Universal Studios Japan in One Day: Our Family VIP Tour
We had one day for Universal Studios Japan during our three weeks in Japan. Five people, plenty of things to see, and no second day to come back. We booked a VIP tour, and Katharine took care of the planning.
Why we booked a VIP tour
We had arrived in Osaka the day before. Universal was our first full day there, before a week of exploring Osaka and taking day trips to Nara, Wakayama, and Kyoto. We wanted to give the park a full day without adding another one to the schedule. That was the reason for going with the VIP tour.
My wife Katharine is a travel advisor, and she did all the planning for Universal, PokéPark, and Disney on this trip. If you’re planning a trip of your own, you can find her at Katharine Moore at Dream Vacations.
First, the family picture at the globe. All five of us in the frame and ready to go.
Super Nintendo World
There is a lot to look at in Super Nintendo World. Blocks overhead, pipes, moving characters, and familiar scenery in every direction. It looks like someone took the game and built it around you.
The Mario Kart trophies needed a picture. Much bigger than the ones on the screen at home.
I also recorded some of the Yoshi ride with my Meta Ray-Bans. Here’s a short stretch of the ride, with the scenery passing right beside us.
More of the park
We made our way through the Harry Potter area and over to Hello Kitty too. There was a pretty wide range of interests covered in one day. Nintendo, wizards, and a very pink room.
I came home with plenty of short videos as well as photos. The clips are a good way to remember the parts between the family pictures: walking into a new area, looking around, and the view from a ride.
Dinner afterward
After the park, dinner came with an enormous pile of fries. Apparently we had not done quite enough walking to work through a small order.
Long day! Back to our place in Osaka. There was plenty more of the city to see over the next week.
Planning a one-day visit
Our one-day limit was the reason we chose a VIP tour. The right plan will depend on what your group wants to do and how much time you have. For us, this was one park day in the middle of a much longer family trip.
For current options, start with Universal Studios Japan’s official site. This is the story of our June 2026 visit; check the current tour and admission details for your dates.
The rest of the week is in Japan, Week 1: Tokyo and Osaka. We also spent a day at PokéPark Kanto near Tokyo.