Anne Sutherland-Smith 
There is a great mix of speciality shops and more general merchandise shops at Universal Studios Japan. Many of the shops are near the entrance to Universal Studios Japan. There are also merchandise stands throughout the park. Speciality Shops Some of the speciality shops are linked to particular characters such as Hello Kitty, Minions, Minion Unicorn, … Read more
USJ tickets can be bought when you arrive at Universal Studios Japan. However, unless you love queuing, our pro tip is to buy your tickets online ahead of time. You can buy your tickets through the USJ booking site but it’s quicker and easier to buy them through a reputable online travel agency. What is … Read more
How Does an Express Pass Work? The Express Pass ticket can be printed out and includes details of the attractions included, timed entry ride details, conditions associated with the pass, and QR codes. Not all rides on the express pass have a timed entry window. The time windows for timed window rides are automatically generated. … Read more
This will sound like a bit of a cop-out, but whether an Express Pass is worth it is a highly individual decision based on your personal preferences. When travelling everyone has to balance saving money versus saving time. Let’s look a bit more closely at money versus time. Money One side of the balance scale … Read more
While I strongly recommend buying an Express Pass because they save so much time and therefore make your life easier, there are other ways to save time at USJ. Here are a number of other ways to save time. Buy your tickets ahead of time If you buy your Studio Pass ahead of time through … Read more
People typically arrive into Osaka at either Shin-Osaka Station, Osaka Station, Namba Station, Nishikujo Station, Nipponbashi Station or Shinsaibashi Station. You can use the Hyperdia website or Google Maps to work out train schedule and route options from each of these stations. You should expect to change trains 2-3 times before getting to Universal City … Read more
When we first visited USJ we did it as a day trip from Kyoto. It was a very long day with an early start, but it meant we didn’t have to move to another hotel. Travel time from Kyoto Station to Universal City Station is about 45-55 minutes and you have to use 3 or … Read more
Universal Studios Japan is located about 500 km (315 miles) west of Tokyo and it takes 3 to 3:30 hours to get from Tokyo Station to Universal Station. You can catch a bullet train from Tokyo Station to either Shin-Osaka Station or Osaka Station, and then change to local trains to get to Universal City Station. … Read more
There are three main ways to get from Kansai Airport to Universal Studios Japan. The main transfer options are as follows: Catch the train from Kansai International Airport Station to Universal City station. The trip will take about 60 minutes and you will have to catch three different trains. From our experience, this can be challenging … Read more
When you start planning your trip to Japan a key question for most travellers is whether you need to buy a Japan Rail JR Pass and what is the cheapest option. If you search in Google for Japan Rail Passes you are immediately inundated with many websites advertising themselves as the best place to buy … Read more