Originally Posted By Scuba Mickey Hi Everyone. We are back from our wonderful trip to TDR. I love love love this resort and I think Ive joined the many of you who feel the same way. Heres the first part of the trip. Including the flight and my first day at TDL. More to come. Hope you enjoy. And yes photos to come. I have a lot to go though. Flew out of LAX on United airlines, the flight took 11.5 hours. I did upgrade to Economy Plus for $50.00 each way for more leg room and I was very thankful for that. Even with the extra leg room its a long flight all cramped up. There is just never enough space to really relax in Economy seats. I now am looking into learning how to use your miles for seat upgrades to bus. class. I saw those seats and was very jealous. They played four movies thought out the flight and some other tv show, I didn’t know. We were served two warm lunch meals and snack of chips, cookies and something I’ve forgotten. The only problem I had is they did the first meal around ,1:00pm once the plane was up and going. Then the other meal at 9:00pm(LA time) about an hour and half before landing. 8 hours with no meal, ended up making me sick. So next time I run pass Mc Donald’s on the way to my termal, I’m picking something up and putting it in a zip lock bag just incase they don't feed us for a long time. I understand why they did it this way, its so people can sleep. But it didn’t help me on this trip. Another thing about the flight that bother me, was there were two young men, in their early 20's. Headed for Singapore to report for our military. They were drinking a bit to much, in fact they got cut off in the last hour in half, so one guy brought his big bottle of something down from the over head compartment with out a flight attendance seeing it and started to drink that. Even though he was told he couldn't drink what he had brought with him. Anyways to what bothered me, wasn't the drinking, to each their own. These two guys who were pretty drunk, were seated at an exit seats. So if we had trouble, they were the ones to open the door and do what ever. Scared me. I wanted to say something to a flight attend, but really what could be done, they were so far gone, they weren't going to switch seats with someone else. And I was afraid they come after me. I could just see a flight mid-air. So I said nothing hoping it didn't matter. And in the end, we landed fine. But it has left me to wonder and will ask United their policy on drinking and sitting at an exit. I don't think you should be allowed to sit there and get drunk. A drink or two fine, its a long flight, but if you one to help people, you should be sober. So landing in Tokyo and going thought customs was a breeze. They gave us the two papers we need to fill out. So right off the plane, went thought customs. Then on to get your checked luggage, handed off the last paper and out to where you can meet up with people, grab a bus, your cell phone, what ever. Oh just for those of you who have allergy meds or other medication that is not allowed in Japan, here my story on that. I applied to bring my allergy meds and Vicodin (a narcotic) with me. Took some paper work and $100.00 to UPS it over night to Japan. (Fed-ex was more) Which was really two days. Well it was $50.00 for each package sent. I sent two, due to the voicodin is a narcotic and has to go to a special place. A week later I got my paper work back from Japan saying I could bring my meds with me. I carried this paper work with me at all times while in Japan and had no problems. No one ask me for it, even customs just took note of the fact I had it. It was easy. The only kicker to the whole thing is while submitting your paper work for approval, you have to have a copy of your plane reservations. So they lock you in to going before they approve your meds. We rented cell phones thought Soft Bank. Was really easy to pick up. They are right by exit C1. Gave them my paper work, they handed me the zippered pack that contained the phone, charger and some information on the phone and I was off to find my driver. I received my phone number two days before I got there (they give it out two days before) it was the same number when I got the phone, so that worked out perfectly. They don't guarantee the number. Tokyo Air porter (tokyoairporter.com) I then went to look for my driver. I had a privet driver pick me up, due to I thought I would be to late for the Limousine bus. Turns out I wasn't, but I have to say the privet car was nice after a long trip. Lugging luggage around, taking into the bathroom with you(I was by myself at this point of the trip). Having someone there with your name on a sign, grab your bags and go get the car was heaven. lol Nice driver, spock pretty good english, there were times we didn't know how to say something, but it all worked, even had some chit chat. Once we arrived at the Sheraton Grand Tokyo Bay, someone helped with my luggage as I checked in. The preson helping me spock perfectly good English, maybe even better then me. lol No problems there. Then I quickly bought my TDL ticket for the next day at a counter at the hotle. Then I was escorted to my room with my bags. I was asked if I had any questions, was as helpful as can be, very welcoming and friendly. Since I was so hungery and tired. I ordered room service, had a nice club sandwhich. I decided to wait till the next day before trying really Japanese food. Room service is costly so I wanted to make sure I would like it. But well worth it after the long day. I didn't sleep on the plane, once I ate, I went to sleep. It was about 7:30pm local time. Woke right up at 2:00am local time, which is about 11:00am LA time. Oh my body took a few days to get use to the time change. Weird thing, waking up at 2:00 am hungery because your body thinks it lunch time. lol Had a hard time sleeping so I just got up. Ate breakfast down stairs at the hotel at 6:30am. Buffet was really good, its pricey at $33.00 but there is no tipping involved. Left the hotel at 7:15 and got to TDL by monorail at 7:30, already a big line up, but not to bad. I was worrened by TDR fans on line that this day was going to be supper busy, so I was ready for it. It was Oct 31 and everyone was there for the last day of Halloween. Walking into the park is very different then walking into DL or MK. First off you think, where’s the train? Where’s the burm? Well they couldn't do it that way due to some regulations Japan has, if there is public transerptation that is "X" amount long, they have to charge you. So the train at TDL is an accrual ride(more on that later). Pitchers say more then I could. I have about 8gb of photos and video, that I haven’t gotten to yet, but will. Im still trying to get use to LA time. I think its much harder getting back to LA time then it was getting on to Tokyo time. My theory is its because I don’t have two spectacular parks to keep me up and going. I was just in aww, due to I had planned this trip in 2006 but never made it. And planed it again this time. So for awhile it was hard to believe I was really there. Knowing the day was going to be so busy, long lines and my husband wasn't with me. I decided it was shopping and photo day. With a few rides thrown in here and there. My husbands, not a shopping fan and I couldn't resist hitting the stores first thing. Plus it gave me some direction and time to get over the shock of just how beautiful this park really was. What can you say, the shopping was wonderful, due to its so different to what we have in the states. Cell phone charms are huge there. Its like the equlaiant to trading pins in the states. What I loved as I went though the shops was seeing what people buy due to their culture. How they use things different then from where I was from. Like little hand towels, you would carry in your pocket. I found these all over the place. And I later found out why(or at least I think so). Most restrooms I found had hand dryers, we all know they don't work that well. Half the time I dry them to a certain point and then use the inside of my pockets. lol Well thats where I saw a women using her little towel and the light went on in my head, so thats why there are little towel. So do as the natives do, I bought a towel and use it the rest of the trip and it was nice. Western River Rail Road line was short(and it wouldn’t be a week later) so I jumped on. I really enjoyed it. Fast Pass HHM for later in the day. I took advice given and saved my fast pass for the end of the day. Ate lunch at Tomorrowland Terrace, good burger and fries. (later on the trip found out they have good chicken nuggets. Found the great spot to watch the Halloween Parade. This spot was told to me by a fellow poster. Thank you for the info. It really is a good spot. The spot can be found by entering TLT and going outside where the parade will go by and there is seatting. You can only get to this spot from inside TLT. After the paraide, walked around ToonTown and TL taking photos and just seeing where paths lead me. It was nice and relaxing. About 2:30 pm I was getting tired so I headed back to the hotel, which was easy on the monorail. Oh I just bought a one day pass at this point, about $6.50 and it made my life easy, not going to the machines each time you wanted to board and I wasn’t sure how often I would use the monorail with a day. Relaxed at the hotel for a few hours and then back into the park. Stopped by Cokes Corner, grab a hotdog. I was eating as cheap as I could because breakfast was so costly. I used my fast pass for HMH at this point. It was done up very nicely. I enjoy seeing the differences between TDL and DL. Then I went to see the Tiki Room, although it was in Japanese and had a bit of a different story line with Stitch in it, it was still very good and fun to see. Missing Countery Bears at DL I had to go see them in TDL. Brought back old memories. Cute show. Yes it was in Japanese, but I still knew what was going on. At this point I went back to TLT and found a spot to watch the electrical parade. At which time I received a phone call from my husband, so we chatted till the parade started. The electrical parade is so good. There are more floats then we have at DL. There is Nemo, Crush, Woody, Buzz, a boat looking float that has it’s a small world music coming from it and many more, I’m forgetting at the moment. After the parade was over, I headed out of the park back to the hotel. At this point as we all know the shops were loaded with people gathering things to take home with them. I was happy to have done my shopping early.
Originally Posted By Malin Loving the detailed Trip Report so far Scuba Mickey, how ever would like to read a bit more about your experienes at the park involving guest and Cast Members and your personal views on both parks. What did you think of the Halloween Parade etc?
Originally Posted By Scuba Mickey The CM are great. With 6 days total in the parks, I only had two times where I was left wishing there was more the CM could do. It was a language barror, which isn't their fault. Im the one who didn't speak the country language. But as an ex-cm, I was always tought if you don't understand someone due to langage, get someone who speaks their launage, even if you have to call someone. But again, I don't blame them at all. Just different from what I was taught at a different park in a different country. I found the CM were very nice, very happy, no grumy people there or at least not on stage. The CM is one of the reasons I love the resort so much. I guess as an APer at DL, Im sick of poor service. I found crowd control was great, no bunching up on main st or anywhere. And there are a ton of people there. Were DL, heck don't even try to move after a parade. lol At TDR, there was one time I wanted to get from the hub area, to get to Main St during a parade. The CM didn't understand me, so he asked another CM to chat with me. I was told to wait here and when they could they let me cross. It was great. No pushing no nothing. Love it. Oh I did love it when the gates opened at 8:00am watching the people run to where ever was great. You could never do that at DLR. Wish I had gotten a photo of that one. lol The halloween parade was great. I think all the parade and shows I saw were everything you guys talked about. They put on a great show. More then Ive ever seen in any parks. The stitch xmas parade, seemed short. I was hopping for more. But it still was great to see. My thoughts on the parks, oh gosh where do I start. Its overwhelming due to its so different yet TDL is like DL and WDW in some ways. I love the over head on Main St. it give such a nice feel when you walk in. I didn't get to up close and personal with the castle, due to the stage, but it looks nice. I love all the decor for both holidays. They do a great job there. Now Seas, WOW!!! Ive seen photos, but there is nothing like walking though the park. Its one of a kind. By far my fav park out of all of them. I love the different theme areas, did a great job there. The smell of stawberry popcorn, gosh I wish I had some right now. lol I love the re-fillable buckets. I got a little lost in this park, which was funny, since I know most of the other parks like the back of my hand. Its just so different. Malin, all I keep thinking is Seas is so different and TDL is just the best DL park out there. DL in Ca is the orignal and still my home park, but I would travel in a heart beat back to TDR. One thing I love was the easy of transpertaion though the resort. The two times Ive been at WDW and stay at the Boardwalk, the buses have been a real pain and you get upset and it mess with your vacation. The whole time in Tokyo I was thinking gosh this is so easy and they way it should be. Now at DL you can walk everywhere its so close. But unless you want Epcot or a water park, I head to Tokyo.
Originally Posted By TokyoSweets ***Ate lunch at Tomorrowland Terrace, good burger and fries. (later on the trip found out they have good chicken nuggets. Found the great spot to watch the Halloween Parade. This spot was told to me by a fellow poster. Thank you for the info. It really is a good spot. The spot can be found by entering TLT and going outside where the parade will go by and there is seatting. You can only get to this spot from inside TLT.*** Hey! We were in the same area! Right across the street did you see a big group of mothers with their babies in costume in the front row?
Originally Posted By Bob Paris "The CM is one of the reasons I love the resort so much" Indeed. I said it back then and I will repeat it here and now - the CMs are a true hidden E ticket of the TDR. I fell in love with several of them. "I guess as an APer at DL, Im sick of poor service." Indeed. I was actually shocked several times whilst and DL and WDW at the quality of service(or lack thereof)we received from some surly and grumpy CMs who obviously didn't want to be there. This especially after being told for YEARS about the vaunted American levels of service. In fact, I found around the US service to be average if not sub-par. It was really quite shocking as there is this myth told to people going to the US "Oh you WILL NOT believe the service you get there!!!" Simply not true. If you want wonderful, friendly service, go to Japan.
Originally Posted By Scuba Mickey No Tokyo Sweets, I can't say I saw you guys. I was amazed at all the grat costumes. Wow they dress up and look like the real charicters. And to see people taking photos with dressed up guest, never see that allowed in the states. It was so cool. I hope you all enjoyed the parade. Bob,the states CM just wait around for their shift to be over. I know the CM I use to work with did, drove me nuts. What are your thoughts on the CM of Paris vs Japan? Its been 10 years since Ive been to PDL. Im guessing TDR CM are better and happier.
Originally Posted By Anatole69 They give those hand wipes out with any sort of food purchase, at least in Tokyo and Kobe... I assume it's the same throughout all of Japan. As far as I can surmise, it comes from their shinto beliefs which put a high priority on clenliness, so they will give those to you no matter how small your portion of food is. Can't wait for your photos.
Originally Posted By Scuba Mickey I liked those hand wipes, they were nice to have. Many times I got two and it was just me ordering something small. So I keep it for later. Great service if you ask me. Funny i was out today and the service was bad compaired to in Japan. You can get use to the good life over there and its hard to come back here. lol
Originally Posted By Bob Paris Scuba - Unfortunately I have not been to Paris so I cannot compare the two. My "thing" is, I will visit DLPR when the Studios has more there worth seeing. A trip to Europe from Australia is going to be a major jaunt, so they better be dressed up nice! ; )
Originally Posted By Malin *** Indeed. I said it back then and I will repeat it here and now - the CMs are a true hidden E ticket of the TDR. I fell in love with several of them. *** I agree with you on that Bob, The TDR CastMembers are the best, and also don't deserve enough credit for the suscess of the TDR. The Cast Members in Hong Kong also are exceptional and I can not fault them. Regarding Cast Members at DLR, WDW and DLRP, each Resort have a dedicated few who try and deliver the Disney quality and standard, but will stand in the shaddow of the ones who are more concern with there phones, than the guest. However with the way certain guest behave and act, its sometimes easy to see why these folks have given up hope, and treat it as just a job.
Originally Posted By Mr X Sounds like you had a great trip! Thanks for sharing. ***8 hours with no meal, ended up making me sick. So next time I run pass Mc Donald’s on the way to my termal, I’m picking something up and putting it in a zip lock bag just incase they don't feed us for a long time. I understand why they did it this way, its so people can sleep. But it didn’t help me on this trip.*** I've flown on Continental Tokyo to Newark several times now and they offer a mid-flight "snack" which consists of a cup-o-noodles, fruit, and a sandwich or rice ball which I've always appreciated and partaken of. They go around fairly quietly so they don't wake anyone, but it's available for anyone who isn't sleeping too soundly. Works nicely for me.
Originally Posted By Megara Tokyo Disney Resort is a wonderful place. We have visited 4 years in a row. The cast members are truly outstanding. The food is very very nice The souvenirs are FANTASTIC. We love the place.
Originally Posted By Scuba Mickey Sorry its taken me so much time to get back to this TR. Last weekend we had fires that were somewhat close to our house, so we packed things up. We are okay, now just unpacking. Heres my second day, with more to follow. Sat Nov. 1 This day my DH was coming in from Taiwan in the late afternoon and I was checking out of the Sheraton Hotel. In the morning, I got all packed up and asked the bell desk to hold my luggage till the evening, when DH would be there. We would then leave both of or large luggage with the bell desk till we returned on Monday. Taking with us our small suite case we took on the plane with us. Check out was easy, they had an imprint of my credit card, all I did was look over the bill at the front desk, signed it and I was on my way. Today was my exploring the hotels and Ikspiara(their version of Down Town Disney). I once again got a one day Monorail pass. My first stop was Ikspiara and Ambassador Hotel. Got to Ikspiara a bit before 10:00am and was surprised you can't get far, no window shopping before the stores open. LOL They have area roped off and doors closed, so people were gathering. I did see what looked like a nice coffee shop, I didn't go in, so Im not completely sure. Once 10:00 am came, they dropped the rope's, open the doors and the people ran. Still funny to me to see this, because its just different then in the States. I wasn't sure where everyone was headed. I think they were selling ticket to something, because the people just ran passed the Disney Store which is were I was thinking they were headed. Thankfully not, because that was where I was headed. The Disney Store, once again Tokyo took my breath away. A shoppers Paradise. I grab my basket, yes they offer baskets for shopping, I love this. And hit the Christmas isle. lol It was the first day the Christmas merchandise was out. Did some shopping for friend and headed to the check out. I was there about an hour. There were not a ton of people in there, but you had to wait at times to see things. No problem though. The CM's here were just as wonderful as in the park. The lady helping me didn't speak English, no problem. When I had a question, she went to get someone to help. Very nice and friendly. Oh and a note to all you shoppers, the Disney Store does have items you wont find or at least I didn't find in other places of the resort. I hope they keep it that way. I miss the days when our Disney Stores in the states had different things then they did in the parks. I walked around Ikspiara a little, the stores seem really nice and had some cute things in them, but for me this was a Disney buying trip. With the two different holidays and the 25 anniversary, there was plenty to buy and it was pricey, so I had to save money and moved on before I found something I wanted. lol I walked to The Ambassador Hotel, which if I know my Tokyo Disney Trivial right, it was the first Disney hotel they built in Tokyo. From what I gathered and I could be very wrong, its quite a walk to the hotel from the monorail. I wouldn't want to do it after a long day in the parks. Once I got there, I though they hotel was cute, very early 1900's Hollywood, not my kind of decor, since Im from LA and Hollywood doesn't impress me. But very well and nicely done. I sat outside in a court yard somewhere, not sure where. lol and Had a cup of coffee and a pastry from Tully's. I enjoyed sitting there soaking it all in. Of course I hit the gift shop. You never know what you will find where. There are some Ambassador Hotel items, I forget what, I was too mesmerized with the Christmas items. After spending a few hours at the Amastor hotel, I walked back to the monorail which meant I walked back thought Ikspiara. I hope there is a short way for hotel guest. Got on and went to the brand new Tokyo Disney Hotel. Its the same monorail stop as Disneyland itself. I had seen it the day before and just love how it looked. When I first got there, I sat in the court yard once again taking it all in. What a beautiful hotel. Then just wandered around. The bottom floor from what I got, had shops, one even a little store you can get food and drinks in. I grabbed a bottle of water. The gift shop too had all the same Christmas 25 ann stuff you see everywhere, but they had some DL Hotel items. One that to this day sticks out in my mind is a $40.00 baseball hat. Yes you read that right, needless to say it stayed there, even thought I would have loved a base ball hat from there. Very cute things, I hope they keep that going as the years goes on. I went up the grand stair case to the lobby and felt like I walked right into the the Grand Floirtian hotel. lol Its a bit different but the same feel to it. I didn't spend much time here, I know they have beautiful painting and things to see, I was just tired and wanted to go back to our hotel and wait for DH. So I left and did just that. The Sheraton has a huge lobby, lots of comfy chairs a little cafe with great cakes with fruit in them. I was in heaven. I sat there munching on some good and wen thought my bag to see who I had gotten things for and marked them off my list. My husband came in later then we thought he would. I thought there was a 4:00pm bus from the airport and there wasn't so he was behind an hour. So I had more time to kill. Which was fine. Once he got there, we stored our luggage, ate dinner and then grab a Disney bus to the train station. We were going into Tokyo and Staying at Hotel Monerty Ginza. It was $145.00 night which was better then the $500.00 a night the Sheraton would have cost us that weekend. That weekend had a holiday on Monday for the locals, so theres where the room prices went up. I think it was about 8:00 pm when we got the train station, got our tickets, it was pretty easy, just know where you need to get off. We were going to Tokyo Station, so it was a piece of cake. There is a lot of talk about luggage on the trains, we both had a small rolling bag, that we took on the plane with us. I had a shoulder bag and my husband had a backpack. No problems. It was later in the evening on a Sat, but I still worried about it. Once at Tokyo Station, got a cab to our hotel. Check in was easy. Seemed like a nice area. Our room was small but very nice. King size bed, little table and chair, closet, and bathroom. Perfect for two. With my bad back I asked for more pillows and at first they were taken back and said they didn't have any. But they looked and more pillows ended up at our door. Too cute and very nice.
Originally Posted By Mr X Cool report, thanks! I'll have to remember that Hotel Monerty (it's right near Tokyo Station is it?), I always have people asking me where to find budget places relatively close to Disney. It's funny you mentioned the lobby at the TDL Hotel being like the Grand Floridian. I never put those two together, but you're right! There DOES seem to be a similar vibe there (though iirc the Grand Floridian is a heck of a lot bigger, no?). If I were to make a comparison, I'd say the TDL Hotel lobby is like a cross between the Grand Floridian, and Disney's Boardwalk (two lobbies I LOVE), due to some of the smaller details I think are also nice to see (like the "Disney dollhouse") which reminded me of the Boardwalk (and Boardwalk was the first I thought of when I first checked out the place..now I need to go back and think "Grand Floridian" to catch some of that vibe lol). Thanks for writing!
Originally Posted By SuperDry Great trip report. I'm glad you've joined the ranks of TDR fans! I wanted to comment on some of the things you said - perhaps some of these comments might be of use to future first-time visitors to TDR: <<< Flew out of LAX on United airlines, the flight took 11.5 hours. I did upgrade to Economy Plus for $50.00 each way for more leg room and I was very thankful for that. Even with the extra leg room its a long flight all cramped up. There is just never enough space to really relax in Economy seats. I now am looking into learning how to use your miles for seat upgrades to bus. class. I saw those seats and was very jealous. >>> You definitely need to get on board with the art of getting into the int'l premium cabins without paying full fare. Some airline employees (who shall remain nameless) might call this "freeloading" but I think it's just a matter of being a smart passenger. There's nothing like being able to fly across the Pacific in style without it costing $8000. Once the extra service wears off, you'll really appreciate all the extra room and the ability to actually get some quality shuteye on the flight. You definitely need to learn how to maximize your miles in order to secure upgrades (or even free travel). As a start, I hope you are a member of Starwood Preferred Guest and credited your Sheraton stay toward that program. If not, be sure to sign up and submit that stay for credit. <<< The only problem I had is they did the first meal around ,1:00pm once the plane was up and going. Then the other meal at 9:00pm(LA time) about an hour and half before landing. 8 hours with no meal, ended up making me sick. So next time I run pass Mc Donald’s on the way to my termal, I’m picking something up and putting it in a zip lock bag just incase they don't feed us for a long time. I understand why they did it this way, its so people can sleep. But it didn’t help me on this trip. >>> Allowing people to sleep is not a valid excuse for no mid-flight meal on a flight of that duration. As Mr X has already pointed out, other airlines offer a mid-flight snack on a flight of this length, and are quiet in doing so and let sleeping passengers stay that way. Also, in the premium cabins, they'll often set out snacks that let you munch on things at any time you get hungry. <<< But it has left me to wonder and will ask United their policy on drinking and sitting at an exit. I don't think you should be allowed to sit there and get drunk. >>> I can answer the question in general: It's illegal on a US-flagged commercial aircraft for a passenger to consume alcohol that's not served to them by a crew member. Also, it's illegal for the crew to serve any passenger that's "intoxicated," whether or not they're in an exit row. It sounds like in your case, the crew did what they were supposed to do by cutting them off at the appropriate time. The fact that they served themselves behind the crew's back is unfortunate, but there's not much the crew can do if they're not aware of it. But I share your concern - if you were to report them, what might have happened? It's not a good situation all around. <<< I didn't sleep on the plane, once I ate, I went to sleep. It was about 7:30pm local time. Woke right up at 2:00am local time, which is about 11:00am LA time. Oh my body took a few days to get use to the time change. Weird thing, waking up at 2:00 am hungery because your body thinks it lunch time. lol Had a hard time sleeping so I just got up. >>> This is a VERY common reaction. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to manage the jetlag, especially for first-time visitors. And by that, I don't mean anything drastic like doing what some people say in adjusting to the new time zone days ahead of time or even adjusting to a new meal schedule the day of departure. Rather, what I recommend is rather simple, and starts no earlier then when you board the flight. The following applies for travelers from the US: Recommendation #1: Get as much sleep as you can on the flight. Even if you don't normally sleep on flights, you'll have plenty of time on this flight: coming from the continental US, the flight will be anywhere from 10.5 to 14 hours in the air, depending on your departure city. Recommendation #2 (much more important than #1): Do not, under any circumstances, go to bed early on your day of arrival in Japan. Stay up until 10pm-midnight if you can. If you go to bed early, what happened to you will almost certainly happen: you'll wake up in the middle of the night Japan time, be wide awake even if you didn't get a full night's sleep, and find that everyone else is fast asleep and everything is closed. If you can stay up until 10pm-midnight on the day of arrival, you'll find that you wake up very early the next day, perhaps even 5-6am, but you'll have had enough sleep and it will at least be morning so that by the time you get ready to go out, breakfast is being served and things are starting to open. I've done the trip many times myself, and with many other people of varying ages and fitness levels, and the above seems to apply to just about everyone in my experience. I've traveled with people that were otherwise young and fit, didn't sleep on the plane, and hit the sack around 6pm upon checking into the hotel, only to wake up at 2am when everyone else was fast asleep with no chance of getting back to sleep themselves. They ended up wandering deserted streets by themselves with nothing to do and nowhere to go, and then being ready for bed by mid-afternoon the next day and so on. It's especially hard in my experience for US travelers that have never been to the Far East - even for people that have been to Europe, the time zone shift is different because it's in the other direction and people are surprised when jetlag hits them like a freight train. The reaction I've observed in myself and people I've traveled with is so consistent and, now that I know the pattern, so predictable, that I feel confident it offering the advice generally: 1) sleep as much as you can on the flight, and 2) stay up that first night as late as you can, but not past midnight. If you do those two relatively simple things, I think you'll find that you're just fine in adjusting to the new time zone. You get the added benefit of waking up at the crack of dawn (but not before then) for the first couple of days even if you're not normally a morning person. <<< The electrical parade is so good. There are more floats then we have at DL. >>> Uh, yea - that's one way to put it! Another way would be to say that it's at least 300% better overall.
Originally Posted By Mr X Excellent advice on jetlag, SD. I've always found that to be true for myself as well...my very first trip to Japan I made EXACTLY the mistake you are talking about (I believe I hit the sack at around 6pm, thinking I was being "smart", woke up promptly at 2am and wandered around my deserted hotel and watched Japanese TV all night, hungry, sleepy (not sleepy enough though), and bored out of my mind...NIGHTMARE! And I was no good for almost a WEEK before I finally adjusted! Since that fateful day, I stay up til "real" bedtime even if it kills me, and I'm ALWAYS fine the next day.
