This is the news fans of Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Princess Mononoke and other fantastical creatures invented by animation genius Hayao Miyazaki have been waiting for.
Reservations for the park dedicated to Studio Ghibli, in Japan, have been open since yesterday.
But it is not really enough to enter your credit card number to win the Grail.
The first visitors will be drawn by lot, after registration on the park's website before August 22.
The results of the lottery will be revealed on September 10, the date from which the classic reservation process will begin, on a first-come, first-served basis.
If registration for the draw is free, the biggest obstacle will be to manage to decipher the form, for the time being only in Japanese...
To discover
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"Ghibli Park", that's its name, will open its doors on November 1, 2022, and will therefore be devoted to the universe of Japanese studios, populated by flying machines, wacky old men and not shy heroines evolving in an enchanted nature. .
By nature, the park will be surrounded by it since it is set up on a 7-hectare site in the middle of the Aichi forest, near Nagoya, two hours by train from Kyoto.
Only part of it will be visible in the fall, two of the five thematic areas not yet being finalized.
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The first visitors will still be able to discover three of them, including the main one: the “Ghibli Grand Warehouse” (which could be translated as “the great Ghibli workshop”).
They will come across characters among the most famous of the Japanese studio: the Chatbus from
My Neighbor Totoro
, the Robot Soldier from the
Castle in the Sky
and reproductions from
Arrietty: The Little World of Pilferers
.
The second zone will be called “Hill of Youth” (or “Colline de la Jeunesse”) and will be dedicated to the lesser known universes
Si tu tend l'oreille
and
Le Royaume des Chats.
The third, finally, "Dondoko Forest" (or "The Forest of Dondoko") will house a reproduction of the bucolic house of Satsuki and Mei, the two children of
My Neighbor Totoro
, as well as a movie-themed play area.
The two districts that will open later are the "Mononoke Village", dedicated to the eponymous film, and the "Valley of Witches" ("the Valley of the Witches"), dedicated to Howl's
Moving Castle
and
Kiki's Delivery Service.
In the “Dondoko Forest” area, visitors can discover a reproduction of Satsuki and Mei's house, in
My Neighbor Totoro.
Ghibli Park / Photo press
A theme park rather than an amusement park
Will this park be the Disney of Japanese animation?
At first, not at all.
The official site – quite reduced – says it explicitly:
“Here, no big attractions or big rides”
.
Rather, the visitor will be invited to
“walk, feel the wind, discover the wonders”
in a place
“in harmony with the surrounding forest
”.
We therefore imagine an immersive park, offering a dive into the world of Japanese studios and their manufacturing secrets, rather than an alignment of roller coasters.
So much the better !
Once tickets go on sale, online booking will be mandatory.
Impossible to buy a ticket on the spot.
There will also not be a global entry offering access to the entire park, but a different ticket per zone, the most expensive being, logically, the Ghibli Warehouse.
It will cost 2000 yen (15 euros) for an adult, 1000 yen (7.50 euros) for a child.
A very slightly higher price (19 and 9 €) at weekends and on public holidays.
Uncertainty remains: will Japan be open to international tourists in November?
For the time being, only organized trips are possible on the archipelago and a visa is required for French tourists.
According to observers, the return to normal could occur between September and December.
What give reason to hope.
The future Mononoke Village.
Ghibli Park / Photo press
