The magic of Disney’s got nothin’ on cold, hard math.
Disney fanatics are crunching the numbers: Is it really cheaper to visit their Tokyo park than the entertainment juggernaut’s US destinations? Depends on a variety of factors —- like hotel choice, origin of departure, airfare and time of year — not to mention how you’d like your visit with The Mouse to go.
The question of which destination is ultimately cheaper is going viral across multiple social media platforms like ‘X’ and Instagram, along with travel sites like DisneyDorks and Disney Tourist Blog.
Spoiler alert — the answer is less straightforward (and more headache-inducing) than one might initially think.
“The reality is that the huge difference between Tokyo Disney Resort and Walt Disney World isn’t so much about the cost of each item — it’s about when you pay for it,” Chris French — a travel agent who specializes in Disney destinations and the creator of wishful-thinking.com (a Disney vacation planner blog) — told The Post.
“At Tokyo Disney Resort, you pay a low price to get in, and then you might pay low prices for things like food and merchandise. But you have to pay dramatically more for the privileges that most people want — the chance to see every show, to see every parade and to actually get on the rides (with premiere access),” French continued.
When it comes to standalone ticket prices, Tokyo Disney Resort is undoubtedly cheaper than the U.S. parks.
According to the Tokyo Disney Resort website, tickets for single-day use range from 7,900-10,900 yen for adults (about $51-70 US. dollars) for adults; 6,600-9,000 yen for ‘juniors’ aged 12-17 (about $42-$58); and 4,700-5,600 yen for children aged 4-11 (about $30-$36).
Meanwhile, Disney World attendees ages 10 and up can expect to shell out at least $119 for a standard ticket, with that price skyrocketing up to $274 on especially popular days for park-hopper options.
Disneyland doesn’t rank far behind, with single-day use tickets starting at $104.
One questionable rhyme posted on the Reddit thread r/rosesarered (alongside a pic of “Frozen”’s Anna and Elsa) read, “Roses are red, a Batman villain is the riddler; It is now cheaper to fly to Japan, go to Tokyo Disney, get a hotel, and fly back than go to Disney in Florida.”
A follow-up Reddit thread by r/theydidthemath asked users, “This can’t be true, are the prices really that expensive?”
Users took to the thread (which amassed 785 upvotes and 135 comments) to debate the topic.
“Being to both of these parks somewhat recently, Japan was MUCH MUCH cheaper,” user ‘SayomiTsukiko’ commented. “Japan in general is incredibly cheap for an American atm…And Disney does even more markups than normal in America. I’d love to see the actual numbers, but even without them I can say it’s somewhat plausible.”
Another user ‘salemonz’ added that they took their wife and nine-year-old daughter to Tokyo Disney for two days and said that this (plus three days in Kyoto) was “about as expensive as 3 days in Orlando.”
French — who also runs the Reddit account ‘wishful_thinking’ and visits all 12 Disney parks on an annual basis — disputed the thread’s initial claim, commenting that “this meme is wildly misleading/oversimplified/untrue.”
Further down in his comment, he stated in bullet points that the reasons for this were that “a ticket gets you more at WDW”; “you see less on a typical day in Tokyo”; and “you only gain perks at both parks in very expensive hotels” (referring to the lodges at Tokyo DisneySea and Tokyo Disneyland).
“It simply is going to take you longer to see everything, because there’s a lot more to see,” French said on the phone when referencing the fact that Tokyo Disney Resort includes two parks, while Walt Disney World includes four, plus two waterparks. “You’re going to spend longer at WDW and you’re going to end up spending more money, because there’s more to do.”
French also noted that Walt Disney World offers “fantastic promotions” throughout the year, which can considerably cut down on costs.
Still, Sam Smith, a 32-year-old based in Oklahoma who has attended Walter Disney World, Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Resort, maintained that Tokyo Disney was her “preferred” park and her cheapest overall experience.
Smith and her husband flew out of Dallas to go to Tokyo Disney Resort in 2023 for around $700 round-trip.
“Even just getting there, we just had to get their version of a Metro card, which was like $9.” Smith told The Post. “We were able to just use public transportation to get to and from there. Everyone was also super polite. And Disney is always clean, but (Tokyo Disney) was like, exceptionally clean.”
All that is to say — for those looking to plan their next big trip to see Mickey and friends, Tokyo may not be a bad place to start.
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