TeamLab Planets

“Planets” is the most sensory incarnation of the immersive digital environments TeamLab is famous for, and if you love being able to touch the delights happening all around you, this is the experience for you.

So let’s dive in! Come prepared to give up your shoes and roll up your pants—the most famous attraction inside “Planets” is the infinity room where you literally wade through a balmy sea of unfolding digital flowers while animated goldfish languidly swim by.

TeamLab Planets wading room with fish and flowers — Let me reassure you that THIS IS JAPAN and the place is utterly, meticulously clean (and being cleaned constantly by a cadre of staff roaming the length and breadth of the room). I too was squicked out by the idea of getting my feet naked in a pool that’s waded in by hundreds of other people per day, but I’ve been to Planets many times now, and no icky things have ever been encountered.

Here’s what it’s like to wade around in what’s officially called “Drawing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People – Infinity”

But there are plenty more delights to come, including my favorite thing, The Infinite Crystal Universe. The completely mirrored walls, floor & ceiling reflect a Very Big Number of beaded LED strings that are thrillingly programmed to surround you with waves of color and light, sometimes breaking into starry showers.

TeamLab Planets Infinite Crystal Universe — It’s pretty cool the way you can catch glimpses of other people as you wander through the maze – the other visitors became sort of a design feature, rather than an annoyance. (Yes, Princess admits that often when she is visiting popular exhibits, she wishes all those commoners would just go away already AND SHE BETS YOU DO TOO ADMIT IT)

And then there’s the hanging orchid garden called the most Japanese name ever—“Floating Flower Garden: Flowers and I are of the Same Root, the Garden and I are One”—with a mirrored floor that doubles your tropical dream…

…and the forest of schmoos, which bob around and react to your presence and are far more fun at night…

when they’re lit up and change color as you touch them.

TeamLab Planets resonating schmoos at night — TeamLab calls the shiny schmoos *“Moss Garden of Resonating Microcosms – Solidified Light Color, Sunrise and Sunset”* (Photo from the TeamLab website)

The room full of giant inflated globes that bounce around and change color when you bump them makes you feel like a kid again…

TeamLab Planets giant color changing balls — The globes turn every color of the rainbow

…and after all that sensory overload, it’s time for “Floating in the Falling Universe of Flowers.” Lie down in the middle of this mirrored dome theater while flowers zoom through space all around you. It’s impossible to capture with a camera, just trust me you feel like you’re floating in infinite space, surrounded by an unfolding wonderland of flowers instead of stars

TeamLab Planets universe of falling flowers

Be sure to save room before or after your visit for some Fire Ramen—it’s sold in the little restaurant hut outside the entrance, and served in an infinity room where moody cloud-like calligraphy scrolls over every surface as you eat.

TeamLab Planets restaurant fire ramen — The menu is small, and not everything is spicy

Open:
Every day except holidays
(See website for holiday dates and extended hours days)

Hours:
Monday – Friday 10:00 – 20:00
Saturday, Sunday, Holidays 9:00 – 21:00
Restaurant hours:
Vegan Ramen UZU Tokyo
Monday – Friday 11:00 – 19:00
Saturday, Sunday, Holidays 10:30 – 19:00

You must buy your tickets online and in advance, but its easy to do on their website.

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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Last Tea Bowl Thief was chosen as an Editor’s Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense on Amazon

For three hundred years, a missing tea bowl passes from one fortune-seeker to the next, changing the lives of all who possess it…*read more*

“A fascinating mix of history and mystery.” —Booklist

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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had

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