The 20 Most Anticipated Coasters from My 1st Japan Trip
For the first time in my life, I’m headed off to Asia. Two weeks in Japan, 18 parks, 69 coasters, some big, some small, but I’m down for all of it. As I always do, before I take an international trip, I want to make a prediction. I want to guess what my top coasters will be, and then come back later on to see how far off I was. So, here we go. This is what I think my top 20 coasters in Japan will be. talk about eight coasters that are very interesting, but I don’t think they’ll be top 20 worthy. Raging Spirits at Tokyo Disney Sea. This intimate mind train looping coaster looks super weird. It’s very short, not very fast, has over-the-shoulder restraints, and it’s 20 years old, so it may be bad and painful, but we’ll see. I’m curious. Lipover Rocket Luna at your Murray Land. This is the only family suspended coaster Gerslau has ever built, opening in 2021, and it’s mostly indoors, so we’ll see how this rides. Diving Coaster Vanish at Yokohama Cosmo World. The clickbait coaster. This is famous for its underwater tunnel, but aside from that, it looks like a Togo and has shoulder restraints and no inversions, so that’s not cool. Slope shooter at Hagashioo. This is a bobsled style side friction coaster, if you even call it a coaster. Almost like a Virginia reel, but it’s very possible this coaster will be down when I get there, so that’s too bad. Shuttle loop at Nagashima Spa Land. This is a classic Schwarzkoff shuttle loop with a flywheel launch, just like Manzuma’s Revenge, something we no longer have in America. So, it’ll be good to experience this one more time. Diablo at Heameji Central Park. Hey, it’s my first Batman clone outside the USA. I know what to expect, but it’ll still be fun. Pink Typhoon Standing Coaster at Brazilian Park washes in Highland. This is the only coaster that I know of that has a stand-up train and a backwards sit-down train. And based on the time of day you ride it, you can get both experiences. So, you really have to have a game plan going in. Last one. Mega Coaster, a hamaco pow pow. This one’s famous for that weird stall dive loop. Classic Togo. I don’t think it’ll be good, but by far the only reason to visit Hamanakaco Pow Pow. Number 20, Geckon Live Coaster at Tokyo Joy Palis. Long before Time Traveler, there was Geckon Live Coaster. A launched inverting spinning coaster. This is very short, not fast, and some people say it’s terrible, but this also has a shooting dark ride element to it. So, I’m very interested to see how it is. Number 19 and number 18, Ultra Twister, a Brazilian park washes in Highland and Nagashima Spa Land. These look the same, so I’m grouping these together. But at last, I have two chances at finally riding a Togo Ultra Twister. Missing my chance here in America when Astro Roll closed. And I’ve been wanting to ride this for so long. That vertical lift, insanely steep drop, three heartline rolls, the track all around you, and a switch track that sends you backwards. Number 17, Panic Coaster Back Dan at Tokyo Dome City. This Gerslau sounds like a riot. It is a family coaster, but it has two launches, a switch track going forward and backward. Maybe this should be in the interesting coasters but not rank list, but I’ve heard good things about it, so I’m putting it on here. Number 16, Venus GP at Hamichi Central Park. This coaster has some history. The first ever coaster for MAR and the coaster that used to be at Spacew World, closing in 2018 and reopening here in 2022. This has some serious shores vibes. 131 ft tall, 53 mph, big swooping turns, a big vertical loop. It could be awesome, or maybe it’ll fall flat. I’m very curious. Number 15, Acrobat at Nagashima Spa Land. I am a big fan of Manta at SeaWorld Orlando. That is the best flying coaster in the US, and here we have a clone. It doesn’t have as cool of a setting as Manta, so maybe it’ll lose some of that charm, but hopefully the layout speaks for itself. And this is a great flying coaster. Number 14, Minecart Madness at Universal Studios Japan. Now that I know what a boom coaster is all about, riding the one at Epic Universe, I got to say, I love this ride. I’m assuming it’s the same thing. All the track jumps, special effects, going up the stairs, avoiding collisions, a splashdown. It’s not going to surprise me anymore, but it should be great. Number 13, Surf Coaster Leviathan at Sea Paradise. Great. A giant Togo, but in Japan, apparently Togo isn’t bad, so this could be really fun. This is 144 ft tall, but doesn’t have a big drop. 4200 ft of track makes it a long ride. A couple big helyses. Goes out over the water to start. I’m really looking forward to this one. Number 12, Regina 2 at Tobu Zoo. This is an old school Intimin Woody, not a prefab, but that rare intimate wooden coaster and much more modern than the one I already got to ride, American Eagle at Great America. A lot of people thought this was dead, closing in 2019, but it was refurbished and reopened in 2023. It has GCI trains. It’s 121 ft tall and almost 4,400 ft long. So, as long as it’s smooth after it refurb, it could be a great ride. Number 11, Hollywood Dream: The Ride at Universal Studios Japan. The Japanese version of Rip Ride Rocket. This B&M mini Mini Hyper was built back in 2007, having onboard sound, airtime hills, a helix, almost 4,000 ft of track. This could be awesome, but I haven’t heard the best things about it, so it may not be super high for me like a normal B&M hyper would be. Number 10, Bandit at Your Murray Land. The original hyper coaster kind of. It has an elevation change at 256 ft, but is only 167 ft tall, 5100 ft of track, 68 mph. This is one of those big old Togo hypers and I’ve heard mixed things. Even if it’s not that forceful or if it’s rough, it’s still going to be interesting and I kind of have high hopes for this obviously. It is in my top 10. Number nine, Pyrenees at Park Espaima Spain village. This Spanish themed park in Japan is going to be trippy and they happen to have one of the best looking large-s scale custom B&M inverts out there. I love a big invert and this one looks masterful. 148 ft tall, 62 mph, 4,000 ft of track, six inversions. I would not be surprised if this ended up as a top three invert on my list when all is said and done. Number eight, Flying Dinosaur at Universal Studios Japan. This could be the world’s best flying coaster, having some insane elements on a large scale, standing 151 ft tall, dropping as much as 125 ft, 3,700 ft of track, 62 mph in the flying position, it’s got a pretzel loop, of course, so that’s going to be fun. Five inversions in total. This seriously might be one of the most intense coasters in the world and it’s going to be a riot. Number seven, Kawasmi at Tobu Zoo. My first round with an intimate mega light wasn’t that good. Puritan at Jur Summerland. I thought it was okay, but not that great, but I also rode it in terrible conditions. I also heard Kawasi wasn’t as good, so that holds me back from putting it higher. But the layout is there. 102 ft tall with a 98 ft drop, 2500 ft of track, all that air time and lower the ground elements. I’ll see if this can surpass my experience on Puritin. Number six, Thunder Dolphin at Tokyo Dome City. The hyper coaster that goes through buildings. Thunder Dolphin has been on my wish list for a long time. Opening in 2003, 262 ft tall, 218 ft drop, 81 mph, only 3,500 ft of track, which is understandable, but kind of short for a ride like this. This intimate hyper could be amazing, or it could be lackluster. But that setting is so cool, and it’s been the coaster in Japan I’ve wanted to ride for the longest time. Number five, Steel Dragon 2000 at Nagashima Spa Land. The world’s longest coaster for now, holding that record for 25 years. The world’s tallest coaster for a few years. It’s crazy that Morgan made a coaster this massive, 307 ft drop, 95 mph, 8,100 ft long. But I’ve ridden other big Morgans and they aren’t the best rides. I’m afraid this will just be a bigger, longer version of Steel Force. And based on people’s reviews, it seems like that’s the case. I’m still going to enjoy every second of this long ride. and I think it deserves a top five spot. Number four, Fujiyama FujiQ Highland. The first of three coasters at Fujik. This park is definitely quality over quantity, and that’s even without Doda. Another bucket list coaster for me that closed in 2021. Fujiama is like Bandit but bigger. This was also the tallest coaster in the world for about 4 years. 259 ft tall, 230 ft drop, 81 mph, and it’s one of the longest coasters on the planet, 6,700 ft. I’ve heard good things about this Togo Hyper. And if it’s smooth, I can see myself lapping this at the end of the night. Number three, Takabisha Fuji Q Highland. I got a taste of Takabisha in the US. TMNT Shellrazer being a near clone, and I was just so impressed by how diverse the coaster was. Seven inversions, one being right out of the station. A powerful launch, a big drop at 121°. These have the world’s steepest drops. I’m assuming this will even be better than Shellrazer. That first inversion being enclosed, maybe running smoother, and this could land in my top 30 at the end. Number two, Ajanika Fuji Q Highland. Like with Pakabisha, I got a taste of this at Magic Mountain. X2 being basically the same idea, just not anywhere near the scale of the new SNS models in Asia. At 249 ft tall, it’s about the same size as Goliath at Magic Mountain. Flipping around that near vertical drop, three wild inversions, the seats spinning on their own the whole time. 3,700 ft of track, 78 mph. This looks like one of the craziest rides in the world, and I fully expect this to land somewhere between number 10 and number 20 on my list, but still could be higher or lower depending on what sea I get assigned and how rough it is. Number one, Hakugi at Nagashima Spaland. Japan’s one RMC. They got a good one in 2019. They took the massive intimate woody white cyclone and gave it the iron horse treatment. The people who got to ride it have been raving about it. And I think this could be one of my top RMC’s up there in the Wicked Cyclone, Iron Guazi, Twisted Colossus Group. Maybe not as high as Air Force One, or Steel Vengeance, but it definitely could break into the upper tier. It’s 180 ft tall and has 5,000 ft of track, three inversions, and I would be surprised if at the end, Hakug wasn’t my number one ranked Japanese coaster, and it has a real serious shot on my top 10, even top five, and really isn’t out of the question for my overall number one. So, there you go. my pre-trip top 20 Japanese coasters. Let me know what to thank my Patreons. If you want bonus access, bonus content, and have your name listed at the end of each video, check my links below and join. Also, check out my second channel where I post copyright free off-ride footage. Thank you all for watching and I’ll see you all next time.
I’m headed to Japan for the first time this summer, but before I go, I’m going to rank up my most anticipated coasters and later on, see how my ACTUAL ranks stack up with what I thought.
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Sean Flaharty: Coasting in Japan 2024 Pt 2 – https://youtu.be/olFKaI39mOY?si=VtVtVRMjclLenrdO
Sean Flaharty: Mega Coaster Hamanako Pal Pal – https://youtu.be/gN_nnDPhum8?si=ZB9xoV-j1wXHMy51
Sean Flaharty: Coasting in Japan Part 11 Space World – https://youtu.be/O0BpFpJYvbI?si=Km7cgeeAnOwTYzXU
Sean Flaharty: Bandit – https://youtu.be/Yh1-FueEr7g?si=gmprI3KUQAGfbr-m
ElToroRyan: Nagashima Spaland – https://youtu.be/nJkhcQZk_I0?si=Pm9xxGnI6fWgl0Ae
ElToroRyan: Fuji Q Highland – https://youtu.be/3OiNDOcRn3k?si=Bt6giZp0EQB2JzVJ
ElToroRyan: Flying Dinosaur – https://youtu.be/UhbvpAQLMl8?si=_7cKUOMSNuCDLTN-
Max Thrills: Thunder Dolphin – https://youtu.be/t6a1fdRa_cA?si=7bpH4gr9_PgC2YvU
davidjellis: Ultra Twister Nagashima – https://youtu.be/d5CbqB4hFEY?si=CI9wKtfBJaQ4VHWR
davidjellis: Shuttle Loop Nagashima – https://youtu.be/RBPPao_5uZw?si=xeXSJkOLCKZOJE-w
davidjellis: Venus GP – https://youtu.be/409FAwLM3NM?si=C26h11vTknb0K0p0
davidjellis: Regina – https://youtu.be/xYQNy87XCIQ?si=8k4R88fH5fFXpKgF
Coaster Thrills: Pink Typhoon Standing Coaster – https://youtu.be/CU9FfUV6gjM?si=1EHzEmnAWH7vxpVJ
Coaster Thrills: Regina II – https://youtu.be/wLtwNxrkLZ4?si=6C71hCBs4fU9qtOj
Splash One: Panic Coaster Back Daan – https://youtu.be/pagoxIv650M?si=z98Jh8Q6l_RpStzt
Canobie Coaster: Tokyo Dome City – https://youtu.be/tHYQRFWSCiY?si=U95e5AbXW_6BbYds
Canobie Coaster: Acrobat – https://youtu.be/BfGGHHhweos?si=IP52GxinBKkQPwGk
Canobie Coaster: Steel Dragon 2000 – https://youtu.be/AVAKBxvJ2So?si=xbVZihsYq984OLW5
Canobie Coaster: Hakugei – https://youtu.be/DLw2Bi_U92Y?si=WwuG3Q4xba2MGfJf
Intamin Amusement Rides: https://www.youtube.com/@intaminofficial
Fuji Q Official: https://www.youtube.com/@fq229
TokyoDisneyResortOfficial: https://www.youtube.com/@TDRofficialchannel
Gerstlauer: https://www.youtube.com/@gerstlauer17
Universal Studios Japan: https://www.youtube.com/@USJ_Official
Music in this video:
Adventure Theme
Black Vulture
Cold Water – Patrick Patrikios
39 Comments
Yes got it I will just give you my top 3 .3 flying dinosaur #2ejanika #1 hakugei
1:06 From What i Know When Coaster Studios Rode It , The train Has The ability To swing Slighty Which dampens Any roughness And such.
Also , congrats To 100k! 😀 🎉
My son’s comment about “Flying Dinosaur “ is…”It rips your Eyebrows off!”…Sounds about right!
Thunder Dolphin was closed when I was in Japan in June and I was hella dissapointed 😭
100K❤🎉
you never replied to me on instagram
3:40 better than Tatsu? I feel like that's an unpopular opinion 🤔
Looks like a dream come true man! Hopefully when you get home, you have a play button waiting for you! Congratulations bro! 🤘🏻
kawasemi looks like a mini pantherian
You should also visit some good landmarks and beautiful areas in Asia
Yo congrats on 100K!!🎉
How about top 10 best woodies
I would be wary of the Togos. People say they’re good but from all the videos I’ve seen, they’re identical to the ones in the U.S. in terms of horrible profiling, transitions, and lack of airtime or meaningful forces (none of these apppy to Ultra Twisters). I’m not sure how people say Bandit or Fujiyama are great because you can see all the painful moments on them clearly in POVs 😭 I hope they’re great for you but just brace for the end of Fujiyama haha
Dude you are going to looooove Eejanaika and Hakugei. Acrobat was also my 100th coaster, so it has a special place in my heart. I also think you might finally ride a Togo you like in Fujiyama.
New to being an enthusiast, here’s my anticipated top 10.
1. Voyage
2. Steel Vengeance
3. Fury 325
4.Stardust or Velocicoaster
5. Mystic Timbers
6. Diamondback
7. Phantoms Revenge
8. Pantheon
9. Orion
10. Maxx Force(if it reopens lol, if not then Pantherian)
The family Gerstlauer suspended coaster at Yomiuriland is the best family suspended coaster I've ever ridden. The standup train was nowhere to be seen on the coaster at Brazilian Park when I was there, and it made me sad, as I am running out of opportunities to ride a Togo standup, but the backward airtime was absolutely amazing! Hollywood Dream's backward train is a can't-miss, and the backward ejector is absolutely insane in the front (er… back) row. Pyrenees totally disappointed me, especially in the back half. but it might be due to constantly being forced to ride in the front row (the biggest issue I have with Japan coasters) and the park was too sparsely attended to get placed elsewhere on the train (I'm a back-row-only rider on B&M inverts). The back half of SD2000 had solid airtime hills, but the first half is somewhat forgettable. Eejenaika and Hakugei are in a league of their own.
Congrats on 100k!
Great video! Great list! Hakeugei would be my number 1 too! Eejanaika is an interesting coaster. I'd love to ride Zokon. Diavlo is probably a good coaster. I really enjoyed watching this! I'm really looking forward to these Vlogs!!
I'm hyped to see your reaction to eejanaika! hope it's a fantastic trip dude!
a tip for eejanaika to choose your row is depending in what order you go through the metal detectors so if your fast at the lockers you will get the rows in the front if your slower you will get the ones further back
Don’t you dare dog on Steel Force. That coaster is smooth and an airtime machine with floater out, good positives on the turn around, and ejector on the way back
I think Flying Dinosaur is easily the best or second best coaster in Japan and way better than Hakugei.
My Top 20 in Japan that I rode:
1. Eejanaika
2. Flying Dinosaur
3. Hakugei
4. Steel Dragon 2000
5. Pyrenees
6. Takabisha
7. Hollywood Dream
8. Fujiyama
9. Thunder Dolphin
10. Arashi
11. Gekion Live Coaster
12. Ultra Twister
13. Zokkon
14. Acrobat
15. Panic Coaster Back Daaan
16. Looping Star
17. Gran Montserrat
18. Voyage Dans Le Ciel
19. Children Coaster
20. Jet Coaster
I've been on 27 coasters in my life (yeah I know, lame but I live in Australia so what do you expect?), 8 of which were in Japan. I've been to Japan 3 times and only really bothered to visit 5 parks. Here's my Top 8 of Japan coasters with scores if anyone cares, figured I'd share for the sake of it.
8. Flight of the Hippogriff (Universal Studios Japan (Konohana-ku, Osaka, Japan)) – 70/100
7. Diving Coaster Vanish (Yokohama Cosmo World (Yokohama, Japan)) – 71/100
6. Thunder Dolphin (Tokyo Dome City Attractions (Tokyo Dome City, Japan)) – 79/100
5. Raging Spirits (Tokyo DisneySea (Maihama, Japan)) – 80/100
4. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (Tokyo Disneyland (Maihama, Japan)) – 81/100
3. Hollywood Dream (Universal Studios Japan (Konohana-ku, Osaka, Japan)) – 83/100
2. Space Mountain (Tokyo Disneyland (Maihama, Japan)) – 84/100
1. Flying Dinosaur (Universal Studios Japan (Konohana-ku, Osaka, Japan)) 86/100
Hakugei is so pretty!
congrats on 100K!
Gekion does not have a shooting section, at least not when I went in 2023. The first half is a (very mediocre) rhythm game.
I've been to Japan twice and Thunder Dolphin has been down for extended closures both times, so just know that's a possibility.
Tbh I think Fuji Q is overhyped. Eejenaika is great, but neither Takabisha nor Fujiyama were that interesting for me; I easily rank both Hakugei and Steel Dragon 2000 significantly higher. Nagashima also has slightly better ops.
Hope you're prepared to not be able to pick your seat. Japanese parks don't allow picking seats and it's apparently rude to ask.
i knew your number one but still had to stay the whole time lol
it really is a top RMC
Enjoy Japan. I lived there for over 2 years while in the Navy.
Went to Japan back in spring 2024 and had the privilege to visit Fuji-Q. Takabisha was smooth and a genuinely solid ride, although it didn't totally wow me like I had expected it might. Eejanaika (Eh-jah-nye-kah?! Roughly translating to "What? No way!" Very appropriate lol) was absolutely brilliant, and in my opinion better than X2. That's definitely one of the best coasters I've ever ridden. Fujiyama was also pretty darn good, and although it wasn't the smoothest ride, that definitely wasn't something that ruined the experience – more jank than discomfort. Those massive and relatively compact drops… wow.
Time Warp will fit in your carry-on, Japanese will adore it.
On my day at Nagashima Spa Land, I was lucky enough to ride Hakugei 13 times. It’s impossible for me to truly pick a #1 between it, Maverick, and Steel Vengeance, but I’ll usually say Hakugei since it’s the most exotic answer 😂
Raging Spirits is terrible!
Yay he got 100K subs
YOOOOOOOOOOOO LETS GO HE GOT 100K
Going to Japan and riding a whole host of new coasters is a great way to celebrate 100,000 subscribers! Especially being able to ride 69 into new coasters in which some are raved upon as some of the world’s best!
Congratulations 🎉 100k
Don't know if Nasu Highland is on your itinerary, but Big Boom over there is a really weird coaster that supposedly has one of the best first drops on the planet. Impressively, considering it's only 126 feet.
Venus GP is seriously underrated. The ride is way better than the old PoVs would lead you to believe. I'm so glad the ride was saved and able to be relocated. A shame the space shuttle decor is gone.
Hey man! Finally, welcome to Japan! Hope you have the best of the weather and a blast here!
If I may, can I know the dates of Nagashima and Fuji Q? I would love to cross paths with the creator of one of my fav coaster channels on YT!
I would be shocked if Eejaneika doesn’t turn out to be your number 1 after you come back