Universal Studios Japan
Day 8 was scheduled in advance to be spent at Universal Studios Japan (USJ). My parents bought the tickets from Klook and it would be active only on that specific day. You do not have to buy the express pass to cover more than 10 rides in a single day. Read on to find out how my family navigated through USJ covering multiple rides at a fraction of the waiting time.
Before arriving at USJ, our research (so many bloggers shared their experience in YouTube videos) consistently pointed out 2 specific tips.
Tip #1, arrive early. To be the first batch of people entering the park, you can go directly to the attractions that usually have the longest queue and beat the crowd. USJ opens its doors to early visitors up to 1.5 hours before their usual 8 am opening time. However, despite being there around 7 am, we already saw large crowds forming at the gates.
Tip #2, use the single rider (SR) option. Each time an empty slot is available, it allows an SR to fill that gap. By using this method, my family was able to cover 10 different rides as well as 2 different shows. Not all rides have SR, but several do. By using SR, our queue time ranged from 0 minutes (I kid you not) to 20 mins. There was only one exception where the SR took 60 minutes, which was at the “Demon Slayer” ride. This is because, for that particular ride, each carriage only holds 2 seats. So, the odds of having an empty slot were significantly lower compared to other rides which usually accommodate 4 to 8 people.
When we entered the gates, there were several USJ staff holding signs saying “Do Not Run” to avoid a stampede. However, the visitors gradually leveled up from speed-walking to running. When we saw some visitors running, FOMO kicked in and we ran as well. Everyone was heading towards Super Mario Land.
In hindsight, this was so funny. To join an amusement park, my family woke up around 5 am, queued at the entrance of USJ for 90 minutes (before opening hours), and ran with other visitors as if we were in a foot race. All these efforts just to be able to take 1 ride before the crowd sets in. Talk about dedication!
Upon entering Super Mario Land, I was transported to another dimension. The place looked exactly like in the video game! There were interactive props and animated objects all around us. The joyful iconic Mario theme music made the atmosphere very lively. We were amongst the first batch of early visitors (granted we only started running at the halfway mark) but the ride already had a 60-minute waiting time. Luckily, we did the research and took the SR option, which got us our ride under 10 mins.
The Super Mario ride was something new to me. In short, the players are each driving their own Mario karts in a race against Browser. We wore AR goggles that made elements (such as power-ups and coins) pop up and interact. It's mind-blowing that we can interact with the environment and we sped through this virtual world. The only drawback was that the AR goggles were a bit heavy, so much so that I had to support it with one hand and steer the cart with the other hand. I was incredibly impressed by this ride. It easily beats all the rides at DisneySea.
Using the SR strategy, you don’t have to plan too much. Just move attraction by attraction in terms of proximity and you easily cover most, if not all the rides. The only exception is Demon Slayer, where SR would take between 60-90 minutes of wait time. By the end of the day, we covered more than 10 different rides and watched 2 different shows.
Several rides exceeded my expectations by leaps and miles. For the highest thrill factor, “Flying Dinosaur” takes the top spot. When everyone is strapped in, the ride adjusts itself by tilting its passengers at a 45-degree angle. The fact that this is the only ride where our feet are left dangling makes it even more scary. As our carriage slowly reached the highest point of the ride, everything below us looked so tiny. Then it took off like a bat out of hell. Screams filled the air and powerful blasts of cold air hit our faces as our roller coaster went up and down and did 360-degree turns. Words cannot describe the exhilaration. Many other rides were equally incredible, but if I had to pick just one ride to recommend, it would be “Demon Slayer”. I never would have believed that you could combine Mixed Reality (MR) with a roller coaster ride, but the engineers behind this ride pulled it off. If you only have time for one attraction, just queue for this ride, you won’t be disappointed. “Harry Potter 4D” & “Minions 4D“ are worthy mentions but the ride to beat remains to be Demon Slayer.
Rikki Maru Buffet Dinner
To maximize our time at USJ, we even skipped lunch. So by dinner time, we were famished. So it was the perfect time to have a buffet dinner at Rikki Maru Yakiniku restaurant. For SGD 30 (including tax), we could eat everything we wanted so long as we finished it within 90 minutes. Challenge accepted! Dinner was so satisfying. The meats were very high quality and service was quick. Everyone ate to their heart's content. My favorite meal of the trip!
End of Day 8.
Nara park
Day 9 of the Japan trip was to take a short detour to Nara. Over there, we saw beautiful temples as well as the main attraction, which is friendly deers roaming freely in Nara Park. Mom bought biscuits to feed the deers but we were all too afraid to do it. Only Dad was able to feed them properly and even managed to pet a deer into a very relaxed state. We then walked towards Todaiji temple. Along the way, we continued to be greeted by many deers. They even knew how to bow to get visitors’ attention and hopefully some biscuits.
Sushiro
How can one go to Japan without trying the famous sushi conveyor belt? So, lunch today was at Sushiro at the Umeda branch. Damage: 7,400 yen for 38 plates.
Hep Five Ferris Wheel
We saw a giant Ferris wheel jutting out so decided that it was worth checking out. Catching the sunset from the top of a Ferris wheel turned out to be quite nice. At Hep Five Ferris Wheel you will get an overview of Osaka landscape from a fairly large cabin (seats 4 comfortably).
Yodabashi camera building
The evening was back in the Osaka Umeda area which had many shopping centers. Mom and Shinrei went to their usual department store to look at clothes and cosmetics while Dad and I checked out the Yodabashi Camera building. However, I was quite disappointed with the Yodabashi Camera building. It was large but its gadgets were nothing extraordinary and much more expensive than if I were to purchase back in Singapore. What struck me was how many staff they had on hand at the various stations. On-site shopping culture is still alive and strong in Japan.
Gyozaoh Restaurant
Dinner was at a Michelin-star restaurant at Dotonbori, known as Gyozaoh. It was a small restaurant but its food was incredible. Its gyoza was exceptionally tasty. Crispy on the outside and full of flavor on the inside. Worthy of its Michelin star rating. This would be Mom’s favorite meal of the trip. Pity we only ate there once.
End of Day 9.
Okabe family
On our last day in Japan, my dad arranged to meet with his Japanese host family from when he was a university student. He stayed with them in Hiroshima for some weeks back then and would revisit them once more, but this time together with his girlfriend (mom). Since then, he has not seen them but has been exchanging Christmas cards with his host family for over 20 years!
The Okabe family would be coming to meet us in Osaka instead. They planned on taking the Shinkansen from Hiroshima and meeting us for lunch near Tsutenkaku Tower. Before this, my parents considered using the coin lockers near train stations but eventually decided to lock our luggage at our Airbnb as it was more convenient and free.
Reunion
When my dad and Mdm Okabe Kiwako finally met, both rushed towards each other and hugged tightly. That precious moment was 20 years in the making. I heard stories of how my dad made friends with his Japanese host family when he was an undergraduate student and how much fun he had while he was there. To see him in person with his host family felt surreal.
Mdm Kiwako Okabe was accompanied by her 2 daughters, Haruka and Nozomi as well as her granddaughter, Ayano. They took the Shinkansen down today just to meet us. In the evening, they have a return ticket back to Hiroshima. We introduced ourselves and had lunch at a restaurant specializing in fried yakitori sticks. Haruka previously worked in China and spoke fluent Mandarin, so helped greatly with the translation as we chatted over lunch. Dad and Mdm Okabe then did an unplanned gift exchange. I quickly filmed this short clip knowing that this will be invaluable footage in years to come. Mdm Okabe then showed us a guest book that had some pages written by Mom and Dad 20+ years ago! It even included a picture of them staying in the Okabe family’s residence back when they were dating. Priceless.
Sumo!
Halfway through lunch, we saw a rare sight. A bunch of sumo wrestlers walked past us and sat in the corner. Haruka and Dad were excited and explained that even amongst Japanese, many do not have a chance to witness a real sumo wrestler.
Tsutenkaku Tower
After lunch, we went to Tsutenkaku Tower, one of the older attractions in Osaka. Despite being Osaka’s 55th most popular attraction (according to TripAdvisor), it was still packed with visitors. Buying tickets alone took 30 minutes. At the ticket counter, you have a choice to slide down from the top by paying an additional fee. Probably something I would have wanted to do if I was still in primary school. Although Tsutenkaku Tower is touted for its 360-degree view of the cityscape, I did not find the view that amazing. Instead, what intrigued me was the classic memorabilia that was lined up on the ground floor leading to the lift. No photography was allowed, but my dad explained to me that many of these manga characters (e.g. Kinnikuman) were iconic stuff that he read as a child.
In the late afternoon, we went to Takashimaya shopping center, which was near Namba station. This was because I would be meeting a friend later that evening. There we found a nice cafe and the Okabe family once again gave us a treat. Come to think of it, my Dad tried unsuccessfully to pay for meals with his friends. They were just so hospitable and insisted on paying instead. When I remarked that all Japanese are so nice... he turned to me and said “You wish!” He went on to explain that it's because people cherish you that they treat you this way, so we should not take for granted the good friends we make along the way.
Eventually, we had to part ways. We exchanged our goodbyes and shook hands. Mom and Dad hugged Mdm Okabe one final time. I could see how much this moment meant to each of them. We then waved goodbye as they went to catch their return train.
Meet up with ex-SST classmate
Around that time, I got permission from my parents to spend about 2 hours with Joshua, my old friend from SST. He happened to arrive in Osaka that same day and was eager to catch up. So, we arranged to meet at Takashimaya and spent about 2 hours just walking around and chatting along the way. We exchanged stories of how our lives have been since SST and how cool it was to catch up here of all places. We promised to stay in touch and I briefly introduced him to my family (they were impressed that he was so independent and able to navigate through Japan by himself) before it was my turn to say goodbye to my old friend.
And with that, our final leg in Osaka has come to an end. USJ was certainly a blast. The food in Osaka is as good as its reputation. Surprisingly, not all Japanese can speak English well. But what they lack in English proficiency, they more than compensate in efficiency and friendliness. So much to see and do, 3 days is just not enough to explore Osaka. Coming back again!
End of Day 10.
Howie Chia
16 Mar 2023
TLDR
USJ > DisneySea. Single rider rocks! 20-year (Okabe) and 1-year (Joshua) Reunion, Real-life Sumo wrestler, Tsutenkaku Tower.
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