Which side do you fall on?

Which would you say is more popular in Japan, Tokyo Disneyland or Universal Studios Japan? All signs would seem to point to Disney, seeing as they’ve got one extra park over USJ, and have countless seasonal foods, events and parades to keep everything fresh and exciting. But USJ is no weak contender either; with its regular rotation of cool anime and video game attractions, its Harry Potter World, and its upcoming Super Nintendo World, we’re hard pressed to say which is better.

But Japanese theme park fans definitely have their favorite, and the preference may actually be regional. Between September 22, 2019 and April 28, 2020, news and information site J-Town Net asked 1,186 people from across Japan whether they liked Tokyo Disneyland or Universal Studios Japan better, and the results indicated a pretty sharp national divide between eastern Japan and western Japan.

▼ A map reflecting which theme park was preferred by the majority of respondents from each prefecture (red for Disney, blue for USJ, and white for prefectures where USJ and Disney were evenly matched)

On a national scale, Disney seemed to win by a small margin, earning 56.8 percent of the votes. But as you can see, most of the people who like Disney seem live in the east, while the USJ fans seem to live primarily in the west. Respondents from 16 prefectures in eastern Japan prefer Disney, and only four USJ, while in the west, 13 prefectures prefer USJ, though Disney puts up a good fight, as it seems to have captured the hearts of seven western prefectures.

▼ Universal Studios Japan

Put in percentages, of the respondents from eastern Japan, 61.4 percent preferred Tokyo Disney and 38.6 USJ. In contrast, 56.4 percent of respondents from western Japan said they liked USJ, as opposed to the 43.6 percent of respondents who liked Disney. It’s a fairly sensible result, given that USJ is in Osaka in western Japan, and Disney is just outside of Tokyo, more to the east. Perhaps the proximity of the theme park increases its appeal for visitors. 

The results are similar if you look at the particular prefectures each park is in. Respondents from Chiba prefecture, where Tokyo Disneyland is, overwhelmingly preferred Disney (80 percent), while those in Osaka tended to vote for USJ (69 percent).

▼ Tokyo Disneyland parade

As for why the respondents preferred one over the other, the poll didn’t ask. But for that, we can turn to Twitter:

“Personally I think USJ is way more fun than Tokyo Disney. Their 3-D technology is amazing. Plus all the rides are fun.”
“I like Disney Resort better than USJ. USJ doesn’t have any characters I like so I don’t feel any desire to ride the rides.”
“USJ has more rides than Disney. I like the other attractions, too. Does anyone agree?”
“Disney’s cast is so much more amazing, and you can’t see the outside world from inside the park. The food is cheaper and better too, so I wish I lived closer to Disney.”

So what do you think: Tokyo Disneyland or Universal Studios Japan? Have you been to both? If so, which one do you like more? We like them both, and though they’re both currently closed for the safety of the public, we can’t wait to head back when they open up again!

Source: J-Town Net via Nico Nico News via My Game News Flash
Top image: SoraNews24
Insert images: D-Maps..com (edited by SoraNews24), SoraNews24