Let’s a Go! Nintendo World and Himeji Castle

TLDR

• Nintendo world delivers for the fans

• Himeji Castle worth the detour

One of the things I had been looking forward to most in Japan was going to Nintendo world at Universal Studios Japan (USJ). It opened in 2021 to rave reviews and as someone who grew up with Nintendo it was definitely a bucket list item. Granted there is now a version of this in LA with more coming to Singapore and Orlando but there is something special about seeing Nintendo in Japan, the land of Nintendo.

We thought going on a Wednesday would mean light crowds but when we got there bright and early, it was packed. The atmosphere was thick with excitement. Many folks were in costumes - nintendo and pokemon being the most popular but I saw quite a few harry potter ones as well. Within USJ, Nintendo world is so popular that there is a lottery to get in (!). We got lucky and got a late morning entry (around 11am). So we only had a few hours to kill in the rest of the park till then.

Hogwarts castle - it was actually impressive

The second most popular part of the park was Harry Potter world so we went there first. This part of the park is apparently pretty similar if not almost identical to the Harry Potter World in the US. I haven’t been to an amusement park in more than two decades so all of it was new to me. There wasn’t much of a line for the headline ride (Forbidden journey) so we queued up immediately.

Living Paintings (dubbed in Japanese)

All the displays and interactive elements were in japanese - which was surprising but makes total sense in retrospect. Luckily if you're familiar with HP you can get by well enough on context. The ride itself was awesome (also narrated in Japanese), you feel like you're riding on broomstick through Hogwarts. It's like a lighter version of a roller coaster combined with an amped up motion simulator. The result was something I thought was better than both and actually really really fun.

Finally it was time for the main event: Nintendo World (Apologies for video quality, will do landscape mode like a pro from now on).

Guys I gotta say, they really did a good job with this one. From the moment you go through a giant green pipe to enter the area everything is decked out to the max. It's definitely more of a Super Mario world than a Nintendo world (no non Mario IP spotted) but if you’ve played any of the Mario games at all it's really like being in the game. Question blocks, giant piranha plants, goombas and not to mention the classic nintendo tracks piped into all parts of the park.

Scary

The main attraction is the Mario Kart ride so we lined up for that as soon as could. Even then the wait time was 90 min! As with Harry Potter, the waiting experience was entertaining since it took you through a giant recreation of Bowser's Castle which was chock full of references, side gags and easter eggs.

Part of Bowser's workshop

The ride itself is an AR experience where you are in a kart “driving” on a set track while using your AR gear to collect question boxes and shoot green shells at the bad guys. The goal is to max out the points from doing the right steering moves and shooting the right targets as the AR experience takes you through classic mario kart courses. It's hard to imagine but for any mario kart fan the experience was epic. The fact that it was so interactive was really cool and by the time we hit the final part of the course with rainbow road everyone was going nuts. If you want to see more about the ride, you can check out this video which gives a flavor of the experience (though its much better in person).

Of course we had to check out the gift shop on our way out. Sadly our carry-on life is not so good with lots of Yoshi souvenirs.

On our last day in the Osaka area, we took the train to Himeji to see Himeji Castle. It was a bit of a detour but Himeji Castle was totally worth it. We were completely blown away by the huge structure inspired by a white heron.

View from the top

The original fortification extended beyond the initial walls to cover most of what is currently Himeji town. Built originally in the 1500s, its Japan’s largest and most visited castle. The castle complex was intended by the Shogun (Leader of Japan) to be the main military fortification against potential invaders from the south. Just a few things built into the structure to block potential invaders:

- 3 massive moats

- Winding paths with dead ends to confuse those who enter the keep

- Multiple hidden ports in the castle wall to throw stones, shoot arrows and drop boiling oil on invaders below

- Hidden rooms and compartments inside the castle for soldiers to hide in

As fate would have it, these defenses were never tested by any invaders.

We were lucky enough to stumble upon a free guided tour in English offered by a volunteer guide. She has been volunteering with the local historical society for over 20 years and really made the stories about the castle come alive. We tried to tip her but she refused to accept payment for volunteer work. We convinced her to at least take it as a donation to the organization she works with. As an aside, one thing I love about Japan in general is the anti tipping culture. It makes it much easier to navigate without having to decipher local customs around tipping!

Selfie with our guide

That wraps up our time in the Osaka region. Next up: the peaceful countryside of Takayama.