I Stayed At One Of The Toughest Disney Hotels To Get Into — Here's My Review

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The Toy Story Hotel in Japan was built in 2022, making it the fifth-themed and first “moderate-type” hotel on the Tokyo Disney Resort property. Disney fans across the world have been raving about its near-perfect design, mid-tier price point, and guest benefits. This combination of amenities can be hard to find, especially for American Disney lodging, which may be why rooms have been selling out months in advance.

While room prices may vary due to conversion rates and date availability, rates can range from $200 to $500 a night. For example, rooms may be cheaper if you book Monday through Friday, whereas prices can skyrocket during the weekend and holidays. Even though the Toy Story Hotel is more expensive than its off-property “value type” partner, Tokyo Disney Celebration Hotel, it can be much cheaper than the “deluxe” or “luxury” on-site properties, which can cost a couple of hundred dollars more a night.

When my husband and I went to Japan at the end of 2023, I was lucky to snag a one-night stay at the Toy Story Hotel to easily access the Tokyo Disney parks — so if you’re thinking of trying to book a night at one of the most sought-after Disney hotels for your next Japan trip, here’s everything you’ll need to know, including how to book a room, photos of the property, and a complete review of the buffet and hotel.

Since this is such a sought-after hotel, I highly recommend not “winging it” when making reservations (seriously, don’t do this). Tokyo Disney Resort releases room reservations on its website exactly four months ahead of time. So, if you want to stay at the hotel on February 8th, 2025, you can (and should) reserve a room on October 8th, 2024, just to increase your chances of booking a room.

The room we chose was a weekday standard room that cost us about $240 for the night. While this is a little higher than I would normally like to spend on a hotel, it was also my husband’s and my honeymoon, so we splurged a little.

Once you arrive at the hotel, you can leave your bags at guest services (which is where you can also buy your park tickets) before check-in time, which is at 3 p.m. JST. Once the room is ready, the staff will bring your luggage directly to your room. As for us, we actually arrived at the hotel after 7 p.m. because our flight landed at 5 p.m.

Okay, now that we got some of the logistics out of the way, let’s check out the hotel because the design is unlike anything I’ve seen for a mid-tier Disney hotel. When I tell you no detail was overlooked, I mean it. The overall theme of the hotel is based on the idea that before Andy went to Cowboy Camp, he created a toy hotel for all his favorite toys to stay in while he’s away — and guests can visit this toy-sized world as “honorary toys.” This means when you walk through the hotel, everything feels larger than life — from the play areas to the rooms to your favorite Toy Story characters.

When you look up at the building, you’ll notice it’s made out of “building blocks.” The design depicts a facade of a cityscape in front of the legendary Toy Story clouds. Just like in Toy Story Land, you’ll find various “knickknacks” that embody real-life items. For instance, the ends of pencils are used as bollards in front of the hotel, “just eaten” popsicles are used to build fences or benches, and alphabet blocks are used to create signage, like “Hey, Howdy, Hey” right outside the hotel to welcome guests.

Talking about the LiteBrite area, this is where you will check-in. As I mentioned before, you’ll need your passport so you can fill out some paperwork that will be required for your stay as a tourist. However, before you even walk up to the desks, you’ll find all of the incredibly kind staff waving and saying hello to all the guests who walk throughout the lobby. It’s the cutest thing to witness.

After you check in, you’ll be instructed to go to one of the two elevator areas that will take you up to your room. One wing is BuzzLightyear-themed, while the other is Woody. While all the rooms in the hotel are created mostly the same, the elevator areas on each floor are designed based on either one of these characters, depending on which side of the hotel you’re on. Oh, and remember when I said every detail has been accounted for? Well, when you get off the elevator to go to your room, you’ll find a mirror that looks like a toy box. Perfect for last-minute outfit checks and social media postings.

The hallways leading to the rooms are extremely bright and colorful. The carpet is covered with rows of different hues, including Buzz’s, Woody’s, and Rex’s footprints. Each of the doorways is designed with various single colors, such as blues, reds, or greens.

Now, let’s talk about the hotel room! Overall, the theme of the guest rooms is pretty perfect. The main area of the room resembles Andy’s bedroom, with the legendary blue sky-clouded wallpaper and the nearly identical bedframe. While there’s no Buzzlighter comforter like in the original movie, the designers did borrow inspiration from Woody’s outfit to decorate the bedding.

As for the rest of the room, you’ll find “posters” of Toy Story characters “hung up” on the walls, a tiny round green table and chair in the corner, reading lights attached to the bed frames, a trundle underneath one of the beds, a full-length mirror on the bathroom door, a ’90s-inspired blue Mickey watch as the clock, postcards with Toy Story characters, a double stars ceiling lamp, a row of different-colored hangers held with push pins, and a multifunctional dresser area you can use as a desk (which also houses the safe, mini fridge, and coffee and water area).

While all of these little features are very good, nothing takes the cake quite like the Etch-a-Sketch TV frame, the Woody slippers with Andy’s signature on the bottom (that you get to keep!!!), and the Buzz Lightyear-inspired pajamas (which come in different sizes). I truly believe these added details (in addition to the iconic cloud wallpaper) are what set this room apart from other Disney hotels.

Since we’re on the topic of the bathroom, let me introduce you to this area. Bathrooms are a little bit bigger in Japan because the toilet is traditionally separated from the wash areas. Also, the shower room includes a bathtub and a shower in one combined area, which I believe is incredibly smart (although in this particular hotel, I found the bathtub to be small even for 5’4″ me — but I bet it’s perfect for smaller kids). While I believe the design of the bathroom is a little bit mismatched, with puzzle pieces wallpaper in the sink and toilet area and a crayon-drawn mural of Wheezy with bubbles in the shower room, the two designs are connected with little bubble light fixtures on the mirror.

After settling into the hotel room, my husband and I were starving. Before we landed in Japan, we booked an 8 p.m. reservation at Lotso Garden Café, the only restaurant on the property.

I’m going to be real with ya’ll: The food was just OK. I was really looking forward to dining at this buffet, but while the food itself was incredibly cute to look at (think: Toy Story characters shaped into different foods) and included non-specialty drinks within the overall price, the taste of each dish (minus the desserts) was lackluster at best. And for the price tag — Adult (ages 13 and over) ¥5,500, Junior (ages 7 to 12) ¥3,300, Child (ages 4 to 6) ¥2,200 — this was even more disappointing.

My verdict: Skip the dinner buffet entirely and go to the convenience store (konbini) called Shop Together right down the hall instead. (Yes, it’s inside the hotel.) Maybe the breakfast buffet is better, but unfortunately, we didn’t have the opportunity to try it out.

Why do I suggest the konbini store instead? Because it’s magical. While a lot of “gas station” stores in America, like 7-Eleven, usually have a weird reputation, Japanese convenience stores — like Family Mart, Lawson, and 7-Eleven — are filled with pre-packaged foods and drinks that actually taste good and won’t break the bank.

We actually got to try out the konbini the following morning before we headed to the parks. For about $14, we got three coffees, an egg salad sandwich (IYKYK), a fruit cup, a cup of yogurt, and a couple of pastries. My stomach was happy, and so was my wallet. We also got a few Gashapon toys (which are kind of like blind boxes); however, we also wanted to check out the Gift Planet store that was in the hotel lobby.

Speaking of Gift Planet, hundreds of souvenirs will catch your eye at this store (so apologies to your wallet). While you may find plenty of these toys and gifts inside the parks themselves, quite a few specific Tokyo Toy Story Hotel items can only be found inside this gift shop, like mugs, a toy set of the actual hotel, or napkins with drawings of the outdoor play area.

But even if you don’t plan on shopping at Gift Planet, I highly recommend visiting to check out the decor that’s inspired by the Green Little Men characters. Just like the lobby, the ceiling and floor are covered with old-school board games, and small details cover the walls, such as giant alien Bandaids, little Post-It notes that visually describe certain areas of the shop, character stickers that cover the “carboard-like” walls, and large murals that feature the Green Little Men themselves. The attention to detail is superb, and I wish every Disney shop were like this.

The last things you’ll want to explore before you check out are the play areas. There are two: The first one is called Slinky Dog Park, and it’s located at the front of the hotel. And then there’s Toy Friend’s Square at the back of the hotel. Although you can obviously explore these areas anytime you want, I highly recommend checking them out at night to see everything come to life (pun intended). Why? Because each of the play areas is covered with large Christmas lights that illuminate the parks along with other decorative toy lights.

Final thoughts and opinions.

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