Universal Studios Japan!

Studying in Nagoya, Japan is a wonderful opportunity to travel around the country, as it is a central location between Tokyo and Osaka. As a Center for Japanese Studies student at Nanzan University, I have Wednesdays free of classes every week. Of course, I had to take advantage of this Wednesday to go to Universal Studios, Japan with a couple of friends! Wonderful benefits to going to the park in the middle of the week rather than the weekend included cheaper (non-peak) tickets, shorter lines, and fewer crowds. If you are planning on going to a popular theme park in Japan, I recommend that you do the same!

On the day of the trip, we woke up bright and early to catch a bus at 6:30 am that took us straight from Nagoya station to the front gates of Universal. Though the ride trip takes about 3.5 hours, the comfortable seats and affordable ticket prices (23 USD!) make it all worth it. A head cover and privacy barrier are included on each seat, so it feels like you are staying in your little pod to knock out in. I slept, without waking, for the entirety of the trip, making the ride feel like it took a very short time. Getting to Universal from Nagoya in 2 hours is also an option. Still, the tickets are more expensive and you must commute by public transportation to Universal once you arrive at Osaka station. Either way, even though I am studying in a completely different city, Universal and Osaka are very accessible.

Once we arrived at the park, we made a beeline for the magical world of Harry Potter. Once we entered, it felt like we walked right through the books and into Hogsmeade, the wizarding town close to Hogwarts. There were sweets and wand shops, restaurants, merchandise stands, performances, and even the Hogwarts Express! The energy was contagious, and I could not stop myself from every shop to take in all of the details that made it feel like I was truly in the wizarding world. Needless to say, the first ride we went on was “Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey”, which was inside the massive Hogwarts Castle replica. It was a ride that felt like you were flying on your broomstick through the movies! It is a can’t-miss if you have the opportunity to come to this park.

The second part of the park we journeyed to was Jurassic Park to ride its thrilling roller coaster, “The Flying Dinosaur”. As someone who thoroughly enjoys chasing the adrenaline one gets from roller coasters, this one blew my mind. I haven’t felt such thrill and excitement from a ride in such a long time, that it is hard not to say that this was the best roller coaster I have ridden in my life. The reason for this is how you are seated in the ride. At first, you climb into the seats as if it were a normal coaster– sitting straight up. Once the bars lock, however, the seats tilt down so you are facing the ground. During the whole ride, with its loops, flips, and turns, you can’t help but feel like you are flying like the pterodactyl this ride was themed after.

For the rest of the trip, we decided to walk around the different worlds in the massive park. We sampled Minion-shaped crab buns in Minion Park, walked through alleyways in “New York” and “Hollywood”, and ordered Snoopy-shaped cream buns and Hello Kitty cheese and meat buns in “Universal Wonderland”. 

After about an 8-hour day in the park, we had a blast, even without having ridden more than a couple of rides. So much so that I decided to buy a membership card for the park. One of my friends who came with me on this fun-filled day was a native of Nagoya who had a membership card of her own, saying that she was able to come to the park around once a month. The affordable price of 85 USD, free entry since purchase, validation of a year, easy accessibility from Nagoya, and the fact that I was not able to fit Nintendo World into this trip, all convinced me that this was a membership that was worth it. I cannot wait for my next (who knows how many) trips to this amazing park!