Skip to main content
In depth
ghibli park ghiblis grand warehouse

Studio Ghibli theme park: everything you need to know

Studio Ghibli‘s theme park in Japan is based on anime films such as My Neighbor Totoro.

Studio Ghibli, the animation house responsible for anime classics My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke, announced plans for Ghibli Park in 2017. As well as the aforementioned films, Japan’s new theme park features attractions based on Kiki’s Delivery Service, Spirited Away, and Castle in the Sky.

Located in the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park, the theme park is estimated to have an annual economic impact of $324 million. It is expected to welcome around one million visitors annually with the opening of the first three sections, and approximately 1.8 million when all five areas are open.

Keep reading for everything you need to know about the new Studio Ghibli theme park, including attractions, inspiration, location and cost.

When did the anime theme park open?

studio ghibli theme park

The Studio Ghibli theme park opened on November 1, 2022. Guests can see three of the five themed lands – Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse, Dondoko Forest and Hill of Youth. Mononoke Village and Valley of Witches are due to launch in fall 2023 and March 2024, respectively. Aichi governor Hideaki Omura and Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki‘s son Goro Miyazaki welcomed the venue’s first visitors.

Speaking at a press event ahead of the launch, Omura said Ghibli Park had taken “five years and five months” to complete (via Lifestyle Asia). Goro Miyazaki said the destination was originally designed before his father’s retirement. “We didn’t want people to forget Ghibli’s works,” he said. “But we were betrayed again. He’s making a feature film now!”

Ghibli Park was initially set to open in 2020. It was revealed in July 2020 that the attraction had resumed construction following a temporary suspension. “We are still on track and are planning to open the park in fall 2022,” Omura confirmed at the time.

studio ghibli theme park

Building work on Ghibli Park started in early 2020. Then, it paused temporarily in response to the pandemic. Work soon resumed and started on Hill of Youth, Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse and Dondoko Forest.

Studio Ghibli held a groundbreaking ceremony in summer 2020. Its chairman Kiyofumi Nakajima was in attendance. At the event, Omura said: “The 2005 Expo’s theme of ‘love’ has also been portrayed in Studio Ghibli’s films consistently, so we can inherit that philosophy. We aim to make the facility a world-class park and hope many people will visit here.”

Where is the Studio Ghibli theme park located?

ghibli park ghiblis grand warehouse

The Studio Ghibli theme park can be found on 7.1 hectares of land within the former site of the 2005 World Expo. It is located in Nagakute close to Nagoya, the capital of Japan’s Aichi Prefecture.

The land already featured a replica of Satsuki and Mei’s house from Studio Ghibli film My Neighbor Totoro, made for the World Expo. Developers maintained the house for the new experience.

What anime attractions feature at Ghibli Park?

ghibli park ghiblis grand warehouse

Unlike attractions such as Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo DisneySea and Universal Studios Japan, Ghibli Park has no rides or coasters. Ahead of the launch, Studio Ghibli launched the park’s official website. “Ghibli Park is a park that represents the world of Studio Ghibli,” it says. “There are no big attractions or rides in Ghibli Park. Take a stroll, feel the wind, and discover the wonders.”

As above, the Studio Ghibli theme park is separated into five themed landsGhibli’s Grand Warehouse, Dondoko Forest, Mononoke Village, Hill of Youth and Valley of Witches.

Themed lands

ghiblis grand warehouse

Hill of Youth is based on Howl’s Moving Castle, complete with a giant elevator offering views from above. It is located at the park’s entrance. Here, visitors can shop at the gift shop from Whisper of the Heart, and see elements from The Cat Returns.

Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse is “a large warehouse full of Ghibli secrets”, home to “exhibitions of works, rooms where children can play, video exhibition rooms, cafes and shops”.

At Dondoko Forest, visitors will “enter the world of My Neighbor Totoro at Satsuki and Mei’s house”. The surrounding area serves as the rural landscape from the film.

no face spirited away

Mononoke Village will be a Princess Mononoke-style area. It is inspired by the film’s setting of Irontown (Tatara), which is protected by a lake and high walls. It will house a sculpture of a Tatarigami spirit monster, the boar god Lord Okkoto and more mystical creatures. The land will transport visitors back to the Muromachi period (1336 – 1573) when the film is set.

Valley of Witches takes inspiration from the wastelands in Kiki’s Delivery Service and Howl’s Moving Castle. The land will include restaurants and amusement facilities. There will also be a replica of Karikiya, the home of Kiki and her parents.

Life-size Howl’s Moving Castle

howl's moving castle

The park’s Valley of Witches area will include a life-size Howl’s Moving Castle, which can be seen in the concept art above. The castle will have four to five storeys. However, it won’t actually move and it will be slightly smaller than the building in the film, reports Tokyo Shimbun (via Kotaku).

My Neighbor Totoro-themed playground

ghiblis grand warehouse

Concept art and information about the My Neighbor Totoro-themed playground at Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse was released in summer 2021. The playground includes the replica of Satsuki and Mei’s house, as well as a giant camphor tree and redesigned Catbus.

Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse is an indoor area of the park with a small cinema, shops, cafés and immersive exhibits. Cinema Orion screens 10 short animation films produced by Studio Ghibli. Until now, these were only shown at the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka.

Highlights at Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse also include the train from Spirited Away, where guests can sit next to No-Face. Additionally, this land boasts an expanded version of the Ghibli Museum’s ‘Drawing Eating’ exhibition.

Castle in the Sky-style entrance

studio ghibli park elevator tower entrance

Ghibli Park also has a Castle in the Sky-style elevator tower entrance, which opened to the public ahead of the theme park. Studio Ghibli said it is “based on the fantasy science world at the end of the 19th century, which became the model of the world of Castle in the Sky“.

Getting around Ghibli Park

ghiblis grand warehouse

It was reported in early 2023 that Ghibli Park is developing a real-life My Neighbor Totoro-inspired ‘Catbus’ for visitors to ride. Japanese car manufacturer Toyota is building the fleet of eco-friendly Catbus-themed electric vehicles, according to Livedoor News (via SoraNews24).

Toyota’s APM (Accessible People Mover), originally developed for the Tokyo Olympics, will be the base for the EV Catbuses. Six of these electric vehicles, featuring special wrapping, will carry six passengers at a time across the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park. The new Catbuses are expected to debut at Ghibli Park in 2023.

Museum exhibit with items from Ghibli Park

ghibli park

Before Studio Ghibli’s theme park opened, the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art showcased items from the attraction. The themed exhibit served as a final preview of some of the park’s contents before they made their way to Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse. It also explored Studio Ghibli’s 35-year history, in addition to displaying previously unreleased material.

In addition, the exhibit brought back content shown in earlier Studio Ghibli exhibits. The first of these ran in 2015 at Moricoro Park before touring Japan and Seoul. The previous exhibits displayed memorabilia such as artwork, memos, and film posters.

Ghibli Park’s colourful ‘Cattrain’ trailer

Before the opening, the new Studio Ghibli theme park released a colourful trailer directed and animated by Hayao Miyazaki that stars a My Neighbor Totoro-style ‘Cattrain’, much like the film’s Catbus.

The video, which you can see above, features several characters from Studio Ghibli’s films. These include Totoro and Mei from My Neighbor Totoro and the Radish Spirit and No-Face in Spirited Away.

The trailer is an adaptation of an animated video by Miyazaki for the launch of the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Japan in 2001. It offers music by Studio Ghibli composer Joe Hisaishi and narration by Toshio Suzuki, co-founder and former president of the animation company.

Immersing visitors in nature

ghibli park

Ghibli Park is an environmentally friendly theme park. Studio Ghibli will not cut down any trees to make room for future attractions. During construction, the team enhanced and preserved any natural areas.

Studio Ghibli’s theme park celebrates the natural beauty that inspired the company’s lush animation, with nature trails lined with statues of spiders, boars and other Ghibli characters. There are plenty of natural, untouched spaces, like the settings of many Ghibli films.

Instead of thrill rides and coasters, Ghibli Park focuses on immersing visitors in the worlds of Studio Ghibli. The park even limits daily attendance within each of its themed lands to improve the guest experience and protect the park and its environment.

Tickets to the Studio Ghibli theme park

studio ghibli theme park

Ghibli Park announced the ticket prices for three of its five themed lands – Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse, Dondoko Forest and Hill of Youth – in May 2022. Entry to Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse on weekdays costs 2,000 yen ($16) for adults and 1,000 yen ($8) for children aged between four and 12 years old. On weekends and holidays, entry to Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse is 2,500 yen ($19) for adults and 1,250 yen ($10) for children.

Tickets to Dondoko Forest and Hill of Youth costs 1,000 yen ($8) for adults and 500 yen ($4) for children on weekdays, weekends and holidays. Children under three years old receive free admission. In comparison, tickets to Tokyo Disneyland and Universal Studios Japan are priced at up to $80 per person. However, Ghibli Park is a smaller venue without big attractions and rides, as above.

Share this

Bea Mitchell

Bea is a journalist specialising in entertainment, attractions and tech with 10 years' experience. She has written and edited for publications including CNET, BuzzFeed, Digital Spy, Evening Standard and BBC. Bea graduated from King's College London and has an MA in journalism.

More from this author

More from this author

Related content

Your web browser is out of date. Update your browser for more security, speed and the best experience on this site.

Find out how to update