The first time we went to Universal Studios in Japan, I'd read to get the Express Pass 7 and it worked a treat. We purchased it from Klook and it all went smoothly. Tourist numbers were up this time and a few hours after purchasing it, it was cancelled. I tried to buy another and they were gone so in a mad panic, and at vast expense, I purchased two different Express pass 4's for each of us.
Mistake number 1.
It was a two fold mistake because the Nintendo World pass didn't include Mario Kart Koopa's Challenge, which is the best ride in my opinion.
Second mistake on the passes was we didn't need the second pass at all except for Hollywood the Dream backdrop (which is everyone's second favourite ride) because we went the week Donkey Kong opened so there were very short lines in Harry Potter World (also the Harry Potter ride made the entire family motion sick so no one was in the mood to ride the Hippogriff. Two people went home and those of us that stayed went to Conan in 4D (which is great fun and was actually my favourite after Mario).
To remedy mistake number 1, we got the bus transfer to the studios, as they get you there for early opening and we raced to Nintendo world. We jumped in the singles line for Mario and the wait was less than 30 minutes for us all to ride it.
If you are coming from another country and with limited time, an express pass is well worth it. However look at ALL the options available, and note that while some may be sold out, they may be available with different time arrangements, which was actually the case. I could have got an Express 7 but the time slots were arranged later in the day, that would have been smarter and cheaper than what I did. In 2024 the Nintendo world lines were 2 hours and this year Donkey Kong was 3 hours. Anything to skip that is worthwhile.
Also don't do the Forbidden Journey in the morning or straight after lunch. It might ruin the rest of your day.
We did the Jaws ride earlier in the day but dropped in was we walked past to leave the park. It's so pretty in the dark (and if you have a pass with the option of fast passing Jaws or Hollywood the Dream, definitely don't use it on Jaws! Both visits and 3 times riding it, the line was never more than 5 minutes).
Mistake number 2.
Because I wanted the day to run smoothly, the first visit I had got return transfers from Dotonbori. I didn't want to risk arriving late if we got lost on the train having arrived late in Osaka the night before. My husband and son left the park well before the return pick up. My daughter and I did get the bus home. This time, I just got one way (so as not to miss riding Mario), and we all just made our own way back, again separately. Second time round we knew the train system, which is super easy, much easier than Tokyo in my opinion. So save your money there.
Mistake number 3.
We didn't get to eat in the Mario cafe (in Toad's house - Kinopio's Cafe) because when I went to book, it was full. What I should have done was run and scanned the reservation link prior to park opening when we raced to the Mario and pre-booked our table after our last ride in the area. So make sure that is the first thing you do if you wish to make Nintendo the main experience. The kids did get the freak shakes from Donkey Kong (for the souvenir cups) and we could walk into the Minion Cafe for lunch.
(The first time we visited, Harry Potter's Tavern had a Sunday roast with yorkshire pudding which I had because I found it funny being so English). You just need to see who is serving what, if burgers are not your style - but it is a theme park not a culinary experience).
You will have a great time, however you do it, but do note the lines are long. They were longer this time than our first visit the year before. You can't get into Nintendo world without timed entry and they check (no one has ever been there to check our timed entry into Harry Potter, but technically that's timed entry too.) We spend a ludicrous amount of money on that day, but it ran smoothly and everyone had a good time. There was as little time wasted as possible.
Remember, there are a lot of restaurants and shops just outside the park if you'd rather have dinner on the way home.
Note for Australians, there are checks on Hollywood the Dream for height/weight and the safety bar. You have to sit in the seat and they have to be able to close the harness. You may not be able to ride it if you are larger (including larger hip bones or quite tall). So bear that in mind before purchasing Express passes.
Practicalities:
Universal Studios Japan
Klook
KKDay
Pelago
I have used both Klook and KKDay in Japan with no problems. I have not used Pelago for Express passes but I have used it in Singapore, also no problems.
Further Reading:
An ode to Osaka - A love story or things as they ought to be
The first time we went to Universal Studios in Japan, I'd read to get the Express Pass 7 and it worked a treat. We purchased it from Klook and it all went smoothly. Tourist numbers were up this time and a few hours after purchasing it, it was cancelled. I tried to buy another and they were gone so in a mad panic, and at vast expense, I purchased two different Express pass 4's for each of us. 
To remedy mistake number 1, we got the bus transfer to the studios, as they get you there for early opening and we raced to Nintendo world. We jumped in the singles line for Mario and the wait was less than 30 minutes for us all to ride it.
If you are coming from another country and with limited time, an express pass is well worth it. However look at ALL the options available, and note that while some may be sold out, they may be available with different time arrangements, which was actually the case. I could have got an Express 7 but the time slots were arranged later in the day, that would have been smarter and cheaper than what I did. In 2024 the Nintendo world lines were 2 hours and this year Donkey Kong was 3 hours. Anything to skip that is worthwhile.
Mistake number 3.
You will have a great time, however you do it, but do note the lines are long. They were longer this time than our first visit the year before. You can't get into Nintendo world without timed entry and they check (no one has ever been there to check our timed entry into Harry Potter, but technically that's timed entry too.) We spend a ludicrous amount of money on that day, but it ran smoothly and everyone had a good time. There was as little time wasted as possible. 
Practicalities:
Oh how fun. What a beautiful place. I would love to visit and Mel's is a place I would visit. Yummy.
ReplyDeleteThank you for joining the Awww Mondays Blog Hop.
Have a fabulous Awww Monday and week, Lydia. Hugs. ♥
Whilst I am glad it went reasonably well in the end, I would no longer have the patience (or energy) to line up like that...but go you and your family...making those memories which last. Denyse x
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness what a fun place to visit, Lydia. Looks like you had a great time with some learnings as well. Making memories is what counts isn't it? Sue L xx
ReplyDeleteHi Lydia - it looks like such a fun place to visit! Great tips of what to do and what not to do if visiting there. I hope to get to Japan one day. It's on my wishlist. Hope you're having a great week and thanks for linking up with #WWWhimsy ! xo
ReplyDeleteForget the mistakes, it was clearly a wonderful experience!
ReplyDeleteThat Mario land looks like so much fun! We've been to Universal Studios in Orlando Florida a time or two and definitely recommend their express passes too; the extra cost was well worth the ability to skip most of the lines. Like you we made sure to visit those rides not covered by the passes first before the park was too crowded.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a fun time was had by all Lydia. Thanks for sharing the mistakes you made, I'm sure they'll help others out at some stage! #Teamwwwhimsy
ReplyDeleteCan’t believe the lengths of those wait times! We just got back from Disneyland Paris and the longest we waited was half an hour! I expect these rides were a lot more exciting though. So pleased you had such a fun time!
ReplyDeleteWhat a colourful set of pictures. I have only ever been to one 'Theme Park' - many years ago. They seem to have become even more complex / crazy than I remember!
ReplyDeleteCheers - Stewart M - just back from Europe!
I'm not an amusement park rider but it would be so fun to visit Disney World. I daydream about going to Orlando in the winter to see it. Who knows, if get brave enough we can experience the rides but mostly I just want to take to see everything, maybe even meet Cinderella. :) Going to a different country period sounds scary to me. I wouldn't like being separated from my husband for a second! And the insane lines would put me off. It's a good thing I'm not into that part of the theme parks. I'm glad y'all had fun and made memories! :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like you had a lot of fun. Thank you for your weekend coffee share.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I went to Tokyo about two months ago. We are already daydreaming our next trip to Japan, maybe Osaka? I went there many years ago but we were only in Osaka for two days. I would love to explore more in the future.
ReplyDeleteWhat cool photos. Sounds like even though mistakes were made, fun was had. My daughter went to Mario world in California a few weeks ago. She said it was really neat
ReplyDeleteA riot of colour! Absolutely wonderful!
ReplyDelete