of all the plans we had while we in japan, the one i was most excited about was going to play at one of tokyo's disney parks. i started my disney journey when i was fifteen, in america when mum and i ventured across country to do both coasts' disney-themed parks. back then, i was too cool to be at a childish theme park with my mother; now, i am anything but. since then i've also ticked disneyland paris off the list, leaving only the parks in the asian countries to go. so, while in japan, it had to be done. i'm now 33, and this is how to do a disney park in your thirties...
dress the part
for starters, you simply can't visit the disney park of your choice without putting some serious thought into your outfit. not necessarily "costume" (most parks don't allow it anyway), but when you walk through those golden gates, you want to make sure you look the part. whether you choose to disneybound as your favourite character, or just load up on merchandise that makes you feel like you can rule the magical kingdom, you don't want to miss out on the opportunity to show some love for your favourite character.
for me, i wanted to pay homage to my personal fave: daisy duck. pink glitter bow from daiso in the hair, pink shoes from love the sales on the feet, and white dress that i found on everything 5 pounds a couple of months ago and made everyone buy because - it was perfect for our trip. i did have a purple cardi with me to pull the whole daisy aesthetic together, but the day we went it was pretty chilly so i swapped purple for metallic and wore the biker jacket instead. a true disney fan really can't have missed the daisy resemblance, and it absolutely contributed to my overall experience.
go on all the rides aimed at children
secondly, don't let the "suggested height" signs be your guide when it comes to choosing your ride. just because a ride is aimed at a certain audience that you may not be part of, it doesn't mean it's restricted to only them; not everyone is a real ride-goer anyway, and it was no different for us. we lined up for almost an hour for a two-minute "adult ride" (indiana jones' temple of doom, because it's awesome and i will always line up for it), but never more than twenty minutes for both jasmin's carpet ride and flounder's flying fish coaster - both of which were excellent fun and not at all scary.
by choosing less-threatening rides, we were sure to leave the park grinning like loons, rather than shaking like leaves. it also meant we left with some patience in tact, which is always a blessing after a day spent in a theme park targeted at children...
live your best life
and lastly, remember this: you only live once, so you might as well have fun while you're at. every one of the disney parks is designed to bring your wildest dreams to life, and they absolutely do deliver on that. the architecture, the food, the rides and the characters are all encompassing - they're everywhere you look, and they remind you at every turn that you're in a fantasy world; nothing is to be taken too seriously (except health and safety, obvs), so why should you let your age be a factor in you enjoying your day?
have you been to a disney park as an adult? what are your tips for enjoying yourself despite your age?
