Review: Tokyo Disneyland Hotel

Tokyo Disneyland Hotel is one of the five Disney hotels that are part of Tokyo Disney Resort. While I planned to write this article a year ago when my wife and I stayed there just after getting married, I ended up putting it on hold due to other priorities. Having stayed there again – and tried a different room type – recently, I decided to finally finish the review.

Continue reading to learn more about the hotel in general and see what it’s like to stay in one of its “standard superior” rooms and Tinker Bell character rooms.

Getting to the Hotel

As the hotel’s name suggests, Tokyo Disneyland Hotel is the most convenient place to stay if you are planning to visit Tokyo Disneyland. In fact, the park entrance is just a one-minute walk away from the hotel.

Tokyo Disney Resort’s other park, Tokyo DisneySea is easily accessible from the hotel as well (although it is easier to access from Hotel MiraCosta). All you have to do is take the monorail which has a station right in front of the hotel.

To get to the hotel from outside the resort, you can either take one of the many buses headed to Tokyo Disneyland or the train. In case you take the train, you should search for connections to Maihama station. From the station, the hotel can be reached in a bit less than ten minutes on foot.

If you have luggage, you can take the Disney Resort Line monorail. Although even in that case, you might be better off just walking if you consider the time it will take you to wait for the monorail, go up and down the stairs, and so on. You can also have your baggage delivered to the hotel through the Tokyo Resort Welcome Center which is located right in front of Maihama station.

It is worth noting that when staying at the hotel, you will get a free monorail ticket for the duration of your stay. You can pick it up either at the Welcome Center or at the hotel upon check-in. Unfortunately, this perk will be discontinued at the end of March 2023.

Check-in and Lobby

As we were coming from Maihama station, we entered the hotel through the main entrance located just across from Disneyland. The entrance was located one level below the reception floor.

For those arriving by car, there was a separate entrance on the other side of the hotel, on the reception floor.

While it is possible to pre-check-in at the Welcome Center anytime between 7:30AM and 4PM, doing so would result in the room only being available after 4:30PM instead of the usual 3PM. As such, both times, we went directly to the hotel and checked in at the reception desk there.

Entering through the Disneyland-side entrance, we first had to walk up a set of stairs lined with a wall decorated with Alice in Wonderland-themed tilework.

Those entering from the driveway side were welcomed inside by a couple of Disney-themed paintings and statues of Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

The stairs led to the hotel’s imposing lobby spanning about five floors in height.

The centerpiece of the lobby was a fountain. That was surrounded by plenty of seating and a small waiting area for kids where Disney videos were screened on a TV.

A couple of large chandeliers were hanging from the ceiling and there was a cage elevator on the side of the lobby, adding to the overall grandiosity of the space.

On one side of the lobby floor entrance was the reception decorated with some more Disney-themed paintings and on the other was a bell desk. In addition to check-in and check-out, it was also possible to buy Disneyland/DisneySea tickets at the reception desk.

In addition to that, among other things, the floor was also home to:

• Home delivery service counter where guests could send their packages (full of Disneyland souvenirs) from so that they would not have to carry them home
• Marceline Salon which was a lounge accessible by guests staying in selected rooms
• Medallion makers where guests could buy souvenir medallions (the machines can be found anywhere from Tokyo Disney Resort’s hotels through train stations all the way to inside the park, each offering different designs)
• Smoking room for guests needing not only a dose of Disney magic but also of nicotine
• Dreamers Lounge, a lobby lounge which I will talk more about in the dining section of this review
• Banquet rooms that could be booked for events, etc.

Lastly, it’s also worth noting that there were some miniature houses with Disney characters and other smaller decorations displayed in the lobby.

Guest Rooms

As mentioned earlier, during our first stay we booked a standard room and during our second stay, we booked a Tinker Bell “character” room. In both cases, we were assigned rooms on the third (lobby) floor – 3222 and 3632 – which made them easy to access since we did not have to take elevators.

The walls of the hallways leading to the rooms were nicely decorated. Similarly, the floors in the hallways – and throughout the hotel for that matter – featured Disney motifs.

In both cases, in addition to monorail tickets, Disneyland Hotel post cards were provided too.

Now, let’s take a look at what each of the rooms looked like.

Standard Superior Room (Double)

Entering the standard superior room, there was a narrow hallway leading into the main part of the room.

On the hallway’s right side were a vanity, a closet, and a minibar area with a counter with a tea and coffee set. A couple of Beauty and the Beast-themed pictures were hanging above the counter.

On the hallway’s left side was another vanity, this one featuring a single sink. On its left side was the toilet door and on its right side was the bathroom door.

Dental kits and a Disneyland Hotel-themed plastic cup and metal amenity kit were available on the sink counter. The latter two made for nice souvenirs to take home. There were also small bottles of shampoo and conditioner, however, as you will see below, those were replaced by large bottles placed directly in the bathroom by our second visit.

The toilet was equipped with a heated seat and bidet function as is the norm in Japan.

The bathroom featured handheld and rainforest shower heads and a large bathtub. It was large and nicely decorated with tiles, and it was the same as the bathroom in the Tinker Bell room.

The room itself was equipped simply but designed beautifully. Its centerpiece was a double bed with a nightstand on either side.

The bed’s headboard featured Tokyo Disneyland’s Cinderella Castle. Above the bed was a nice image of Mickey and Minnie Mouse having a picnic in one of the hotel’s gardens (more about those further down in the review). Above the nightstands were images of the two characters as well.

Across from the bed were a lamp, a TV stand with a fairly small TV, and a luggage rack.

Lastly, under the window was a table with a couple of chairs.

The window offered a nice view of the Tokyo Disneyland monorail station as well as some of the parks’ taller landmarks including Disneyland’s Cinderella Castle and DisneySea’s Tower of Terror.

As you can probably tell by now, the level of detail throughout the room was amazing. The wallpaper was a great example of that.

Disney’s Tinker Bell Character Room

The layout of the Tinker Bell room was quite similar to that of the standard room. There was a hallway right past the room’s entrance – a bathroom was on its left side while a vanity, closet, and minibar were on its right.

As the room’s name suggests, the main difference between this room and the standard room was the theming. That could be noticed right after entering the room – the carpet featured leaf patterns and the vanity’s mirror frame, stool, and lights were forest-themed too.

In the closet were, among other things, slippers, a luggage rack, and some extra pillows. It’s worth noting that even the wallpaper inside the closet featured detailed patterns matching the theme of the room.

As for the minibar, there was a small refrigerator with four complimentary bottles of water.

Above that was a counter with hot drinks including tea and coffee. The wall behind the counter was decorated with a couple of Tinker Bell images in nice wooden frames to further complement the room’s theme.

The layout of the bathroom area was the same as that of the standard room’s bathroom. The only difference was, as with the other vanity, that the lights and mirror above the sink were Tinker Bell-themed.

Also, by the time of our stay in this room, amenities like shampoo were switched from single-use to large bottles.

The toilet room, which was on the left side of the sink area, was equipped the same as the toilet in the standard room. That said, there was a difference in the theming – even here, attention to detail was paid, and the wallpaper and image hung above the toilet were both Tinker Bell-themed.

The bathroom, which was on the right side of the sink area, was equipped with a large bathtub and rainforest and handheld showers. This was perhaps the only part of the room which lacked any character-specific theming compared to the standard room was the bathroom.

In the main area of the room, most of the space was taken up by two comfortable semi-double beds.

The beds’ headboards were exquisitely designed to follow the theme of the room and so was the wall behind the beds. Two pictures with Tinker Bell were hanging between the beds and the lamps above the beds were flower-shaped. In fact, all of the room’s lamps/lights were nature-themed.

Similarly, some of the bedding including throw pillows followed the room’s theme as well.

Across from the bed was a TV stand with, just like in the other room, a fairly small TV. While the TV stand was fairly off-the-shelf, it did feature some blueberries at its very top to stay true to the Tinker Bell theme.

Pajamas were available in one of the TV stand’s drawers too.

Lastly, toward the back of the room, there was an alcove in the wall across from the beds and a table with two chairs under the window.

The alcove served both as a space to relax in as well as an extra bed for those staying at the hotel in a larger group.

It was decorated with the same flower-shaped throw pillows as the bed and also featured a large image on its wall.

While functionally, the table and chairs were… Well, a table and chairs, design-wise they were once again extremely detailed to match the room’s theme.

As for the room’s view, it was nothing to write home about. There were some bushes just outside the window behind which was one of the hotel’s gardens.

Gardens

Speaking of the hotel’s gardens, there were four of them – Mickey & Friends Square, Fantasia Court, Alice’s Garden, and Sherwood Garden. These were nice spaces to hang out in. The first three of these could be accessed by anyone while accessing Sherwood Garden required a room key.

Mickey & Friends Square was in front of the hotel’s main entrance. Due to its location, this space was fairly busy at all times.

The centerpiece of Mickey & Friends Square was a gazebo. There were also Disney character topiaries.

Fantasia Court was on the hotel’s other side, in front of its driveway.

Its main feature was a fountain inspired by Disney’s Fantasia movie. The space also offered a great view of a Tinker Bell statue on top of the hotel’s roof.

Next to Fantasia Court was Alice’s Garden – one of the hotel’s two “true” gardens. As mentioned earlier, it was accessible without a room key. That said, at the time of our visit, it was empty.

The garden featured plenty of benches and offered a nice view of part of the hotel building. Its most notable feature was playing card suits-shaped topiaries. Those were of course inspired by The Playing Cards characters from, as the garden’s name suggests, Alice in Wonderland.

Lastly, on one side of the hotel’s main entrance was Sherwood Garden – my favorite of the four gardens.

It was this garden where the gazebo from the picture above the standard room’s bed could be found. There were also some water features in this garden. The garden was large enough to provide space for a little walk and was also equipped with plenty of benches.

I only realized how great the garden is, though, when we happened to be there one evening during Disneyland’s fireworks. The garden offered great views of the fireworks in a quiet environment with – at the time of our visit – nobody around.

It’s also worth noting here that on the other side of the hotel’s entrance was an outdoor pool. That, however, was closed during both of our stays – first due to COVID-19 and then due to us visiting after the pool’s season.

Dining

Going back inside the hotel, there were three restaurants:

• Sherwood Garden – a buffet restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner
• Canna – a higher-end restaurant serving a variety of course meals for lunch and dinner
• Dreamers Lounge – a lobby lounge mainly offering drinks, afternoon tea, and light meals

As my wife had to join a call at the beginning of our second stay, I used that time to check out Dreamers Lounge. While advanced reservation was not necessary, it took some time – which I spent in our room – until I was able to get a seat.

I had one of the seasonal drinks they were offering at the time which not only looked nice but tasted great as well. The menu changes frequently, so check the official site for the latest one.

While we didn’t eat at Canna during our stays, we had lunch there a few years back for my wife’s birthday. The full-course meal was great and the non-alcoholic champagne that came with the meal was nice too. It was the same one – So Jennie – that Qatar Airways offers onboard its business class.

For the latest Canna menu click here.

We didn’t try Sherwood Garden as it was fully booked on the days of our recent stay. As such, I cannot comment on what they offer. However, you can find their menu here.

In addition to the three restaurants, the hotel also offers room service.

On the second morning of our more recent stay, we ordered the room service breakfast. The order had to be made through the room’s TV and – in addition to the fixed items – a choice between scrambled eggs and omelet, apple and orange juice, and tea and coffee had to be made. The fixed items included salad, three pieces of bread, bacon and sausages, and fresh fruits.

While at 4,500 yen per person, the breakfast wasn’t cheap, it was nice to enjoy the breakfast in the comfort of the room.

Lastly, while the restaurant selection directly at the hotel wasn’t too extensive, Ikspiari – a shopping mall with dozens of restaurants of all types and price ranges – was just a five or ten-minute walk away.

Shops

In addition to restaurants, there were also two shops at the hotel – Looking Glass Gifts and Disney Mercantile.

The former, in spite of its name, was essentially a convenience store selling everything from drinks and food all the way to bathroom amenities and souvenirs.

The latter offered a wide variety of Disney merchandise some of which was exclusive to the hotel and some of which was otherwise only available in the two parks.

There was also Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique where children could be dressed as Disney Princesses and have their photos taken. It was closed during our visit, though. That said, it is expected to reopen on December 16, 2022.

Tokyo Disneyland Hotel Summary

All in all, we really enjoyed both of our stays at Tokyo Disneyland Hotel. While the hotel is more expensive than some of the other Disney and non-Disney hotels in Tokyo Disney Resort, its proximity to Tokyo Disneyland makes it arguably the best place to stay at if you are visiting that park.

That said, it’s a good place to stay at even if you plan to go to Tokyo DisneySea – all you need to do to get there is take the monorail for a few minutes.

With that, if your budget allows for it, I would definitely recommend staying at this hotel – especially in one of the character rooms. In case your budget is limited, though, it might be better spent elsewhere and you might want to consider staying at one of the other hotels around the parks like the excellent Hilton Tokyo Bay or Disney Ambassador Hotel.