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Ghibli Park: What to Know Before You Go
This popular theme park based on one of the most celebrated animation studios in the world is 17.5 hectares wide and that means two things: it has a lot to offer and you have to be ready for it.
Karl R. De Mesa
2024-11-26T10:39:30.973Z
Ghibli Park can be just like the animated features of the Studio Ghibli: it can be challenging but wonderous and rewarding.
Located in Japan’s Nagakute City, Aichi Prefecture, the park—both sprawling and huge—showcases attractions based off of the films of Studio Ghibli. It is not to be confused with the Ghibli Museum, which is a smaller and older spot that’s in Tokyo. The theme park is located within another park; the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park.
Though costly, if you’re any sort of fan that dug “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Howl’s Moving Castle,” or “Spirited Away” and the other classics or the newer movies, this may be an experience you’d opt not to miss. But to fully appreciate it, you must come prepared.
Plenty of well-made guides are already online that’ll show you how to get to the park and where to go. As such—and as a caveat—this is not one of those guides. Rather, it’s a list of tips and suggestions, what to expect and what you should do beforehand to indeed make your trip to it both wonderous and rewarding—even though it can be challenging.
ARE YOU ENOUGH OF A FAN?
First of all, you must ask yourself: am I a big enough fan of the Studio Ghibli movies to make this trip worth taking? I mean, flying to nearby Osaka or Tokyo, paying for your billet, and then taking about an hour’s worth of train changes or bus changes to Nagakute City isn’t an easy (and obviously not a cheap) proposition.
We’re not gatekeeping but it will be a mistake for this guide to not stress that if you’re coming from outside Japan, the trip to it can be taxing to both the body and the wallet.
SECURE A JAPAN VISA
Of course travel to Japan from the Philippines necessitates you apply for a visa. Secure this one as early as you can from a reputable travel agency. It’s advisable to apply for a multi-entry tourist visa, which will give you a total of five years with a maximum of 30 days per stay. We did.
BOOK YOUR PARK PASS
Once you’ve got your visa sorted then it’s time to book your tickets. Something that’s not such a simple operation since there’s such a high demand for it.
We booked ours after waiting in a virtual line for about 50 minutes. Then we watched fascinated as the dates we chose got sold out within the next two hours.
Take note that there are no tickets sold at the venue itself. Everything must be done online in advance.
There are several tickets on the English language website for foreigners on the Ghibli Park’s website but I’d really suggest plunking down for the O-Sanpo Premium Day Pass. See, only the Premium Pass allows you access to the World Emporium (Hill of Youth), Satsuki and Mei’s House (Dondoko Forest), The Okino Residence, Howl’s Castle, as well as The House of Witches (in The Valley of Witches.)
It’s truly all access. Before buying though, here are a few things to consider. Queuing for this online will be a challenge since it goes on sale two months in advance and they are quickly sold out (sometimes within an hour.) Also, expect areas on the Premium Pass where photography is not allowed. This way, an air of mystery is preserved and the experience is truly an authentically lived one, keeping you in the moment.
Prices for the O-Sanpo Day Pass Premium are as follows:
Weekdays: Y7,300 (PhP2746)
Weekends and Holidays: Y7,800 (PhP2935)
Children aged four to 12 are half price
Those aged three and below enter for FREE
When you buy tickets, note that there are set entry times for the Grand Warehouse, so it’s not overcrowded in this main location. Also, upon entry, all the members of your group must go in together. Plus, tickets cannot transferred to another person (there are random ID checks) so, make sure that the name on your passport matches the name on your ticket booking.
You can easily while away an hour or two at each location so best to set aside one whole day for your visit, especially if you took my advice and splurged for the Premium Pass.
TRAIN FOR CARDIO
If you can’t walk for five minutes before getting winded then best to train to expand your cardio for sustained walking. Or better, yet running.
Consider this: Japan has an excellent railway system and the terrain for that require plenty of ascending and descending. Plus, Ghibli Park itself is a sprawling 17.5 hectares, with plenty of exhibits that are outdoors (like the Valley of the Witches.) And while this mostly applies to able bodied individuals sans movement disability (since the country also has excellent facilities for those in wheelchairs or crutches,) it’s best to start improving your cardio two months prior to your trip.
At the end of our visit to the park, we racked up 24,000 steps. That’s without even stepping foot in Mononoke Village.
DRESS ACCORDINGLY
“It’s not really important what color your dress is…” but how it deals with the weather is a different story.
While we went there in October, the night could still drop to a chilly low of 17 degrees (going out to score grub in just shorts and a shirt was a mistake I can admit to making.) A heavy jacket or some extra cold weather wear like a scarf will definitely be useful when you are on the way back to your hotel. No; your multiple layers of jackets cannot compare to actual thermal wear. Fortunately for you, there are some that can be bought even in a tropical country like the Philippines.
One more thing to note is that mornings and afternoons during our trip were relatively humid at 23 degrees. So, if the weather promises that, bring a hat or umbrella since four of the five park locations are outdoors and you’ll do a lot of walking in the open until you decide to go into the Grand Warehouse.
GOOGLE TRANSLATE IS YOUR FRIEND
Though the park of course has trained English-speaking attendants and there’s a much higher English penetration in Japan nowadays than in previous years, it’s still best to install Google Translate and download the Japanese language pack so you can look up words on the fly. The language pack also enables you to take photos and then upload them on the app for quick translation (all without being online).
CRASH COURSE ON GOOGLE MAPS
It must be said that Google Maps has several levels of navigation and there are items that might seem like a mystery to you but can be read by expert Maps users. So, to ride the trains of Japan like an expert, take a crash course on any of the helpful videos online and mark your locations. Getting lost on your way to the park because you took the wrong bus or got off at the wrong station instead of the Linimo’s Aichikyuhaku-kinen-koen Station would mean lost time better spent exploring the park.
OTHER USEFUL APPS
Though I suggest you score yourself a tourist SIM card for your stay, here are some apps available on Apple Store and the Google Playstore that were plenty useful during our stay:
JAPAN WI-FI AUTO CONNECT – says exactly what it does and finds the nearest free WIFI service in your vicinity.
JAPAN TRAVEL BY NAVITIME – this app has train schedules (including the Shinkansen bullet train reservations,) cross country routes, and card pass calculators for certain trips (you’ll need to score an ICOCA, PASMO, or SUICA IC card to travel the trains) plus where you can top them up.
GO TAXI – I mean, if you truly just want to throw money at your in-country travel route to Ghibli Park then by all means download the most used taxi app in Japan. Since it’s a ride-hailing app, it works just like Uber or GRAB and you book a taxi by using your GPS. Be aware that any taxi ride will not be cheap.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU GET THERE
First of all, expect crowds and lots of kids. Yes, despite a location that’s pretty out of the way, Ghibli Park does get pretty crowded. We were there on a Friday and while they said that weekends and holiday periods would get pretty swamped, there was a school field trip of all-girls that coincided with our visit. Thankfully they only went to the non-premium areas.
You also shouldn’t expect thrill rides. This isn’t your usual theme park. Unlike Universal Studios or Disneyland, there are no screaming carousels or thrill-seeker rollercoasters here. In a very apt Japanese and Ghibli fashion, the park features full-size and interactive exhibits or the movie sets and locations. Nearly movie-accurate sizes of Totoro or No-Face are available, Pom Poko raccoons planning their heist, and Yubaba Granny doing her bookkeeping. Plenty of Easter eggs for hardcore fans abound as well. But, there is a slope car for the disabled or elderly for the areas that need to be hiked at higher elevations.
GET TO KNOW THE PARK SECTIONS
Ghibli Park has five major locations.
Hill of Youth is the first and it is dominated by the Elevator Tower (“Castle in the Sky” and “Howl’s Moving Castle.”) This is an exhibit that greets you first when you walk in from the park gates. You can step into sets of the World Emporium and the Cat Bureau. Also, The Rotary from “Whisper of the Heart’s” town square is here.
Dondoko Forest is another section. The main attraction here is the Japanese-Western style house that Satsuki and Mei lived in from “My Neighbor Totoro.” You can easily spend an hour here pulling open drawers, looking at minutiae, and opening cabinets, as everything, down to the smallest detail, has been made and placed with care for authenticity.
Mononoke Village is the quiet Japanese mountain village featured in “Princess Mononoke.” However, we skipped this location since we read plenty of reviews that it was one of the simpler exhibits that was more for kids to play at. But if you’re interested, there is Lord Okkoto’s slide and a mochi-making experience that will be fun for the children.
Valley of the Witches is the newest exhibit that opened just last March 16. This location is where all the witches and magic-users from the Ghibli movies gather. There’s a distinct alt Euro and futuristic medieval ambience here, dominated by the incredible steampunk invention that is the wizard Howl’s Castle (“Howl’s Moving Castle.”) Once inside the castle, you can browse through three levels full of magical artifacts and spell paraphernalia seen in the movie. Right at the entrance is the wizard’s demon Calcifer in his fireplace. There is also the Okino Residence and Guchokipanya Bakery as seen in “Kiki’s Delivery Service” plus the House of Witches from “Earwig and the Witch.” There’s an optional carousel ride here that isn’t included in the Premium Pass and costs PhP379 per head, but just the free exhibits are already a heady enough experience.
Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse is the main exhibition space and the meat of the Premium Pass (hopefully, you bought one.) It has scenes from 13 of the feature films. Feel what it’s like to be Lilliputian at The Little People’s Garden, or climb on the sea railway train from “Spirited Away,” or fuss in the rustic kitchen of “Only Yesterday.” There were plenty of no-photography areas in the Warehouse but this was nerd heaven for hardcore fans like us. Just the exhibit of posters, figurine character studies, and behind-the-scenes of the movies was worth all the walking and the whole trip. I mean, take a look at that gigantic sky ship model above the main lobby.
SCORE SOUVENIRS
Almost each exhibit section has a dedicated souvenir section, like the Dondoko Dokor has charming good-luck charms (omamori) on keychains. The main souvenir shop with the most limited edition items are in the Grand Warehouse though.
Adventurous Flying Squadron is the primary souvenir place and it’s located there. Makes sense since the Warehouse is only accessible through the Premium Pass. In any case, prepare for your wallet to get raided like Princess Mononoke attacking Irontown since the Adventurous Flying Squadron has limited items and fan service merchandise aplenty.
Every version of a Totoro plushie is here, t-shirts, prints, figurines of any size, and posters, you name it. I almost took home a life-size Kashira bulb-eyed greenhead plushie last minute, but thought better of it.
Another souvenir shop is Rotunda Kazegaoka. This greets you at the Nestled at Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park’s north entrance and best of all it doesn’t need a Premium Pass to get to. So, if you missed something at the Adventurous Flying Squadron, the Rotunda Kazegaoka also has Ghibli-themed items.
Dondoko-dokoro is a small, charming souvenir shop at the Dondoko Forest. With a small collection of souvenirs like umbrellas and hats, plus some omamori. This is also accessible to any park visitor. We scored a white version of Totoro here on a keychain.
The aptly sprawling Valley of Witches has three souvenir shops with Witches Coven 13 having the longest line and the biggest selection of wands, spellbook-themed journals, brooms, and other spellcaster tchotchkes you’ve likely seen in the movies. Then the Hatter’s Millinery of course sells hats and some sweets. Just up the stairs from the millinery is a Witches’ Book Stack that has occult-themed and Wiccan tomes and literature.
There are many shops for you to find something you can take home. They may well with the memories of the place—especially the good ones you’ll most likely have if you go there prepared.
Located in Japan’s Nagakute City, Aichi Prefecture, the park—both sprawling and huge—showcases attractions based off of the films of Studio Ghibli. It is not to be confused with the Ghibli Museum, which is a smaller and older spot that’s in Tokyo. The theme park is located within another park; the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park.
Though costly, if you’re any sort of fan that dug “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Howl’s Moving Castle,” or “Spirited Away” and the other classics or the newer movies, this may be an experience you’d opt not to miss. But to fully appreciate it, you must come prepared.
Plenty of well-made guides are already online that’ll show you how to get to the park and where to go. As such—and as a caveat—this is not one of those guides. Rather, it’s a list of tips and suggestions, what to expect and what you should do beforehand to indeed make your trip to it both wonderous and rewarding—even though it can be challenging.
ARE YOU ENOUGH OF A FAN?
First of all, you must ask yourself: am I a big enough fan of the Studio Ghibli movies to make this trip worth taking? I mean, flying to nearby Osaka or Tokyo, paying for your billet, and then taking about an hour’s worth of train changes or bus changes to Nagakute City isn’t an easy (and obviously not a cheap) proposition.
We’re not gatekeeping but it will be a mistake for this guide to not stress that if you’re coming from outside Japan, the trip to it can be taxing to both the body and the wallet.
SECURE A JAPAN VISA
Of course travel to Japan from the Philippines necessitates you apply for a visa. Secure this one as early as you can from a reputable travel agency. It’s advisable to apply for a multi-entry tourist visa, which will give you a total of five years with a maximum of 30 days per stay. We did.
BOOK YOUR PARK PASS
Once you’ve got your visa sorted then it’s time to book your tickets. Something that’s not such a simple operation since there’s such a high demand for it.
We booked ours after waiting in a virtual line for about 50 minutes. Then we watched fascinated as the dates we chose got sold out within the next two hours.
Take note that there are no tickets sold at the venue itself. Everything must be done online in advance.
There are several tickets on the English language website for foreigners on the Ghibli Park’s website but I’d really suggest plunking down for the O-Sanpo Premium Day Pass. See, only the Premium Pass allows you access to the World Emporium (Hill of Youth), Satsuki and Mei’s House (Dondoko Forest), The Okino Residence, Howl’s Castle, as well as The House of Witches (in The Valley of Witches.)
It’s truly all access. Before buying though, here are a few things to consider. Queuing for this online will be a challenge since it goes on sale two months in advance and they are quickly sold out (sometimes within an hour.) Also, expect areas on the Premium Pass where photography is not allowed. This way, an air of mystery is preserved and the experience is truly an authentically lived one, keeping you in the moment.
Prices for the O-Sanpo Day Pass Premium are as follows:
Weekdays: Y7,300 (PhP2746)
Weekends and Holidays: Y7,800 (PhP2935)
Children aged four to 12 are half price
Those aged three and below enter for FREE
When you buy tickets, note that there are set entry times for the Grand Warehouse, so it’s not overcrowded in this main location. Also, upon entry, all the members of your group must go in together. Plus, tickets cannot transferred to another person (there are random ID checks) so, make sure that the name on your passport matches the name on your ticket booking.
You can easily while away an hour or two at each location so best to set aside one whole day for your visit, especially if you took my advice and splurged for the Premium Pass.
TRAIN FOR CARDIO
If you can’t walk for five minutes before getting winded then best to train to expand your cardio for sustained walking. Or better, yet running.
Consider this: Japan has an excellent railway system and the terrain for that require plenty of ascending and descending. Plus, Ghibli Park itself is a sprawling 17.5 hectares, with plenty of exhibits that are outdoors (like the Valley of the Witches.) And while this mostly applies to able bodied individuals sans movement disability (since the country also has excellent facilities for those in wheelchairs or crutches,) it’s best to start improving your cardio two months prior to your trip.
At the end of our visit to the park, we racked up 24,000 steps. That’s without even stepping foot in Mononoke Village.
DRESS ACCORDINGLY
“It’s not really important what color your dress is…” but how it deals with the weather is a different story.
While we went there in October, the night could still drop to a chilly low of 17 degrees (going out to score grub in just shorts and a shirt was a mistake I can admit to making.) A heavy jacket or some extra cold weather wear like a scarf will definitely be useful when you are on the way back to your hotel. No; your multiple layers of jackets cannot compare to actual thermal wear. Fortunately for you, there are some that can be bought even in a tropical country like the Philippines.
One more thing to note is that mornings and afternoons during our trip were relatively humid at 23 degrees. So, if the weather promises that, bring a hat or umbrella since four of the five park locations are outdoors and you’ll do a lot of walking in the open until you decide to go into the Grand Warehouse.
GOOGLE TRANSLATE IS YOUR FRIEND
Though the park of course has trained English-speaking attendants and there’s a much higher English penetration in Japan nowadays than in previous years, it’s still best to install Google Translate and download the Japanese language pack so you can look up words on the fly. The language pack also enables you to take photos and then upload them on the app for quick translation (all without being online).
CRASH COURSE ON GOOGLE MAPS
It must be said that Google Maps has several levels of navigation and there are items that might seem like a mystery to you but can be read by expert Maps users. So, to ride the trains of Japan like an expert, take a crash course on any of the helpful videos online and mark your locations. Getting lost on your way to the park because you took the wrong bus or got off at the wrong station instead of the Linimo’s Aichikyuhaku-kinen-koen Station would mean lost time better spent exploring the park.
OTHER USEFUL APPS
Though I suggest you score yourself a tourist SIM card for your stay, here are some apps available on Apple Store and the Google Playstore that were plenty useful during our stay:
JAPAN WI-FI AUTO CONNECT – says exactly what it does and finds the nearest free WIFI service in your vicinity.
JAPAN TRAVEL BY NAVITIME – this app has train schedules (including the Shinkansen bullet train reservations,) cross country routes, and card pass calculators for certain trips (you’ll need to score an ICOCA, PASMO, or SUICA IC card to travel the trains) plus where you can top them up.
GO TAXI – I mean, if you truly just want to throw money at your in-country travel route to Ghibli Park then by all means download the most used taxi app in Japan. Since it’s a ride-hailing app, it works just like Uber or GRAB and you book a taxi by using your GPS. Be aware that any taxi ride will not be cheap.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU GET THERE
First of all, expect crowds and lots of kids. Yes, despite a location that’s pretty out of the way, Ghibli Park does get pretty crowded. We were there on a Friday and while they said that weekends and holiday periods would get pretty swamped, there was a school field trip of all-girls that coincided with our visit. Thankfully they only went to the non-premium areas.
You also shouldn’t expect thrill rides. This isn’t your usual theme park. Unlike Universal Studios or Disneyland, there are no screaming carousels or thrill-seeker rollercoasters here. In a very apt Japanese and Ghibli fashion, the park features full-size and interactive exhibits or the movie sets and locations. Nearly movie-accurate sizes of Totoro or No-Face are available, Pom Poko raccoons planning their heist, and Yubaba Granny doing her bookkeeping. Plenty of Easter eggs for hardcore fans abound as well. But, there is a slope car for the disabled or elderly for the areas that need to be hiked at higher elevations.
GET TO KNOW THE PARK SECTIONS
Ghibli Park has five major locations.
Hill of Youth is the first and it is dominated by the Elevator Tower (“Castle in the Sky” and “Howl’s Moving Castle.”) This is an exhibit that greets you first when you walk in from the park gates. You can step into sets of the World Emporium and the Cat Bureau. Also, The Rotary from “Whisper of the Heart’s” town square is here.
Dondoko Forest is another section. The main attraction here is the Japanese-Western style house that Satsuki and Mei lived in from “My Neighbor Totoro.” You can easily spend an hour here pulling open drawers, looking at minutiae, and opening cabinets, as everything, down to the smallest detail, has been made and placed with care for authenticity.
Mononoke Village is the quiet Japanese mountain village featured in “Princess Mononoke.” However, we skipped this location since we read plenty of reviews that it was one of the simpler exhibits that was more for kids to play at. But if you’re interested, there is Lord Okkoto’s slide and a mochi-making experience that will be fun for the children.
Valley of the Witches is the newest exhibit that opened just last March 16. This location is where all the witches and magic-users from the Ghibli movies gather. There’s a distinct alt Euro and futuristic medieval ambience here, dominated by the incredible steampunk invention that is the wizard Howl’s Castle (“Howl’s Moving Castle.”) Once inside the castle, you can browse through three levels full of magical artifacts and spell paraphernalia seen in the movie. Right at the entrance is the wizard’s demon Calcifer in his fireplace. There is also the Okino Residence and Guchokipanya Bakery as seen in “Kiki’s Delivery Service” plus the House of Witches from “Earwig and the Witch.” There’s an optional carousel ride here that isn’t included in the Premium Pass and costs PhP379 per head, but just the free exhibits are already a heady enough experience.
Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse is the main exhibition space and the meat of the Premium Pass (hopefully, you bought one.) It has scenes from 13 of the feature films. Feel what it’s like to be Lilliputian at The Little People’s Garden, or climb on the sea railway train from “Spirited Away,” or fuss in the rustic kitchen of “Only Yesterday.” There were plenty of no-photography areas in the Warehouse but this was nerd heaven for hardcore fans like us. Just the exhibit of posters, figurine character studies, and behind-the-scenes of the movies was worth all the walking and the whole trip. I mean, take a look at that gigantic sky ship model above the main lobby.
SCORE SOUVENIRS
Almost each exhibit section has a dedicated souvenir section, like the Dondoko Dokor has charming good-luck charms (omamori) on keychains. The main souvenir shop with the most limited edition items are in the Grand Warehouse though.
Adventurous Flying Squadron is the primary souvenir place and it’s located there. Makes sense since the Warehouse is only accessible through the Premium Pass. In any case, prepare for your wallet to get raided like Princess Mononoke attacking Irontown since the Adventurous Flying Squadron has limited items and fan service merchandise aplenty.
Every version of a Totoro plushie is here, t-shirts, prints, figurines of any size, and posters, you name it. I almost took home a life-size Kashira bulb-eyed greenhead plushie last minute, but thought better of it.
Another souvenir shop is Rotunda Kazegaoka. This greets you at the Nestled at Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park’s north entrance and best of all it doesn’t need a Premium Pass to get to. So, if you missed something at the Adventurous Flying Squadron, the Rotunda Kazegaoka also has Ghibli-themed items.
Dondoko-dokoro is a small, charming souvenir shop at the Dondoko Forest. With a small collection of souvenirs like umbrellas and hats, plus some omamori. This is also accessible to any park visitor. We scored a white version of Totoro here on a keychain.
The aptly sprawling Valley of Witches has three souvenir shops with Witches Coven 13 having the longest line and the biggest selection of wands, spellbook-themed journals, brooms, and other spellcaster tchotchkes you’ve likely seen in the movies. Then the Hatter’s Millinery of course sells hats and some sweets. Just up the stairs from the millinery is a Witches’ Book Stack that has occult-themed and Wiccan tomes and literature.
There are many shops for you to find something you can take home. They may well with the memories of the place—especially the good ones you’ll most likely have if you go there prepared.
