Ghibli Museum Tokyo: Worth It Or A Complete Hassle?

I was ultimately disappointed with Ghibli Museum Tokyo. The wonders of Ghibli came to life, but they were overshadowed by all the pitfalls of the museum… most of which surface before you even get there.

Buying Ghibli Museum tickets is a complete hassle. Getting from Tokyo to Ghibli Museum turns your visit into a full day affair. In the end, you waste way more time than it’s worth.

Continue reading my guide with my unfiltered review of Ghibli Museum Tokyo to find out why I don’t recommend going!

Psst! This blog post contains affiliate links in it which sends me a bit of extra money if you use them… at no extra cost to you!

What Is Ghibli Museum Tokyo?

Ghibli Museum Tokyo is the original Studio Ghibli Museum in Japan. It welcomes you into the world of Studio Ghibli, offering exclusive content for fans to discover.

There are several museum exhibits and even a cinema showing fans an exclusive Ghibli short film.

Book An Organized Tour To Ghibli Museum Tokyo With Viator

Instead of waiting for tickets to go on sale for your preferred dates, book Ghibli Museum tickets in advance through Viator. You’ll also have a brief explanation of animation in English by an expert guide before entering the museum. *This tour is no longer available!

Or opt for a Ghibli Film Appreciation tour with pick up from Tokyo, lunch at Hotel Gajoen Tokyo, entrance to the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum, before finally arriving at Ghibli Museum.

Or see more organized tours in Tokyo with Viator.

What’s The Difference Between Ghibli Museum & Ghibli Park

Ghibli Park recently opened in Nagoya, Japan in 2022. It is not the same thing as the Ghibli Museum.

Ghibli Park is more of an open-air museum with different areas inspired from the different movies. Ghibli Park also features a Grand Warehouse with a few exhibits and photo spots.

If you’re interested in going to Ghibli Park instead, read my honest review before booking any tickets!

ghiblis-grand-warehouse-disjointed-barcelona-convention-centre-ghibli-park

Buying Ghibli Museum Tickets: Reserve In Advance!

As I said, the issues with Ghibli Museum start form the moment you decide to go… and that’s because actually buying tickets is not a great experience.

You cannot show up to Ghibli Museum Tokyo and expect to buy tickets – THEY DO NOT SELL TICKETS HERE!

There’s A Date That Ghibli Museum Tickets Go On Sale

Ghibli Museum tickets go on sale about the month before on the 10th at 10:00 A.M. JST…

So if you’re booking for July, they will go on sale June 10th. I know, it’s kind of confusing.

The first issue with this is that you need to have your Japan itinerary somewhat already planned.

You also have to keep in mind that it’s 10:00 A.M. Japan time. If you’re in EST (as I am) that’s actually THE DAY BEFORE IN THE EVENING! So, let’s go over this again.

If you’re booking for July, tickets go on sale June 9th at 9:00 P.M. EST

Let’s just say, we almost missed out because it’s a very easy mistake to make.

directions-from-tokyo-to-ghibli-museum-mitaka

Ghibli Museum Tickets Are Still Not Guaranteed…

Once you’ve figured out when Ghibli Museum tickets go on sale, there’s still no guarantee you’ll actually get them.

You see, when you log on at the appropriate time to buy tickets, you’re added to a waiting room. I waited about an hour, in an online queue before I was able to buy tickets.

P.S. I recommend having a few possible dates that work to visit Studio Ghibli Museum Japan. Your preferred dates (or time) might not be available by the time you can book.

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How Expensive Are Ghibli Museum Tickets

This is the silver lining of the entire experience. Ghibli Museum tickets are fairly cheap; in 2023, they were only ¥ 1,000.

Where Is Ghibli Museum: It’s Not In The City Centre…

Now for the next struggle in the Ghibli Museum saga… actually getting there.

Although the Ghibli Museum is technically in Tokyo, it’s not near any of the main attractions in Tokyo. Ghibli Museum is in Mitaka, which is in the Greater Tokyo Metropolitan area.

We were staying just outside Shinjuku and it took us 45 minutes by public transit to get to Ghibli Museum.

Because of this, a single museum visit becomes an entire day extravaganza. We weren’t really able to do anything before or after our visit (we had a 12:00 P.M. entry time… the better time slots were already sold out by the time I was able to buy tickets…).

Getting From Tokyo To Ghibli Museum

The easiest way to get from Tokyo to Ghibli Museum is by train. There’s a JR station in the middle of Mitaka: Kichijōji Station.

From the station, it’s another 15 minute walk to the museum.

What Else Is In The Area (In Mitaka)?

Mitaka is actually in a nice suburb of Tokyo, and there are a few things to do.

But, let’s be clear, if you weren’t going to the museum, you wouldn’t be coming to Mitaka. Nothing in Mitaka is a bucket list item for Japan…

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On the way to the museum from the train station, there’s a shopping mall with local stores.

You can also stop by Mlesna Tea Tokyo for afternoon tea or Yuzo Yamamoto Memorial Museum (the house of a Japanese playwright).

Or you can walk through Inokashira Park, which is actually very nice, and you can go to the Inokashira Park Zoo.

I mean once you’re here, you might as well explore the area a bit!

shrine-in-park-mitaka-near-studio-ghibli-musuem-japan

Ghibli Museum Reviewed

Finally! We have arrived at the museum! But unfortunately, my review doesn’t get much from here on.

There are two permanent exhibits, a special exhibit, a cinema, a kids room, reading room, and a cafe at the museum.

The Best Part Was The Building Itself & Just Wandering Around

When you see the building from the outside, it’s gorgeous and everything that you could hope for in a Ghibli museum. Once you’re inside, the architecture doesn’t disappoint either.

You can get lost in here, and you kind of want to. You want to explore every inch of this place because you don’t know what you’re going to find. The amount of detail that was put in is extraordinary. From the stained glass windows, paintings, I even love the bathroom decor!

Here, I did feel like I was in the world of Ghibli.

P.S. This is what I was hoping to get from Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse in Ghibli Park… read my full review for Ghibli Park.

The Exhibits: No Added Value Or Content

Unfortunately, the good stopped at the architecture.

There are three exhibits at the Ghibli Museum, and I didn’t care for any of them!

I couldn’t understand the special exhibit even if I wanted to. It was all in Japanese, and it was about another anime, I don’t think it was even related to Ghibli (which feels like a waste of the limited space).

The two permanent exhibits were underwhelming to say the least. They were A LOT shorter than I expected and gave zero additional information. I wanted an insight into Ghibli films or backstory on some of the ideas and concepts.

Instead the first exhibit was an abstract interactive exhibit on the process of animated filmmaking. Coming from a film education background, it just felt gimmicky.

The second exhibit was Ghibli focused, but there wasn’t any additional information about what you were looking at. It was two rooms FILLED to the brim with random paraphernalia, sketches, and scripts.

Even if there was something of interest to see, I wouldn’t have been able to find it. It was such a messy room that I couldn’t appreciate any of it.

P.S. Because it’s a timed entry, you’re going into the museum with a lot of other people. I would actually go up and start with the top floor. The first exhibit was PACKED when we first walked in. We then waited an hour, explored everything else, and then it was empty!

overwhelmed-at-the-ghibli-museum — *There’s just too much! Overwhelmed by everything*

Ghibli Museum Photos Are Not Allowed

To top off my disappointment, no photos are allowed once you walk into Ghibli Museum. I’m not really sure why they’re prohibited, but I guess it’s to prevent them being leaked online and keep some of the surprise for new attendees.

As you can tell, I did try to sneak some photos for you! But I do apologize for some of the crooked shots in this post!

Zero English (Even The Exclusive Movies)

If there’s any text in the museum, it’s only in Japanese (as was the case in the Special Exhibit).

The exclusive movie is also only in Japanese which was a bit of a disappointment. I’m not expecting the movie to be dubbed, but if they could at least provide a print out of the synopsis to understand the general story

The worst part is that no one tells you beforehand you will have to sit through a 15 minute movie in a language you don’t understand.

the-small-details-of-ghibli-museum-stain-glass-windows

It was just upsetting because the movie looked beyond enchanting (as Ghibli movies are) and I would have loved to understand the story behind it.

How Long Can You Spend At the Museum?

We actually ended up spending just over 2 hours at Ghibli Museum Tokyo.

As I said, the exhibits aren’t long. But wandering through the museum itself is magical. We even stopped for a small snack break at the Straw Hat Cafe (the food isn’t themed though. – another completely missed opportunity!).

And we might have spent a bit too long at the gift shop (which doesn’t have as much exclusive content I was hoping compared to other Ghibli stores).

I think we also felt we had to hang around because it took an hour just to get there (and we still had an hour-long excursion back to Tokyo).

So Is Ghibli Museum Worth It?

If you only have a few days in Tokyo, I think there are so many better things to explore in the city. Even if you’re the biggest Studio Ghibli fan.

P.S. Check out my fundamental list of things to do in Japan for any first time visit.

The Ghibli Museum just fell short in so many ways, leaving me disappointed. Not to mention the stress and hassle it took just to get there, it really wasn’t worth it.

I felt like there should have been a lot more to the museum than there actually was (especially based on the size of the building – it’s massive). Most of the building was taken up by kids’ play rooms and administration offices.

creepy-cats-looking-out-of-the-window-ghibli-museum

Took Up A Lot Of Time (An Entire Day!) For Not A Lot Of Gain

At the end of the day, the museum is an entire day affair that I don’t think is worth it. If the museum was in downtown Tokyo, and there were some other must-do things in the area, it would be a different story.

I just didn’t feel as though I learned anything new about Studio Ghibli that day, which is what I was hoping for.

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Alternative: Book A Studio Ghibli Museum Japan Tour

You can actually solve most of the problems with the Ghibli Museum Tokyo by spending more money (yay!).

But seriously, the Insights Into Ghibli tour from Viator removes the complete hassle and stress of buying tickets. You’re guaranteed tickets when you book this tour (so it’s also a good back up option if you did really want to go, but the museum is sold out on your dates!). Well… used to be, this tour is no longer available as of May 2024…

Or, this tour on Viator also takes care of the annoyance of getting to the Ghibli Museum. The tour picks you up in downtown Tokyo, and takes you on an air conditioned bus to the museum.

On top of that, you’re touring with a knowledgeable guide (who also knows Japanese). So this might even solve the translation issues, and not getting enough value out of the museum for lack of knowing any Japanese. But they also might just give you additional information about Ghibli, instead of just hopelessly walking around the museum.

Book An Organized Tour To Ghibli Museum Tokyo With Viator

Or see more organized tours in Tokyo with Viator.

Looking For A Hotel In Tokyo?

We stayed at the Mitsui Garden Hotel Ginza Premier. We chose it because it was slightly larger than most hotels in Tokyo, and it was the same price. It isn’t in any major neighbourhood, but it was a quick walk to either the JR line or the subway. Check it out on Booking.com.

Alternatively, if you’re looking at staying in one of the happening neighbourhoods, we had booked the Hotel Gracery in Shinjuku originally based on my cousins recommendation. You’re really in the heart of Shinjuku at this hotel. Check it out on Booking.com.