As most of the world slowly pries itself out of the grip of current events, people are beginning to move back towards the activities they’ve missed out on for so long. Given that summer’s just begun, outdoor activities are on a lot of people’s lists, including heading out to their favorite amusement parks for a day of fun. And while the West gets the old reliable gamut of amusement parks, Japan has yet another feather in its cap alongside the opening of Super Nintendo World: Ghibli Park.
While the park was officially announced in 2017, we’re finally getting a better look at the park’s appearance and attractions as it gets closer to the park’s opening date of Fall 2022.
The park will be housed within Aichi Expo Memorial Park. It’s a fitting choice, as Ghibli movies are all about nature and respecting the environment. It’s also nice to see them making use of the park’s natural environment, instead of clearing out new land to make the park possible. The park will be split into five sections, as seen in the map above. From the top, we have:
- Hill of Youth (yellow): Contains the rotary plaza from Whisper of the Heart and a miniature version of the cat office from The Cat Returns.
- Mononoke Village (green): Offers working iron bellows that guests can operate, along with a charcoal burners shop.
- Witch’s Valley (red): Contains recreations of Kiki’s (Kiki’s Delivery Service) childhood home, as well as her room above Osono’s bakery.
- Dondoko Forest (purple): Also known as Totoro’s Forest, attractions here will include recreations of settings from My Neighbor Totoro.
- Ghibli’s Giant Warehouse (pink): While it may look like a smaller attraction on the map, this section of the park plans to live up to its name by offering a Totoro themed playroom complete with Catbus, a section dedicated to making guests feel like they’re a part of The Secret World of Arrietty, and a twenty-foot long replica of an airship from Castle In The Sky.
While we’re sure the final look of the park is subject to change, looking at the concept art really drives home how much Studio Ghibli is investing in this park, and how much of it is a love letter to fans around the world. The environments may be totally different, but they all carry lightness and vibrancy that just makes you happy looking at them. Not to mention thinking of how those lucky first guests will be in utter awe of the space and how it’s being used.
There’s no word on food or merch offerings just yet. But with the effort we’ve seen being put into Super Mario World as well as the Ghibli Museum, there’s no doubt that the food will be both cute and delicious and the merch will be high quality. The only caveat to the park’s opening is that not all attractions will be available. Ghibli’s Giant Warehouse, Dondoko Forest, and the Hill of Youth will be ready for guests at the opening. Witch’s Valley and Monoke Village won’t be ready for guests until 2023.
Until then, we’ll be waiting with anticipation and envy for this park to open, even as we watch its progress with great interest. Where would you go first if you had tickets to Ghibli Park? Let us know on Twitter!
Source: SoraNews 24
