Japan's theme park industry is expanding rapidly, with major operators investing in new lands while the country rides a wave of record tourism. Japan welcomed 42.7 million international visitors in 2025, and its theme parks have become a major draw alongside cuisine and scenery.
Major destination resorts
Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, which opened in 2001, hosts lands based on Harry Potter, Jurassic Park and Minions. It became the first Universal park worldwide to open Super Nintendo World in 2021, and in 2024 added the world's first Donkey Kong Country area. The park runs limited-time collaborations tied to Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen, Pokémon, One Piece and Resident Evil, plus seasonal Sanrio shows. In 2026 it announced its first expansion since opening, planning up to 300 billion yen in new attractions across 60,000 square metres of nearby land.
Tokyo Disneyland opened on 15 April 1983 as the first Disney park outside the US. Based on the California original, it has seven themed lands, and along with Tokyo DisneySea it is owned and operated by Oriental Land Company under licence from The Walt Disney Company — the only Disney parks not owned by Disney. A 2026 announcement detailed Space Mountain Earthrise and Sugar Rush: Sweet Rescue as part of a 100 billion yen ($630 million) Tomorrowland transformation, with the new Space Mountain to replace the original coaster in 2027.
Tokyo DisneySea opened in September 2001 across 49 hectares and seven themed ports. In 2024 it launched Fantasy Springs, its largest expansion to date, a $2.2 billion project with worlds inspired by Frozen, Tangled and Peter Pan.
Ghibli Park, inside the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park, opened in November 2022 with three of five themed areas; Mononoke Village followed in 2023 and Valley of Witches in March 2024. It has no major thrill rides but includes a large-scale Howl's Moving Castle recreation, a Totoro-themed playground and Catbus electric vehicles. A new indoor area inspired by Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was announced in 2026.
Coasters, characters and culture
Thrill-focused parks include Fuji-Q Highland in Yamanashi, opened in 1968 and known for Fujiyama, Eejanaika and Takabisha, and Nagashima Spa Land in Mie, opened in 1966, which has 13 operating coasters — more than any other park in Japan — and the Steel Dragon 2000. Huis Ten Bosch in Nagasaki, opened in 1992, recreates a Dutch town across about 152 hectares, making it Japan's largest park by area; in 2025 it opened Japan's first premium flying theatre with an 8K LED dome screen and the world's only Miffy area.
Character parks are also growing. PokéPark Kanto, the world's first permanent outdoor Pokémon attraction, opened in February 2026 at Yomiuriland in Tokyo with more than 600 Pokémon across two zones. Sanrio Puroland (1990) and its outdoor sister Sanrio Harmonyland host Hello Kitty and friends, while Legoland Japan opened in Nagoya in 2017. Moominvalley Park opened in Hanno, Saitama in 2019 as the second Moomin park worldwide.
Cultural and older attractions include Edo Wonderland Nikko Edomura, a 49.5-hectare Edo-period recreation, and Asakusa Hanayashiki, considered Japan's oldest amusement park, dating to 1853. Yomiuriland, home to PokéPark Kanto, drew around 2.4 million visitors in 2024 and marked its 60th anniversary. Other parks in the roundup include Sylvanian Park, Greenland in Kumamoto and Hirakata Park, Osaka's oldest, dating to 1910.