Universal Studios Osaka – A Complete Guide for 2025

Universal Studios Osaka is one of Japan’s most popular and loved theme parks, offering a great mix of rides, live shows and immersive experiences that cater to visitors of all ages. It’s located in the Osaka Bay Area and is easily accessible for tourists visiting both Osaka and Kyoto.

This guide provides everything you need to know to get started with planning your trip. From getting to Universal Studios from Osaka, an overview of the rides, and how to make the most of your trip. Planning is a lot less complicated than it initially seems!

Whether you’re visiting as a solo traveller, a couple, or a family with young children, this guide will help you have an incredible experience at the park! Want to know more about our three week Japan Travel Itinerary, have a read of our detailed blog with our route and cost breakdowns.

Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Osaka

Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Osaka is an absolute dream for Mario fans – it’s like stepping straight into the game and the nostalgia is everywhere. You can race through Bowser’s Castle on Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge or ride Yoshi on a cute, chilled-out adventure giving great views of the park. Mine Cart Madness lets you blast through the jungle in true Donkey Kong style. The whole place is bursting with colour, music, and interactive fun. There’s also Kinopio’s Café (aka Toad’s Café) where you can grab some fun themed food (that is surprisingly reasonably priced), and the 1-Up Factory shop is great to pick up some Mario merch.

Now for the bad news… it is incredibly popular. So popular in fact that it is often closed to anyone without a timed entry slot.

Things to consider if you want to visit Super Nintendo World:

• The area is open to everyone up until the point it reaches capacity (this is usually around 10 minutes after opening)
• Don’t worry, once you are in the park you can log onto the usj app and reserve a timed entry slot.
• Beware these do run out quickly, so make it a priority when you arrive.
• The park often opens around 7:30 which is earlier than advertised. We got there at 6:30 and were in the park at 7:30
• If you want to ride one of the Nintendo Rides but don’t have an Express Pass, head there as quickly as possible in the morning. We rode Yoshi’s Adventure when the queue was only 20 minutes long at around 8am.
• If you want to eat in Toad’s Cafe, you need to scan the QR code outside the building and book a reservation. Do this when you arrive at Nintendo World, ideally en route to a ride queue! The menu is the same throughout the day (so we had burgers and spaghetti for breakfast..!)
• Be aware that queue times can be over two hours, so Express Passes are worth considering if you have kids (see below)

Universal Studios Osaka – Express Pass

Universal Studios Japan offers two main types of Express Pass:

• Express Pass 4: Skip the lines for four attractions. Plus timed entry for Nintendo World and/or Harry Potter.

• Express Pass 7: Skip the lines for seven attractions. Plus timed entry for Nintendo World and Harry Potter.

Both passes are designed to help you make the most of your day by reducing wait times for popular rides. However, the specific attractions included can vary depending on the pass type and availability. The queues at Universal Studios Osaka are long, if you want to make the absolute most of your day there, you should consider getting one of these passes.​

Express Pass 4: The Essentials

Ideal for those who want to experience key attractions but are on a budget. Having a pre-arranged timed entry into Nintendo World can reduce stress levels (and mean you don’t have to get to the park mega early). Be sure to check the specific attractions covered when purchasing your pass. If you have left booking to the last minute, you may be limited in what passes are available.

We bought two of the Express Pass 4​ (it was all that was available when our last-minute-selves decided to look).

It included:

• Timed entry into Nintendo World and a fast pass for the Mario Karts ride
• Timed entry to Harry Potter and a fast pass for Forbidden Journey.
• Fast pass for the Minions ride.
• Fast pass for Jaws.

We had no choice in what rides were included, this was the only pass available. Booking last minute with a third party provider was not the budget friendly way to do it!

Express Pass 7: The Ultimate Experience

Perfect for visitors aiming to cover as much ground as possible. This pass typically includes timed entry to both Super Nintendo World and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, along with access to seven top attractions. It’s the go-to choice for those who want a full USJ experience.

My brother and his family were much more organised and bought two of the Express pass 7 well in advance. They actually paid less than we paid for the Express pass 4!

Their passes included:

• Timed entry to Nintendo World with fast passes for the three rides there (Mario Kart, Donkey Kong, Yoshi)
• Timed entry to Harry Potter with fast passes for the two rides there (Forbidden journey and flight of the hippogriff)
• Fast pass for Flying Dinosaur (probably the best ride in the park, both the normal queue and single rider queue were 2 hours + all day..)
• Fast pass for Jaws.

If you have the budget to get the Express Pass 7, it will make your day a lot more enjoyable. Especially if you have kids like mine who get very restless waiting around in queues.

Guest Support Pass

For guests with disabilities that prevent them queueing for long periods of time, the guest support pass can help. Essentially you turn up to a ride and get a signed bit of paper which basically holds your place in the queue to return later on. You can only do one of these at a time. (unfortunately you can’t queue for multiple rides simultaneously!)

The park also offers a dedicated map called a ‘support book’  detailing resources for those with additional needs.

Rides at Universal Studios Osaka

Universal Studios Osaka has a wide variety of rides and attractions and there’s something for everyone – from young children to thrill seekers. There’s also live performances such as WaterWorld and our favourite, Sing on Tour! (Our baby was absolutely buzzing throughout the whole show!)

Park Areas

The park has lots of exciting themed areas, suitable for different ages and interests:

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

You get to walk through Hogsmeade, try butter beer (it’s not great..) and ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey (one of my favourite rides). Flight of the Hippogriff is a bit meh, a typical small rollercoaster that will be exciting for little ones.

Nintendo World 

The most popular area in the park as mentioned above. Have a plan if you want to visit here.

Minion Park 

A cute area featuring Despicable Me. We really enjoyed the Minion Mayhem ride (but it did feel like the visuals could do with an upgrade).

Jurassic Park 

Fun for any dinosaur loving little ones. We saw lots of “live” dinosaurs walking about. The Flying Dinosaur is probably the most thrilling ride in the park.

Universal Wonderland 

A family-friendly area featuring characters from Snoopy, Sesame Street, and Hello Kitty. There is a fun indoor play area at the back of this part.

Hollywood

Home to a high-speed roller coaster that offers a backward-riding option. The queue was too long for us to try it out. If you already have access to Nintendo, this would be a good one to head straight to in the morning.

Ride height restrictions

Obviously many of the rides have height restrictions, so make sure you’re mindful of these before getting the kids excited! The usj app has a really useful feature where you can filter rides based on your kids height. 

• No height restrictions: Hello Kitty ride. Big Birds Carousel. Jaws (must be able to sit alone)
• 92 cm: Flight of the Hippogriff. Snoopy’s Great Race. Yoshi’s Adventure. Freeze ray sliders.
• 102cm: Minion Mayhem. Space Fantasy – The Ride.
• 107cm: Mine Kart Madness. Mario Karts. Jurassic Park – The Ride. 
• 122cm: Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, The Flying Dinosaur.
• 132cm: Hollywood Dream – The Ride. Flying Dinosaur.

Visiting Universal Studios Osaka with kids

If you’ve got little ones in tow, you’ll want your visit to be as stress-free as possible. There is so much to do for kids of all ages but if you’re visiting with kids, here are a few tips:

• Use Rider Switch: Parents with young children who aren’t tall enough for a particular ride can take turns riding without having to wait in line twice. They have a good system in place with a waiting area for the parent not riding. 
• Height measurement stations: Check your child’s height at the entrance to attractions to avoid disappointment before you start queuing. Once they have been measured they can get a wrist band to save time on future rides.
• Family-friendly attractions: Besides the rides, make sure you see the shows and interactive zones which are perfect for kids and don’t require hours of queueing. The indoor play area at the back of Wonderland is great. The small rides in Wonderland also had much shorter queues than the rest of the park.
• Rest areas: There’s lots dotted around so plan for breaks in quieter areas to avoid exhaustion. You’ll be on your feet A LOT! Take it easy. You have many hours to enjoy the park, getting to the end is a marathon and not a race.
• Water : Japan can be hot and humid, especially in summer. Make sure you carry a water bottle as stations are available throughout the park and apply sunscreen regularly to avoid sunburn.

If you’re considering a trip to Universal Studios Osaka, I hope this helps you plan and optimise your day.

Whether you’re travelling as a couple or with kids (young or old!) in tow, there’s something for everyone and there’s plenty to do to make your trip as low-stress as possible; like booking accommodation nearby for convenience, grabbing an Express Pass if visiting on a busy day and planning which rides are suitable for your group ahead of time.

As always, let me know if you need any help!