Studio Ghibli Tour

[Alex]

I guess it is vaguely Disney.

I know some of you have been to Tokyo Disneyland. While there (or I suppose, in Japan for any reason) did anybody do the Studio Ghibli tour?

If so, any comments on it?

[lashbear]

I didn't get around to doing it, but I just LOVE their films.

We got to Eiga-Mura (movieworld) in Kyoto - I wish we'd have gone to Ghibli instead !

...although it was cool seeing all the old "shintaro" sets. :D

[Not Afraid]

We spent the better part of a day there and it was one of my favorite activities of our trip. It's really a magical place with LOTS of detail from the films all over the place. What information are you looking for, specificaly?

[cirquelover]

That sounds cool:cool: I even have the boy hooked. He said there was a new movie last year but it was only released in Japan. We, in the US, have to wait until 2009 for it to reach here. He was asking if we could go to Japan last year for the release of it and some new Pokemon thing!

[mousepod]

Like NA said, it's a fantastic experience. You need to know that it isn't a tour of Ghibli Studio, but a Ghibli museum, designed (in part) by Miyazaki. Personally, I enjoyed it more than I would have had it been a studio tour.

One tip: if you buy the tickets in the US, you can show up anytime during the day, as opposed to the Japanese tickets (which frequently sell out), which force you to tour at a specific time.

[Not Afraid]

Day 3 (http://homepage.mac.com/obstbaum/tokyo/PhotoAlbum15.html)of the photo blog MousePod put together while we were in Japan has a few pics.

This (http://www.tautoz.com/ghiblimuseum/)is a pretty good guide to the museum and it includes pics from the inside of the museum (which are not normally allowed).

[Alex]

I'm sending a couple people on it (as a thank you to Lani I'm sending her and a friend to Japan for a week later this month) and just wondered if there is anything in particular to know that would enhance the visit.

I assume it is English friendly, though Lani will be there to translate if at all necessary. I am buying the tickets at the San Francisco JTB office so they'll have that freedom.

[Not Afraid]

It's easy to get to by train (it's about 1/2 hour from Shinjuku), although it is about a 10-15 minute walk from the station through a nice neighborhood to the museum.

Depending on your interest in the work of Ghibli Studios, you can spend anywhere from an hour to 4 or 5 in the place. The detail is absolutely wonderful. There is a cafe on site which is plesant and an ice cream counter as well. I could spend a hundred million yen easily at the book store.

If there is an interest in Ghibli merchandise, there is a 8 story craft store at the Kichijoji station, which you pass through on the way to and from the museum. The bottom floor is all toys and there is a LOT of Ghibli stuff (which is where my Gigi backpack came from). The fabric floor is amazing and the top floor is all Capsule Machines. These two stops alone almost filled the day.

[tracilicious]

I'm sending a couple people on it (as a thank you to Lani I'm sending her and a friend to Japan for a week later this month) and just wondered if there is anything in particular to know that would enhance the visit.


Wow. That's some thank you!

The Ghibli tour is high on my list of things to do whenever we go to Tokyo.