TDR Trip Report! Finished! (DisneySea, Disneyland, Tokyo, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Disneyland)

bibbidibobbidibecky

The Fairy Godblogger
Joined
May 12, 2009
Hi everyone! I thought I would post links to my trip report here since I got so much information on these boards before our trip!

We had a fantastic time, much thanks to everyone who gave me invaluable info before leaving. I know when I was planning, I loved reading trip reports, so hopefully these can be helpful to others, too!

I'll update the links as I add more. We also visited Hiroshima, Kyoto, Hong Kong and Disneyland Hong Kong.
  1. Getting to Japan: https://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/07/the-land-of-rising-sun-getting-there-is.html
  2. Tokyo: https://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/07/the-land-of-rising-sun-aka-land-of-430.html
  3. TDR (arrival and Disneyland): https://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/07/tokyo-disney-resort-not-just-any.html
  4. DisneySea: http://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/07/tokyo-disney-resort-monsoon-cant-stop-us.html
  5. Disneyland and DisneySea: http://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/07/tokyo-disney-resort-walking-on-sunshine.html
  6. Hiroshima: http://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/08/hiroshima-now-we-are-really-in-japan.html
  7. Kyoto: http://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/09/kyoto-monkeys-geisha-temples-yabai.html
  8. Hong Kong Days 1 and 2: http://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/10/ho-lee-fook-hong-kong-is-awesome.html
  9. Hong Kong Disneyland: https://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2019/11/hong-kong-disneyland-i-know-theres.html
  10. Our last day on Lantau Island and heading home: http://thefairygodblogger.blogspot.com/2020/01/a-terrifying-visit-to-big-buddha.html
 
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I loved reading your trip review so far, and looking forward to reading about your other 2 days at TDR. Glad to hear you enjoyed Hitlon Tokyo bay as that is where we are also staying.
 
Wow... Thanks for sharing your trip.
Some places are exactly where we will be going ( but not that Starbucks LOL )
I have to rethink that Imperial Palace tour, I have read that it was a bit boring and they don't let you go off half way. Thank you for making my mind up !!
I missed that Candy store on my plan. Will add that in as I will be at the Takeshita street.

On the underground, what do you mean by the station number it being lower and higher numbers and floors?
 


That was an amazing report! Thanks so much for taking the time to write it all out! I'm definitely going to skip the Imperial Palace tour now that I've read your report - my husband will be bored to tears. I am excited for our trip but really anxious/nervous about navigating the metro system and booking a hotel (everything is so expensive... why is it always double the price when you have two people in a room?! :scared:). Any other tips or info about what you did in Tokyo would always be appreciated!
 
Wow... Thanks for sharing your trip.
Some places are exactly where we will be going ( but not that Starbucks LOL )
I have to rethink that Imperial Palace tour, I have read that it was a bit boring and they don't let you go off half way. Thank you for making my mind up !!
I missed that Candy store on my plan. Will add that in as I will be at the Takeshita street.

On the underground, what do you mean by the station number it being lower and higher numbers and floors?

No, don't go to Starbucks LOL. I hated to say anything negative about the Imperial Palace tour, but what I wrote was the honest truth. Now it was just our experience...you could go and love every minute, but we just didn't.

For the Subway, so the stops are numbered like 1, 2, 3 etc. in order starting on one end of the line to the other. I guess I'm referencing NYC on going up or down because that's how they talk about riding the subway. Uptown or downtown. Sorry for any confusion. If you look at a Tokyo Metro map online, you'll see each stop has a coordinating number, so if you are at 8 and need to get to 15, then you will follow signs to whatever the end number is. If you were at 8 and needed to get to 3, then you would go toward 1. Have I made it worse?
 
That was an amazing report! Thanks so much for taking the time to write it all out! I'm definitely going to skip the Imperial Palace tour now that I've read your report - my husband will be bored to tears. I am excited for our trip but really anxious/nervous about navigating the metro system and booking a hotel (everything is so expensive... why is it always double the price when you have two people in a room?! :scared:). Any other tips or info about what you did in Tokyo would always be appreciated!

Honestly with the metro, printing out the map beforehand was helpful and circling all the stops I knew we would need. Once you are there in the moment, it's not as confusing. I did like how the stops were numbered. It made it clearer to me which direction to get on.

As far as accommodation, I say just make sure you are near a metro station. That was invaluable for getting around. Also, check out some Airbnbs. We rented one in Kyoto and it was great. They can be in cool areas and not as expensive as the hotels.

Tokyo is great! You'll love it.
 


Honestly with the metro, printing out the map beforehand was helpful and circling all the stops I knew we would need. Once you are there in the moment, it's not as confusing. I did like how the stops were numbered. It made it clearer to me which direction to get on.

As far as accommodation, I say just make sure you are near a metro station. That was invaluable for getting around. Also, check out some Airbnbs. We rented one in Kyoto and it was great. They can be in cool areas and not as expensive as the hotels.

Tokyo is great! You'll love it.
Our Airbnb in Tokyo was absolutely amazing. I would highly recommend her to anyone. If we go back to that area we would definitely stay with her again. Her family’s house was in a quiet little alley near yoyogi park and it was so peaceful to walk that area at night.
 
Wow and Wow... :worship:

What a beautiful family you have....pixiedust:

Great trip report... well written... I copied and pasted so much of your report over to my notes.... Lots of wonderful tips, and how everything works, and how you made everything works...

I can wait to read the rest of your adventure...
 
Thanks @LovesTimone, very sweet of you! I'm glad you are able to get some tips from it; that's why I do it. I love reading blogs before I travel anywhere for tips and to get exited about my own adventure! I hope to have Hiroshima up this weekend.

I'm jealous you're still in the planning stage. I love the planning stage :)
 
Thanks @LovesTimone, very sweet of you! I'm glad you are able to get some tips from it; that's why I do it. I love reading blogs before I travel anywhere for tips and to get exited about my own adventure! I hope to have Hiroshima up this weekend.

I'm jealous you're still in the planning stage. I love the planning stage :)


I love the planning too... I will say that the trains and transportation have been the most overwhelming part of planning for this trip... I am sorta settling down a bit... then I see a vlog or youtube video... then I get a case of the nerve's again...

I found out the tips that I have gotten here on the DIS have been to most helpful when planning.... and have saved me time, and money... given me place's or thing to do or check out that I might not have thought of... Looking forward to your next installment
 
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I’m only on day 1 of DisneySea on your amazing trip report, but huge thank you. I’m plannkng my trip with my husband for October and was honestly somewhat overwhelmed but your trip report has been a lifesaver and gives me some great places to start and go from.

Im also simultaneously planning a trip to Paris in December. Im
Regretting it now because i get things mixed up with the two cities but it’s exciting for sure.
 
I’m only on day 1 of DisneySea on your amazing trip report, but huge thank you. I’m plannkng my trip with my husband for October and was honestly somewhat overwhelmed but your trip report has been a lifesaver and gives me some great places to start and go from.

Im also simultaneously planning a trip to Paris in December. Im
Regretting it now because i get things mixed up with the two cities but it’s exciting for sure.

I is easy to mix them up! I kept getting Tokyo Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland rides mixed up before we went because of planning both at the same time.

I'm so happy that the trip report is helping you. That's always my hope! I love writing them to relive, but mainly because I know how helpful I find reports when I'm planning my own trips. Let me know if you have any specific questions. I think I was truly most intimidated by the subway system before the trip, but it ended up being just fine.

I'm sure you saw, but I did a Paris report in 2014 from when we went there. I doubt much has changed since then :)
 
I is easy to mix them up! I kept getting Tokyo Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland rides mixed up before we went because of planning both at the same time.

I'm so happy that the trip report is helping you. That's always my hope! I love writing them to relive, but mainly because I know how helpful I find reports when I'm planning my own trips. Let me know if you have any specific questions. I think I was truly most intimidated by the subway system before the trip, but it ended up being just fine.

I'm sure you saw, but I did a Paris report in 2014 from when we went there. I doubt much has changed since then :)

I had not dug deep enough to see Paris for 2015 but thank you. I’m going to check it out. I’ve been to Paris itself before so I’m lesss intimidated by Paris. Tokyo and Tokyo Disney are the most overwhelming for me.

I do love a good trip report. I wish I could write them myself but I’m so terrible at it.
 
Great trip report! I am in the planning stages for my trip with my husband in March of next year and I have gotten some great ideas! I am going to book the tea ceremony in Gion and looking forward to the fortunes in Tokyo at the oldest temple. I am waiting very impatiently for the next part because we are going to Hong Kong as well. You are quite an entertaining writer and I am enjoying your reports!
 
Great trip report! I am in the planning stages for my trip with my husband in March of next year and I have gotten some great ideas! I am going to book the tea ceremony in Gion and looking forward to the fortunes in Tokyo at the oldest temple. I am waiting very impatiently for the next part because we are going to Hong Kong as well. You are quite an entertaining writer and I am enjoying your reports!

Thank you so much and I'm so happy that you have both enjoyed it and are getting some tips from it. I really really loved Hong Kong and really look forward to going back there some day! You will love doing the tea ceremony! They offer two at two different locations, so make sure of which you are booking.

Great job on the trip report, I am really enjoying reading about your adventure... lots of good tips, and thoughts...

Thank you! Working on Hong Kong now :)
 
Thanks so much for all your writing here & the blog! You have a lovely family, btw! My DD (now 15 y.o.) & I have a 2020 TDR & USJ trip planned, so I'm reading, listening, & watching everything I can to prepare, & even trying to re-learn a bit of what Japanese I knew 40 years ago. DD, otoh, thinks 2020 is too far off & isn't interested yet in trip planning, so if we end up going some place I picked out that she doesn't like, tough luck! Although I should cut her some slack, since she is in a busy stage of life & things like homework take priority. 🤷‍♀️
I'm enjoying all your little videos, too, but my favorite may be the one right after you entered Tokyo Disneyland, that clip ended with something like "we're going to need a map!" LOL from the person who still picks up park maps at WDW's MK for no apparent reason. I'll definitely pick one up in Tokyo!
 
Thanks so much for all your writing here & the blog! You have a lovely family, btw! My DD (now 15 y.o.) & I have a 2020 TDR & USJ trip planned, so I'm reading, listening, & watching everything I can to prepare, & even trying to re-learn a bit of what Japanese I knew 40 years ago. DD, otoh, thinks 2020 is too far off & isn't interested yet in trip planning, so if we end up going some place I picked out that she doesn't like, tough luck! Although I should cut her some slack, since she is in a busy stage of life & things like homework take priority. 🤷‍♀️
I'm enjoying all your little videos, too, but my favorite may be the one right after you entered Tokyo Disneyland, that clip ended with something like "we're going to need a map!" LOL from the person who still picks up park maps at WDW's MK for no apparent reason. I'll definitely pick one up in Tokyo!


I am a local and AP holder and I still pick up a map like you for no apparent reason... ! ... and DH always says, did you get a map?? I had to laugh, and thought well I know now that I'm not alone...
 

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