Tokyo Disneyland Celebrates 40th Anniversary

Jiji Press

10:58 JST, April 16, 2023

URAYASU, Chiba (Jiji Press) — Tokyo Disneyland on Saturday celebrated its 40th anniversary since its 1983 opening.

Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters celebrated the milestone at a special event held Saturday morning at the theme park in the city of Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture.

The event was preceded by a ceremony that brought together Toshio Kagami, chairman of Oriental Land Co., the operator of Tokyo Disneyland, and Robert Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Co.

Kagami voiced his gratitude to those supporting the theme park over the years.

“The 40th anniversary celebrations are the beginning of the next chapter in our story,” Iger said.

Despite the heavy rain from early Saturday, visitors formed long lines outside the theme park before the facility opened its gate for the day.

“The first time I visited here was around when I was an elementary school first grader,” said a woman in her 40s from the city of Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture.

“I’m filled with happiness whenever I visit Disneyland,” she said, adding that she wants to visit the park on its 50th and 100th anniversaries as well.

To mark the 40th anniversary, Tokyo Disneyland has launched a new parade featuring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and other popular characters.

Limited-edition goods are also available at stores, as are special food menus at restaurants.

Tokyo Disneyland has been a popular theme park since its opening. It gained an additional boost from its sister park, Tokyo DisneySea, which opened in 2001.

Revenue at Tokyo Disneyland took a plunge in fiscal 2020 due to the temporary shutdown caused by the novel coronavirus crisis. But the park made a raid recovery once the COVID-19 infection situation calmed down.

The total number of visitors to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea exceeded 800 million in February 2022.