Fiancé and I went to USJ yesterday (the day before Golden Week started, although some locals may have taken Mon/Tues off too).
Here’s what our experience was like:
– Park hours were 8:00 AM open. I wanted to get there earlier to get into Super Nintendo World without an express pass. We ended up arriving around 7:45 and lots of people were already in the park so they must have opened gates at 7. The queue to get in was not bad at all though, honestly 10 min max.
– Forgot that you’re not technically supposed to bring food inside the park — we bought some from 7-Eleven outside the station but we bypassed the bag check by chance since the food was in our jacket pockets.
– As soon as we got in, I used the USJ app to get Area Timed Entry tickets and saw 10 and 11 AM available. We opted for 10 AM and selected the only slot which was for 10:40.
– We did a couple things with no wait. My fiancé doesn’t like roller coasters so we did the Amazing Spider-man 4D experience (so fun!) and the JJK 4D show (all in Japanese, waiting longer than 15 min wouldn’t be worth it IMO)
– It was about 10 AM when we tried getting into Nintendo World and the ticket officer let us in. There’s a stand for the power bands right past the gate which will likely have a queue — there’s many more inside the park that probably won’t. Go there instead.
– We personally enjoyed having the bands, it gave us a lot to do just by looking at the available stamps and how to get them. That said, without them, you’d only miss out on the “key missions” and the Bowser Jr. activity, which are all fun but not regrettable to miss.
– This area was definitely more packed than the rest of USJ in the morning, but nothing unbearable, at least compared to Canada’s Wonderland. For example, the wait to Mario Kart (which was SO good) was a bit longer than an hour wait but the line moves fast and the themed area is entertaining enough. Most people would probably find the express pass to be worth it though.
– We got to Toad’s café around noon and were given tickets for 2:30. Recommended to go to the café as soon as you enter the area so you can do everything else while you wait.
– The food was cute and pretty good. Portions are tiny though. If you can’t get in early enough, I’d consider getting food elsewhere in the park (after you do everything you want in this area – cant return after leaving)
– By noon the wait times were pretty much what has been shared already; over an hour. There are water fountains in the line and fans for hotter days, but my back was about to give out lol
Overall, I was happy to spend all of the trip there. If we did roller coasters, the express pass would definitely be worth it and probably necessary. In our case, I’m glad we didn’t buy them — made the power band fee a little easier to stomach 🙂
12 comments
Is the app the one in japanese? (That has a blue background with an hourglass?
> We personally enjoyed having the bands, it gave us a lot to do just by looking at the available stamps and how to get them. That said, without them, you’d only miss out on the “key missions” and the Bowser Jr. activity, which are all fun but not regrettable to miss.
I got the bands and did that first block where you jump up to collect coins, as a mid-40s male, I felt really awkward standing in line with a bunch of 5-10 year olds watching me as I jumped up to collect the coins 🙂
What other rides did your fiance do and would say were worth it? My spouse doesn’t do rollercoasters either, but I’d like to have them try a few of the other rides.
I was told that the power bands purchased in USO and USH would work in USJ. Anyone know if that is true.
I only recommend going to USJ during off season. There’s a japanese site that predicts crowd levels, but you can google translate the page to English: https://usjinfo.com/wait/pre_callendar.php
If you go during off season you don’t need an express pass, just line up more than 1 hour before opening (because as OP mentioned, sometimes they let people in early) and you can most likely get into Super Nintendo World immediately without a timed entry.
My recommended path is Mario Kart -> Toads Cafe -> Harry Potter world -> other roller coasters but of course it’s up to preference. You can easily hit up all the big rides *without* an express pass in one day if you don’t go on busy days.
Park is still quite busy even in ‘off season’ on a weekday though. Also restaurants just outside the park are really good but get crowded after closing.
Also hotels nearby aren’t too expensive at all, we stayed at Hotel Universal Port and it was cheaper than most AirBNBs at around $60 per person / night, the convenience in the morning is worth it.
>We personally enjoyed having the bands, it gave us a lot to do just by looking at the available stamps and how to get them. That said, without them, you’d only miss out on the “key missions” and the Bowser Jr. activity, which are all fun but not regrettable to miss.
Personally I found that the Power Bands are like 60% of the reason to go. With the app, it gives you goals and challenges to chase in Mario kart and Yoshi’s Adventure. Not to mention some scavenger hunt stuff like finding all the pixel art hidden in Super Nintendo World, spotting Rosalina with he binoculars, competing on the score board for a high score, finding all the coin blocks etc.
I’m there today during Golden Week. I was in the park by 7:15 and ran for Harry Potter World. Got a timed entry ticket for Nintendo on the way for 8:50-9:50am slot. Rode the rides in Harry Potter a couple times each with no wait.
Went on the same day as you. Arrived at 6:55, gates (non-early entry) opened around 7:20. Register for area timed entry immediately when you enter the gates. At 9ish, the only remaining timeslot was 20:00, but by registering directly upon entering we were able to enter Super Nintendo World at 8:30.
Also, keep in mind that there are 5-15 minute queues for EVERYTHING. Want to buy popcorn? Queue. Want to play a mini-game to obtain a key in Super Nintendo Land? Queue. Want to hit the Music blocks for your in-app sticker? Queue. It’s not just the big ticket rides that require some waiting. Overall it wasn’t disruptive for my experience, but I wasn’t used to this from my experience in European parks.
I was there same day as you OP! We did arrive at 7 AM, I think the park opened at 7:20 or something like that. We arranged a timed entry ticket for Nintendo World straight away, for 8:30. Went to the Harry Potter part first, practically no wait for the forbidden Journey and that ride was awesome. We’re not big on coasters either but the flight of the hippogriff is mild enough.
Power up bands are totally worth it, I would indeed say its half of the experience and it was fun to beat bowser jr.
Longest wait we had said 80 mins but was closer to an hour.
Was there same day as you, but didn’t do SNW that day. My colleagues and I (we work in Japan) went both Monday and Tuesday and did SNW on Monday. Sounds more or less the same with timings.
On Monday 2 of us went in at 7.50 and another 2 went in at 7.20. Got our timed tix from the machines inside around 8 for a 8.50am slot. Went straight to Kinopio Cafe upon entry at 9am and got a 10.15 entry tix. Stayed in SNW only about ~3hrs.
Tuesday we dedicated mostly to doing the Spy × Family mission and eating lol.
If we got express passes but did not rope drop would that be a big mistake?
We were thinking of staying in Kyoto as a base and doing a day trip to USJ and the 7 am just sounds too early.
Did you purchase your tickets in advance? Or can I buy them at the park?