “best of” from Magic Kingdom and the original Disneyland), it mixes a village section and then what looks like a medieval fairground. And then we have the Haunted Mansion in one corner, while at the other end lies a giant storybook in a forest.
The village area right behind Cinderella Castle.
Further on, the slowly blends into a fair. See how Dumbo is right in front of the Haunted Mansion?
This version, called Dumbo The Flying Elephant, is the only one in the world that features the “original” 10-elephant design. The other rides around the world have 16 elephants and a much more elaborate design (flying over fountains). I’m surprised, really, that this ride has not been updated.
The Mickey’s Philharmagic building looks rather odd, as it’s trying to be two things at the same time. We didn’t plan to visit this attraction at all, but it was raining very heavily one day so we walked in.
Unsurprisingly, Tokyo’s version of this attraction tries to be different. The waiting area before the theatre, especially.
Instead of just hanging posters, there are a few of these displays, showing elements of the Disney movies with real props.
As for the show itself, it’s the same as other versions of Philharmagic, except that the show is entirely dubbed in Japanese.
This quaint village building is Pooh Corner – the ride exit shop for Pooh’s Hunny Hunt.
We actually went to it’s a small world several times. Sometimes you just need a slow boat ride to hide from the heat (we visited the park during summer).
With vivid colours, it’s a small world feels like a Mary Blair painting popping into reality. The bright facade draws people in and surprisingly, there is always a short wait despite the high capacity of this attraction.
Like all of the other small world buildings, it is actually a clock tower that announces the time with a little toy show every 15 minutes.
The first section of the queue inside is uncharacteristic of Tokyo Disneyland. Bare walls and cramped corridors.
The loading area is a different world altogether. Huge murals, Mary Blair style, in a massive space resembling a sports hall.
Impressively, the platform can handle 4 boats at any time.
Tokyo’s version of the ride is the classic form, with no Disney characters.
Compared to Hong Kong Disneyland, the scenes are much grander as many rooms felt expansive. There are also more figures in each scene.
The “river” is also much wider, with waters going as far as the actual sets. In Hong Kong Disneyland, the river channel is clearly separated and the sets are kept dry.
With more space, the lighting and effects in this version feels more impactful. There is enough room to show contrast.
Add the expanded water surface and you get beautiful reflections along the river. That’s something that’s missing in Hong Kong.
The famous “White Room” doesn’t exist here, but I prefer Tokyo’s version of the Finale. Much more dream-like and feels true to Mary Blair’s design.
And we’re back! It’s hard to see, but there are small spinning water jet fountains in this loading/unloading area.
One other ride we went on is Snow White’s Adventures. Another classic Disney dark ride, although this is one of those that uses darkness to its fullest. It’s not very suitable for young children due to some frightening scenes. For theme park fans however, don’t skip this! It’s a classic and uses many “old-school” effects!
While Snow White does not have a castle (or even a happy ending in Tokyo Disneyland), there are two mini attractions dedicated to her.
Snow White Grotto, for one, is a picturesque waterfall with marble statues.
There’s also a wishing well, where you can faintly hear Snow White’s “I’m Wishing” performed in Japanese. You can’t draw water from the well, but you can always throw some coins and make a wish.
In Fantasyland – Part two, I’ll show you Queen of Hearts Banquet Hall (a popular restaurant!) as well as some photos of the area at night. Stay tuned!
An Introduction | Getting There and Around | Pocket Wi-Fi | Tips and Tricks
Tokyo DisneySea
Mediterranean Harbor | Mediterranean Harbor at night | Fortress ExplorationsMagellan's | American Waterfront | Tower of Terror | Toy Story Mania!
Port Discovery | Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull
Lost River Delta & Raging Spirits | Sindbad's Storybook Voyage
Arabian Coast | Arabian Coast at night | Mermaid Lagoon
Mysterious Island | Journey to the Center of the Earth
Mysterious Island at night & 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Tokyo Disneyland
World Bazaar | World Bazaar at night | Adventureland | Pirates of the CaribbeanWesternland & Big Thunder Mountain Railroad | Splash Mountain
Haunted Mansion | Pooh's Hunny Hunt | Fantasyland | Fantasyland at night
Cinderella's Fairy Tale Hall | Toon Town | Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin
Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek | Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
Tomorrowland & Space Mountain | Happiness is Here Parade
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Fantasyland is a good place if you want to catch the parade at the starting point, with not so many crowds, next to the Haunted Mansion. Also, characters can be found in Fantasyland. I met Mad Hatter, Esmeralda, Geppetto, Mary Poppins and Aurora there. I also saw Bert, Rapunzel and Belle.
I wish I could have rode Peter Pan’s Flight, but the queue was quite long!