Tangled and Frozen Are Coming to Tokyo DisneySea!

There was a big announcement made earlier today that Tokyo DisneySea, my favorite theme park in the whole world, is getting a big expansion that will include life-sized replicas of locations from Tangled, Frozen, and Peter Pan! This is a huge deal. If you've never been to Tokyo DisneySea, you might not realize the scope of such an announcement. Essentially, Tokyo DisneySea is paradise on Earth. Everything they build looks both natural and magical at the same time. Even the Fantasyland expansion at Walt Disney World from five years ago doesn't compare to this. It was pretty amazing that they built facades of the castles from The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast along with some of Belle's village, but they were still just facades. Tokyo doesn't do facades. They either go big or go home.


This incredible themed port is expected to be completed by 2022. It is reported to be the largest expansion to Tokyo DisneySea ever and will include Arendelle Castle, Rapunzel's Tower, the Snuggly Duckling Restaurant, Pixie Hollow, and more. The lands will also feature new rides. The Frozen ride sounds pretty similar to "Frozen Ever After," which is currently in the Norway pavilion in Epcot, but the Tangled ride is the one that's the most exciting. Guests will go on a romantic gondola trip through the "At Last I See the Light" sequence from the movie to experience Rapunzel's best day ever, complete with floating lanterns. Can we say "best ride ever?" The Peter Pan area will have a new Pixie Hollow attraction for all the fairy fans out there. It will allow guests to shrink down to pixie size and see where Tinker Bell and her friends from the Disney Faries series live and work.


I know this concept art looks amazing, but if you're thinking it's just a bunch of statues and structure, you've probably never actually been to Tokyo DisneySea. When I went there in 2010 with some online friends, it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Their Mermaid Lagoon area takes you under the sea to a fully immersive experience of "swimming" through an enormous replica of Atlantica that's completely to scale. My friends and I had a blast walking through Ariel's Grotto and being able to see and touch all of her gadgets and gizmos. There was even a life-sized statue of Prince Eric that Walt Disney World built years later at their Art of Animation Resort. Even minute details like the lighting at Mermaid Lagoon makes you feel as if you are underwater gliding through the dimness of the seafloor as shimmers of light reflect down from the surface above you. Tokyo DisneySea also features some beautiful architecture inspired by the land of Agrabah from Aladdin.




I was also enthralled by the amazing water shows that were like nothing I had ever seen before. The floats contained massive sculptures of dragons, griffons, and other mythological creatures with bright colors and intricate patterns as the characters waved down from them. The boats from Fantasmic have nothing on this. Other sections of the park felt very technological and futuristic and were all tied together by the nautical theme. Even after experiencing New Fantasyland at Walt Disney World in 2013, Mermaid Lagoon at Tokyo DisneySea is my favorite place in the whole world. Walt Disney World's new castle facades just can't compare to the realistic structures, gardens, and fantasy-themed walkthroughs hidden within Tokyo's amazing park.


Princesses are most definitely taking over all the theme parks, and I have no problem with that. It's wonderful to know that there are so many places you can go today to fully immerse yourself in an interactive fairy tale experience. My childhood dreams have fully evolved into a reality that I had no idea I would one day be living in. I don't think I'll be traveling back to Tokyo any time soon, but just knowing that all of this is in the works makes me happy beyond words. One day, I would love to go on Rapunzel's boat ride and experience the festival of the floating lanterns firsthand. In the meantime, I still have all my beautiful memories of when I discovered mermaid heaven on Earth.
I have always dreamed of being a writer and creating the next great fairy tale princess heroine. Princesses inspire us to be our best selves. While you're here, feel free to follow my page on Facebook, subscribe to my YouTube channel, and check out my books. I'm also on Instagram and Twitter.

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