Legoland Japan Guide

Legoland Japan is a great attraction for kids less than 10 years old. It’s located in Nagoya, in central Japan, within daytrip distance of Kyoto and Osaka. Here is our full guide to getting there, buying tickets and making the most of your day at the park.

Legoland Japan - image © Chris Rowthorn

Introduction and Contents

If your kids love Lego or Ninjago, they’ll love the new Legoland Japan. It’s best for younger kids (below 10 years of age), but older kids who really love Lego might also enjoy it. The park is small, which means you can fully explore it in a day or even half a day. It’s located in the harbor area of Nagoya, about 24 minutes south of Nagoya Station. You can easily link pair it with a visit to the nearby SCMAGLEV and Railway Park. See also our summarised Nagoya Travel Guide if you're interested in what else the city has to offer.

This guide is divided into the following sections:

How to Buy Legoland Japan Tickets
How to Get to Legoland Japan
Exploring Legoland Japan
Legoland Japan Park map
Handy money-saving and time-saving tips for Legoland Japan
Recommended accommodation for Legoland Japan

How to Buy Legoland Japan Tickets

Ticket sign - image © Chris Rowthorn

Here are the basic admission prices for the park:
Adult 1 day/2day: Y6,900/Y13,000
Child 1 day/2 day: Y5,300/Y10,000
Adults are anyone over 13 years of age. Children are anyone between the ages of 3 and 12. Children 2 years and under are free.
You can save a lot of money by buying your tickets in advance online. Average savings for online tickets are about 30%. You can buy your tickets via the Legoland Japan site.
However, for ease of use and convenience, you can buy them online.
When you buy Legoland tickets online, you will receive a voucher for your actual ticket at a special counter at Legoland Japan. The line here usually moves much faster than the normal ticket window.

How to Get to Legoland Japan

Aonami Line Sign in Nagoya Station - image © Chris Rowthorn

Legoland Japan is in Nagoya, which is in central Japan. Nagoya is only 40 minutes from Kyoto and 50 minutes from Osaka by shinkansen (bullet train). Thus, you can visit the park as a day trip from Osaka or Kyoto (it would also be possible from Tokyo, but it would be a long day). From Nagoya, it’s an easy 24-minute direct train ride to the park.

Here, we will give you directions from JR Nagoya Station (where the shinkansen stops). Once you exit the shinkansen station, look for signs for the Aonami Line.

Aonami Line Sign in Nagoya Station - image © Chris Rowthorn

Follow the signs to the entrance to the Aonami Line station. Buy tickets to Kinjo-futo Station from the machines (this is not a JR line, so you cannot use your Japan Rail Pass, but you can use prepaid cards like Suica, Pasmo and Icoca). Kinjo-futo is the last stop. The trip costs Y350 for an adult and takes 24 minutes.

Aonami Line Turnstile - image © Chris Rowthorn

This is the first stop of the line, so all departures will go to Kinjo-futo.

Aonami Line Train Line Info - image © Chris Rowthorn

Board the Aonami line. If you’re lucky, you might even get to sit down.

Aonami Line Train Boarding - image © Chris Rowthorn

You’ll soon arrive at Kinjo-futo Station, the last stop. Exit the turnstiles.

Exiting Kinjo-futo Station - image © Chris Rowthorn

Look for signs pointing to Legoland Japan.

Sign Pointing to Legoland Japan - image © Chris Rowthorn

Follow the signs to Legoland Japan. These will take you along an elevated walkway toward the park.

Walkway to Legoland Japan - image © Chris Rowthorn

You will walk through a large furniture outlet and then come to a bridge that crosses a road toward the park.

Bridge to Legoland - image © Chris Rowthorn

Descend the stairs on the far side of the bridge. This will bring you to an arcade of restaurants. You should eat here if you’re hungry: there are more choices here and prices are better than inside the park.

Stairs Down to Restaurant Arcade - image © Chris Rowthorn

Walk through the arcade and you will come to the outer entrance to Legoland Japan.

Legoland Japan Entrance - image © Chris Rowthorn

You will see the ticket and voucher exchange counters in front of you, to the right.

Ticket Lines and Signs - image © Chris Rowthorn

Either buy tickets or exchange your vouchers. Then, walk to the main entrance to the park nearby.

Legoland Japan Main Entrance - image © Chris Rowthorn

There will be a brief security (bag) check and the ticket checkers will check your tickets.

Ticket Checkers - image © Chris Rowthorn

Legoland Japan Skip Pass Info

At the time of writing (June 2018), Legoland Japan was not very crowded. Thus, you don’t need a special pass to skip the lines. But, we expect that it will be more crowded in the future. If you want to skip lines, you can buy Skip Passes from shops inside the park, including the Corner Shop, which is on your right as soon as you enter the park.

Corner Shop - image © Chris Rowthorn

Skip passes are sold at the Corner Shop and the King’s Market shop.

Skip Pass Sign - image © Chris Rowthorn

Skip Passes allow you to skip the line at Submarine Adventure, Lost Kingdom Adventure and The Dragon OR the Observation Tower (these are the most popular rides in the park). Skip passes cost Y3,000.

Skip Pass Info - image © Chris Rowthorn

Exploring Legoland Japan

Here, we’ll give a basic walkthrough of the park and mention the main rides and areas. All of the attractions and areas mentioned here are on our special Legoland Japan Map at the end of this section.

Legoland Japan is divided into seven zones:

Factory
Bricktopia
Pirate Shores
Knight’s Kingdom
Lego City
Adventure
Miniland

We’ll introduce each of these in turn.

Factory

The Factory zone is the first one you’ll enter as you enter the park. It includes the Big Shop on your left and some stores and services (like lockers) on your right.

The Big Shop - image © Chris Rowthorn

Bricktopia

Bricktopia is the next zone you will enter and it will also be on both sides of you. The first thing you’ll notice is the Observation Tower.

Observation Tower - image © Chris Rowthorn

Other rides in this area include Cat Cloud Busters.

Cat Cloud Busters - image © Chris Rowthorn

The Imagination Celebration saucers ride.

Imagination Celebration - image © Chris Rowthorn

There’s also the Build and Test venue, where kids can build things with real Lego and experiment with them. This is a learning venue.

Build and Test - image © Chris Rowthorn

Here’s the interior.

Build and Test Interior - image © Chris Rowthorn

The main attraction here is the Lego Factory, which is a simulated Lego factory.

Lego Factory - image © Chris Rowthorn

Check show times for the Ninjago Live performances held here.

Ninjago Live - image © Chris Rowthorn

There’s also the Brick Party merry-go-round, which is fun for younger children.

Brick Party Merry-Go-Round - image © Chris Rowthorn

Across the way, you will find Duplo Valley, which is a special play zone for toddlers.

Duplo Valley Entrance - image © Chris Rowthorn

There’s a large playground here.

Duplo Play Interior - image © Chris Rowthorn

There’s also the Duplo Express train ride.

Duplo Express - image © Chris Rowthorn

Pirate Shores

Next along is the popular Pirate Shores zone.

Pirate Shores Entrance - image © Chris Rowthorn

Castaway Camp is a ship-themed play zone where kids can climb all over a Lego pirate ship.

Castaway Camp - image © Chris Rowthorn

The main attraction here is the Splash Battle ride, where riders board pirate ships and spray other riders, while people on the side can spray them back from spray guns mounted around the pool. Needless to say, this is a good attraction on hot summer days.

Splash Battle - image © Chris Rowthorn

Knight’s Kingdom

Next along is the medieval-themed Knight’s Kingdom. The first attraction you will come to is the Merlin’s Flying Machines ride.

Merlin’s Flying Machines - image © Chris Rowthorn

To the left of this is the actual gate to the castle of Knight’s Kingdom.

Knight’s Kingdom Entrance - image © Chris Rowthorn

The main attraction here is The Dragon roller coaster. This is one of the most popular rides in the park and lines can be long.

The Dragon Roller Coaster - image © Chris Rowthorn

Finally, there is Merlin’s Challenge, a good ride for younger children.

Merlin’s Challenge - image © Chris Rowthorn

Lego City

After exiting Knight’s Kingdom, you will come to Lego City, which is where children can experience various jobs and activities of the real world. This is an experience and learning zone.

Lego City Entrance - image © Chris Rowthorn

One of the most popular rides here in the Rescue Academy, which children can experience being firefighters.

Rescue Academy - image © Chris Rowthorn

Here’s another view of Rescue Academy.

Rescue Academy - image © Chris Rowthorn

The Palace Cinema here shows Lego-themed movies. Check show times as you enter the park.

Palace Cinema - image © Chris Rowthorn

Another popular ride here is the Junior Driving School, where kids can drive Lego vehicles. There’s another driving school here for bigger kids (not pictured).

Junior Driving School - image © Chris Rowthorn

The Wharf is a marine-themed play area.

The Coast Guard HQ ride allows kids to pilot small boats around a canal.

Miniland

The heart of any Legoland is the Miniland, a miniature world built entirely of Lego. The one at Legoland Japan does not disappoint.

All the major tourist sites of Japan are represented, including, of course, Mt Fuji.

There’s also a super-detailed mini-Tokyo.

And a mini-Osaka.

Adventure

The final zone is the Adventure Zone, which is home to three of the park’s most popular rides. The first of these is the S.Q.U.I.D Surfer ride, where you can ride stand-up jet-skis around a pool.

Here’s another picture.

Next is the Submarine Adventure ride, where you descend into water to look for Lego-themed objects.

Finally, there’s the popular Lost Kingdom Adventure ride (not pictured here).

Legoland Japan Park Map

You will receive a paper map when you enter the park. But, if you’d like a map that you can use with your smartphone, try our Legoland Japan map here. You can view this map full size in Google Maps too.

SEALIFE Nagoya

SEALIFE Nagoya is a small aquarium that is directly outside Legoland Japan. Entry to SEALIFE Nagoya is included with most tickets to Legoland Japan. It’s not worth making a special trip here just for this attraction. But, it’s a nice add-on to Legoland Japan and it’s good on a hot or rainy day. Here are a few pics:

Handy Money-Saving and Time-Saving Tips for Legoland Japan

Your time at Legoland Japan can either be a great day out or a miserable slog. Good planning and good timing can make all the difference. Here are some handy tips.

1) Buy your ">Legoland Japan admission ticket in advance online.
2) Check show times for shows and movies when you enter the park.
3) Check the weather and dress appropriately. It can be very cold in the winter and how hot in the summer in Nagoya. And, bring a folding umbrella if there is a chance of rain.
4) Try to go on weekdays that are not holidays. This means that the park will be less crowded with local visitors.
5) Buy some snacks in advance. And consider eating your meals in the arcade outside the park.

Recommended Accommodation for Legoland Japan

Legoland Japan is in Nagoya, which is close to Osaka and Kyoto if you travel by shinkansen (bullet train), so you can visit it as a day trip from those cities (see the Getting To Legoland Japan section for details). The park is only 24 minutes by train from central Nagoya, so you can also stay in a hotel in central Nagoya if you wish. But, if you really want the full Legoland experience and want to stay right at the park, try the following hotel.

Destination

Check-in date

Sat 14 Sep 2024

Check-out date

Sun 15 Sep 2024

Legoland Japan Hotel
(View on Booking.com or Agoda.com)
The rooms and common areas at this brand new hotel are Lego themed, which makes it very popular with children. There are bunk beds in the family rooms. There’s a great pool with slides etc. And, best of all, it’s right outside the entrance to Legoland Japan.

Where Are These Places Located?

See these places on the Inside Osaka Google map:

Open the Osaka map
You will see the list of places on the left hand side. (Click the 3-line icon in the top left corner if not). Scroll down or use the map search (the magnifying glass icon) to find the place you want.
Click the name of the place in the list. Its location pin will be highlighted on the map.
Map pins are color coded - BLUE: Hotels / Ryokan / Guesthouses | VIOLET: Ryokan | PINK: Places to Eat | GREEN: Shops | YELLOW: Things to See and Do
If you're using the map on your phone, open the map and then search for the name of the place. The map will then zoom in on its location.

Osaka Vacation Checklist

For all the essentials in a brief overview, see my First Time In Osaka guide
Check Osaka accommodation availability and pricing on Booking.com and Agoda.com - often you can book with no upfront payment and free cancellation
Need tips on where to stay? See my one page guide Where To Stay In Osaka
You can buy shinkansen (bullet train) tickets online from Klook - popular routes include Tokyo to Osaka, Osaka to Kyoto and Osaka to Tokyo
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View my comprehensive Packing List For Japan
Compare flight prices and timings to find the best Japan flight deals
If you're visiting more than one city, you might save money with a Japan Rail Pass – see if it's worth it for you
Get a prepaid Icoca card to make travelling around Osaka easy – here's how
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Do you want help planning your trip? Chris Rowthorn and his team of Japan experts at Japan Travel Consulting can help

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