Studio Ghibli's Mysteries | Japan Travels

My advice to people wishing to see Studio Ghibli is simply this: you gotta make it your main gig! Any of those "only if we have time" nonsense does not apply to Studio Ghibli. It's either you do not want to see it at all, or you want to see it so badly you reserve your tickets 2 months prior (seriously)! You do not want to end up at a pity party outside like... some of us.

When my friends and I rocked up to the museum one afternoon, a friendly usher approached us asking where our tickets were. Clearly understanding we had none in possession, he apologized and told us there were no tickets left that day. He instructed us to pre-purchase our tickets at a Lawson Convenience Store and come back another day. Did he make it sound simple or what? Later we find out just what a barefaced understatement everything he said was! Let's just say he forgot to mention another day meant sometime 2 months down the line.

Studio Ghibli simply isn't for the casual traveller. It leans more towards fans - not so much the hardcore kind - but ones who love it enough they would be prepared to work their schedule around it. It actually isn't so much of a big deal considering Studio Ghibli is just outside of Tokyo, where most people would be staying for a chunk of their time anyway. So while sight-seeing in Tokyo, this would naturally just be another one of those sights to see.

The tickets can be pre-purchased at your local JTB Agency (in your country) or at a Lawson Convenience Store (if you're in Japan early enough). Studio Ghibli tickets only sold for 1,000 yen ($10) which actually is a lot cheaper than expected. Tickets for any given day become available two months in advance and on each ticket will be a scheduled time of entry. These specific time details, I guess, is what I meant by working your schedule around Studio Ghibli. For example, while planning our trip to Japan, my friends and I only bought our plane tickets a month before departure, so we never really prioritized Studio Ghibli tickets until it was too late. It's these stages in planning that could potentially make it hard to purchase these tickets.

JR Pass Gate: Totoro there to guide you.

So while my friends and I never got to experience whatever was inside that mysterious museum, the creativity of Studio Ghibli just could not be contained within. What we saw from the outside was still worth the trip. No cameras were allowed inside, so a lot of these pictures are pretty much what anyone is going away with (in terms of photographs).

Totoro Bus Stop

Getting to Studio Ghibli is a total cakewalk! From Shinjuku Station make your way to Mitaka Station. Follow the signs and it should lead you to this really cute Totoro Bus Stop (picture above)! A bright yellow bus with all the Totoro critters should come and pick you up. It's not quite the Cat Bus I expected, but it's still pretty awesome! Take note: near the bus stop there is a small machine where you will have to buy tickets for this bus.

The Totoro Critter Bus, Mitaka Station

It was summer when we went to Japan so the weather was absolutely boiling and humid but the moment we got off the Studio Ghibli Bus Stop in Mitaka, everything felt a lot different. The atmosphere was much cooler, quieter and refreshing! Mitaka is still in the fringes of Tokyo, but the difference in the air was considerable. I'm not sure whether it's because I'm from New Zealand, but something about seeing more vegetation in the cityscape made it seem very homely to me.

Studio Ghibli Gates

As we walked, apparently at the wrong end of the gates, the first thing we spotted was an enormous Totoro. How symbolic that it was behind the window - like it was there to spite us for not having tickets to get inside. Damn you cute and cuddly Totoro! And can I just mention how clever of them to put the Totoro behind a glass? Because I know it, and everyone else knows it, that if Totoro was out in the open, the hugs would be constant! It's kind of sadistic in a way - like, how could they let us know a life-size Totoro exists and yet we can't give him da loves? But yes, I get it. We can't have someone with bad body odour rubbing up against this sacred thing.

Outdoor Ticket Counter

As we made our way near the entrance of the museum we saw the main building. It had concrete walls covered with climbing plants and if you look closely at the picture (below), it almost looked like a waterfall with mossy cliff sides. Everything about it felt so antique and forgotten (and damn inviting). The windows had different shapes which seemed very childlike at first but the unconventional uniformity of those windows made it feel so eccentric and out of this world. You just don’t see that every day – or anywhere for that matter. Whisking the imagination away like that is such a Studio Ghibli signature.

Studio Ghibli Museum Building

The detail from the outside was so impressive we were left in awe just thinking about what other creative plethora of things are inside. How close were we, and yet felt like a million miles away? We inched nearer to the closed doors which stood so firm and resolute in its one and only job - to keep us ticketless people out. And this is what we saw:

Stained Glass Features of the Studio Ghibli Museum Entrance Doors

Stained Glass. It was so beautiful. 

There is also a bird-cage pavilion up on the roof which looked to be accessible by a set of stairs that lead up to it. There isn't much to say except people looked down at us condescendingly from above probably saying those unlucky ticketletss fools are so pitiful to look at right now. No they wouldn't :P... or would they?

The Look Out post

Despite not having seen what was inside the museum, our trip to Studio Ghibli was very pleasant. In a way it was also nice to get away from the hot and crowded Tokyo City for a few hours. 

So before you make plans to go to Studio Ghibli, make sure you book your tickets as early as possible! It would save you all this regret I have right now :P. I promise I'll go back there one day, with a ticket in hand and write about all the amazing things I've seen inside!

Peaces :)

Vintage Sign Posts in Studio Ghibli