Tokyo Disney Sea - 10th Anniversary!

Today is Tokyo DisneySea's 10th anniversary. In honor of that milestone, we'll be taking a look today at the different lands or "ports" that make up the park.

We will begin with Mediterranean Harbor which is located at the entrance to the park. In this first pic we are standing under a pergola, looking across the harbor at Mt. Prometheus and Fortress Explorations. Down below we can see one of the Venetian Gondolas leaving the canals and entering the open harbor.



If we back up just a bit, we get a better view of the pergola.



The park's dedication plaque is actually located underneath this structure.




Here is a view of Mediterranean Harbor from one of the entrance/exit tunnels to the Mysterious Island section of the park. The buildings in the distance are all a part of Tokyo DisneySea's Mira Costa Hotel.



Next, we'll visit the American Waterfront. Below, is a shot of the Broadway Music Theater. (Think DCA's Hyperion Theater, but this one is actually "finished" on both the outside and the inside!)



I've mentioned before that the American Waterfrom is divided into two themed areas. Below, is a shot taken from the Cape Cod section, looking across the water at the New York section.



McDuck's Department Store can be seen on the far left of the photo above. In the past, we've taken a look at the front of the store as well as it's interior (click here). Below, is a shot of the store's rear entrance which is designed to look like a pawn shop.



Just around the corner from the rear entrance of the store is sort of a "back alley."



Now we're entering the Arabian Coast. This structure houses the Casbah Food Court. Notice the elaborate lampposts in the foreground.




These next three pics show more of the streets that wind through this section of the park.





This shot was taken while standing in another one of the tunnels in the Mysterious Island section of the park. The domed structure is a shop called Nautilus Gifts. The metal bridge behind it, is one of just two small outdoor portions of the Journey To The Center Of The Earth attraction....the rest of that ride is located entirely inside Mt. Prometheus and it's surrounding rock work.



Located underneath Nautilus Gifts is Nautilus Galley, a restaurant with seating alongside the DisneySea waterway.



This shot shows a stairway that leads down to the Nautilus Galley, as well as the Nautilus Submarine which is docked next to the restaurant's seating area.



Here's another shot of the Nautilus, taken from the exit to the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction. A tunneling contraption can also be seen hanging from a crane on the side of Mt. Prometheus.



This is the Lost River Delta, which is located in the back of the park. The yellow boat is part of the DisneySea Transit Steamer Line that takes guests for a ride along the waterway that runs throughout the park.



Now we're standing on one of the bridges that cross over that waterway. In the distance is the Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Crystal Skull attraction.



Here's a look at some of the buildings in the Lost River Delta......



.....and the entrance to Miguel's El Dorado Cantina.



This is Port Discovery. The structure in the center of the photo is the two-sided loading station for the Aquatopia attraction.



Each of the Aquatopia vehicles follow a slightly different path than the boat in front of them. The DisneySea Electric Railway can be seen passing by in the distance.



Herer's a Port Discovery-themed bench......and Horizon Bay restaurant is visible in the background.



This is just part of Horizon Bay's exterior.



And finally, we enter into Mermaid Lagoon. Most of this area is located indoors, but today we will just look at some of it's outdoor vending carts. The photo below shows a themed beverage stand.



This stand is called Grotto Goodies and sells dessert items.



Even the popcorn wagons are heavily themed. (To see a previous post on the themed popcorn wagons of Tokyo Disneyland, click here.)





Just for good measure, I'm throwing in two more shots that show detailing from this area of the park. This is an exit door to the indoor section of Mermaid Lagoon.



And here is a themed mail box. It's all in the details!



I've mentioned before that Tokyo DisneySea and Tokyo Disneyland have specially designed merchandise for every anniversary....every year! This is the logo from last year for Tokyo DisneySea's 9th Anniversary.



Happy 10th Anniversary, Tokyo DisneySea!!!

I Take Requests.......

After viewing yesterday's post, blogger "outsidetheberm" requested photos of Mt. Prometheus erupting at night. It has always been difficult for me to catch the eruption with my camera....day or night. I always seem to be exiting a ride or in another "land" when I realize that it's taking place. Then, by the time I get the camera ready and get over to a spot where I can take a decent photo, it's always over with. So, I don't have any photos of it during a "regular" eruption. The photo above, was taken during DisneySea's nighttime water show, "BraviSEAmo!" There is an eruption during the show, but in addition to fire, there are also some additional pyrotechnics that are set off from within the volcano. The next time I go to the Tokyo parks, I will try again to catch Mt. Prometheus in "regular" eruption mode!

Mysterious Island

Today, we will take a look at Tokyo DisneySea's Mysterious Island. This land is supposed to be hidden inside a caldera. It is completely encircled by rock and the only way in or out is through one of several different tunnels. There are two Jules Verne inspired attractions in this land, "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea" and "Journey To The Center Of The Earth". The circular ramp pictured below is part of the queue for the 20,000 Leagues attraction. The DisneySea Transit Steamer boats pass through Mysterious Island, but they do not stop here.

The glass domed structure below is a souvenir shop called Nautilus Gifts. On the lower level, Captain Nemo's submarine is docked alongside the Nautilus Galley restaurant.

The themeing in this area (actually in the whole park) is truly incredible. There is steam that rises up off of the lava that is "flowing" down into the water. Huge jets of water also shoot up into the air every so often to give the effect of an underwater volcanic vent. And Mt. Prometheus itself, "erupts" with huge blasts of fire coming out of the top of it while a loud rumbling sound reverberates throughout Mysterious Island. The eruption takes place throughout the day and night, but I have never been able to figure out if it is on a timed schedule or if it is just random.

Tokyo DisneySea!

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This is the entrance to the Tokyo Disney Resort's second theme park, Tokyo DisneySea. The buildings in the background are part of the Mira Costa Hotel which is actually inside the park. Guests walk through an archway below the hotel to enter the main area of the park.

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Here is the view as you are walking underneath the hotel.

The park's main icon is Mt. Prometheus. An attraction called "Journey to the Center of the Earth" is located inside the volcano and at it's base is Fortress Explorations. The guide book describes the fortress as, "an interactive play area that includes plenty of wondrous scientific instruments and a recreation of a Spanish galleon. I am sometimes tempted to call it the "Tom Sawyer Island" of this park, but that really would not do it justice.

We will be staying in Tokyo DisneySea for the next week or so and exploring this incredibly themed park.