menu facebook twitter instagram pinterest youtube search chevron-down chevron-up
Be My Travel Muse
  • About
    • About
    • Contact Me
    • Press
    • Work With Me
  • Blog
    • Archives
    • Best of BMTM
  • YouTube
  • Solo Female Travel
    • Bucket List
      • The 31 Cheapest Places to Travel in 2025
      • 31 BEST Places in the USA for Solo Female Travelers in 2025
      • 25 Unexpectedly Awesome Destinations for Solo Female Travelers
      • 25 Best Countries to Travel Alone for the First Time
      • 13 Perfect Weekend Trips for Solo Female Travelers in the USA
      • 10 Best Weekend Trips from Phoenix, Arizona
    • Resources
      • How to take the best travel selfies
      • 41 safety tips for solo female travelers
      • The ultimate solo female travel guide
      • Best group tours for solo female travelers
      • Why Every Woman Should Travel Alone
    • All solo female travel blogs
  • Be My Travel Muse
  • Tours
  • Destinations
    • USA
      • Hawaii
      • California
      • Nevada
      • Idaho
      • Arizona
      • Florida
      • Alaska
      • Utah
    • North America
      • Mexico
      • Costa Rica
      • Canada
    • Asia
      • Thailand
      • Philippines
      • Indonesia
      • Japan
    • South America
      • Argentina
      • Aruba
      • Chile
      • The Galápagos
    • Europe
      • Germany
      • Iceland
      • Italy
    • All Destinations
  • Trip Planning

How to Maximize your TEAMLAB PLANETS Experience (2025)

03/09/2025 by Kristin Addis 30 Comments

If you enjoy art museums, interactive science museums, pretty lights, music, or the pleasing effect of symmetry, teamLab Planets in Tokyo delivers.

teamLab is a consortium of artists, programmers, engineers, CG animators, mathematicians, architects and graphic designers. They pool their talents to create interactive works of magic straddling the line between the beautiful, the captivating, and the technology needed to create it.

These are my best tips for getting the most out of it:

Table of Contents

Toggle
  • Buy Tickets Ahead of Time
  • Budget Lots of Time
  • Go During Dinnertime
  • Get familiar with the exhibits so that you don’t miss anything:
  • Put any Big Bags in Lockers and Leave your Tripods at Home
  • Getting There

Buy Tickets Ahead of Time

Word has gotten out about how amazing this place is and like most famous works of art, it is popular. In most cases, you’ll need to buy tickets ahead of time or risk them being sold out on the day that you want to go.

These tickets also allowed us to skip the (long) line to get in. Tickets cost ¥3200 per person and can be purchased here.

Budget Lots of Time

teamlab planets

I spent about three hours exploring the exhibits at teamLab. Each room constantly changes and might be a completely different experience at one time of day than another. Part of this is because of who might be in there and how you might interact, and how the colors and sounds change in each room.

Whether you go in early, right after it opens, or later in the afternoon, allow yourself at least a few hours to see all of the exhibits and to not feel rushed.

As of now opening times are:

Mon-Fri 9:00 – 21:00
Saturday, Sunday, and holidays 9:00 – 22:00
* Last Entrance one hour before the closing time.

[July/August]
All days 9:00 – 22:00
* Last Entrance one hour before the closing time.

Vegan Ramen UZU Tokyo
teamLab Flower Shop & Art

[May/June]
Monday – Friday 11:00 – 19:00
Saturday, Sunday, Holidays 10:30 – 19:00

[July/August]
All days 10:30 – 19:00

Go During Dinnertime

teamlab planets review guide

Many of the famous photos that you might have seen of teamLab Borderless with only one or two people in the photo were taken by teamLab itself. Make peace with the fact that there will be people in your photos.

That said, I’ve found dinnertime to be the best time to go. If you enter around 7pm and stay until 10pm, you’ll have three of the least crowded hours to explore and enjoy. The closer you get to closing the fewer people you’ll have to contend with.

When we visited in February, we started at 4:30pm. Our first journey through was pretty crowded, but the second round was MUCH less so. By the time we left around 7:30pm, the line was totally gone. Opting for those later three hours would be the best approach.

Although you will probably be exploring with other people, I found that Japanese culture is polite and not pushy, which made it a more pleasant experience.

teamLab also encourages seeing other people as part of the art. In an interview with designboom, they say that unlike in a traditional museum where being alone is a blessing, in Borderless you may pay more attention to the action of the viewer next to you, since the art is interactive, than you would looking at a traditional painting. teamLab wants visitors to experience the art together and to interact with it both individually and as a group. They view this as an important unifying factor both of art and of the effect of people living in cities. If only there were interactive art all over the subways and crowded streets, perhaps we play with each other a bit more!

Also, make sure you eat beforehand. The vegan ramen place at teamLab isn’t bad, but it’s not the best ramen I’ve ever had, either.

You’re not allowed to bring any water with you when you explore the exhibit, so make sure you hydrate before you go!

Get familiar with the exhibits so that you don’t miss anything:

In the video above, I take you through each room and each sensory experience. Unlike the now-closed teamLab Borderless, which had rooms to explore in every which direction, teamLab Planets is set up more like a loop with a clear order and two distinct sides. Below I’ve listed each place so that you can make sure you don’t miss anything!

Waterfall of Light Particles at the Top of an Incline:

teamlab planets review guide

Before you begin, you’ll remove your shoes and put everything into a locker. Since this teamLab has many water exhibits, which are unavoidable, you’ll be experiencing everything barefoot. It’s best if you wear shorts or pants that are easily rolled up.

The experience begins walking up an inclined, dark pathway with an illuminated waterfall at the end that is based on a natural waterfall in the mountains of Shikoku.

Soft Black Hole – Your Body Becomes a Space that Influences Another Body

Next you’ll pass through a room best described as a giant, lumpy mattress. Garrett describes it as trying to walk on big lumpy marshmallows with everyone around you also impacting your ability to stay upright with their movements. If you need to bypass this room for any reason (I did since I was wearing my baby), there’s a corridor to the right.

The Infinite Crystal Universe

The Infinite Crystal Universe

This is one of the most popular exhibits and always a favorite of mine. You’ll see it repeated in other teamLab exhibits as well since it’s so well done and photogenic.

The lights are synced to music and will fade and change colors in dramatic fashion. It’s a little bit of a maze walking through, with several corners that can be great for photos. The walls and floors are all mirrored as well, reflecting everything even more.

Note this is a reason I don’t suggest wearing a skirt to teamLab.

– Read Next –

What to Wear in Japan

Expanding Three-Dimensional Existence in Transforming Space – Flattening 3 Colors and 9 Blurred Colors, Free Floating

teamlab planets review

This room is best described as big, giant floating balloons that you can push up and around the room. They change colors based on touch and are also reflected by a mirrored floor.

*Note that this room is currently closed due to the helium shortage.

Floating in the Falling Universe of Flowers

This next room displays flowers as they go through their life cycle on the ceiling.

According to teamLab, “Flowers grow, bud, bloom, and in time, the petals fall, and the flowers wither and die. The cycle of birth and death continues for perpetuity. The artwork is not a pre-recorded image that is played back; it is created by a computer program that continuously renders the artwork in real time. As a whole, it is continuously changing, and previous visual states are never replicated. The universe at this moment in time can never be seen again.”

Most people enjoy it by laying on the ground to watch.

Drawing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People – Infinity

teamlab planets Drawing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People - Infinity

This is another one of the famous and most photographed rooms in teamLab Planets. You’ll go from the otherwise dry exhibits back into the water world, walking through a wet corridor into this room with warm water up to the calves.

The Koi fish that are projected onto the water will burst into flowers as they collide with people and each other. Like the previous exhibit, no experience in this room is pre-recorded or will ever be exactly the same. I loved going through here for the second time and having it almost to ourselves for a while!

After this you’ll have the opportunity to dry off before heading back to the lockers where you can put your socks on for the garden area.

Moss Garden of Resonating Microcosms – Solidified Light Color, Sunrise and Sunset:

This is the only part of the exhibit that is ‘outside’ in a way, with an open ceiling. This means your experience in the garden will be greatly influenced by time of day. We didn’t see it until it was dark out, so the potato-shaped bulbs, called ovoids, were all illuminated.

When pushed down by a person or blown by the wind, the ovoid falls back and then rises, releasing a resonating tone. The ovoids around it also respond one after another, continuing to resonate with the same tone.

Floating Flower Garden: Flowers and I are of the Same Root, the Garden and I are One

teamlab planets review guide

This is the other exhibit that made teamLab Planets famous. The flowers are real orchids that rise and fall in a room constructed of mirrored walls and floors. Orchids are one of few flower species that are able to grow in the air, so they are growing, blooming, and very much alive!

This room has a max capacity and cycles people in and out, meaning you can’t spend as long in this room as the others. During peak times, the line can be considerable.

Put any Big Bags in Lockers and Leave your Tripods at Home

As you go through the exhibits it will become clear why they don’t want tripods, selfie sticks or big backpacks – some of them have narrow areas and for some you’ll be climbing, jumping, and walking through hanging lights.

Getting There

teamLab Planets is right by Shin-Toyosu Station, on the Yurikamome Line. From Shinjuku Station, take the Shinjuku Line to Ichigaya Station, then switch to the Yurakucho Line train — you can get off at Toyosu Station, from there it’s a 10-minute walk; or catch the Yurikamome Line one stop over to Shin-Toyosu Station.

I hope this helps you to have a fabulous experience at teamLab Planets!

Read Next

The Perfect 2 Week Japan Itinerary

What to do in Tokyo

Get the guidebook for solo female travelers!

About Kristin Addis

Kristin Addis is the founder and CEO of Be My Travel Muse, a resource for female travelers all around the world since 2012. She's traveled solo to over 65 countries and has brought over 150 women on her all-female adventure tours from Botswana to the Alaskan tundra.

« How to Travel on a Budget in a Post-Pandemic World
The Ultimate Arizona Itinerary for 2025 »

Hello There!

headshot

Welcome to Be My Travel Muse, one of the top female travel blogs in the world, welcoming over 5 million readers annually.

I'm Kristin, and my vision of a better world is one where more women are empowered and living out their dreams. Solo traveling is the best method I've found to become the best, bravest version of me. This site is all about how YOU can have the adventure of a lifetime in an easy, fun, approachable way, so that you can feel empowered, too. Want to learn more about me?

Click here!

Get the Solo Female Travel Guidebook

Popular Posts

I am currently in:

The USA!

Check it out on Instagram Stories!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

  1. Ijana Loss says

    10/18/2018 at 2:43 pm

    Woah I didn’t know this place existed! What a cool thing! That’s such a Japan thing lol

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/19/2018 at 9:21 am

      There are some similar exhibits in Singapore and there was in LA too! They often travel.

      Reply
  2. Laura Cooper says

    10/30/2018 at 6:13 pm

    Such a stunning photos! It seems unrealistic but I know it’s real. Thank you for sharing your travel blog. It makes me travel and discovers the world too.

    Reply
  3. Steffi Chan says

    12/26/2018 at 9:57 pm

    Thank you for sharing! I’ve already purchased my tickets! May I know how long did you have to wait when you went near opening time at 10am?

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      12/27/2018 at 3:51 pm

      I more or less got right in. Each day will differ I’m sure.

      Reply
  4. Mercy says

    01/23/2019 at 4:58 pm

    Tips on the camera set up please… if you use dslr and smartphone cam

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      01/23/2019 at 6:12 pm

      Here ya go https://www.bemytravelmuse.com/how-to-take-travel-selfies/

      Reply
  5. Renee says

    03/05/2019 at 8:36 pm

    I loved the music in the rooms, most of all during nest room. Do you happen to know what its called or a possible soundtrack?

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      03/13/2019 at 12:07 pm

      Oh dear I don’t know anymore but maybe you can Shazaam it?

      Reply
  6. ndm says

    04/08/2019 at 7:49 am

    I just visited today, it was great! A couple of tips:

    Definitely go early, and ignore the email that says go around 2pm. I arrived at 10am on a Monday and we waited maybe 20 mins to get in. I’d say try to get there at 9:45am. We were able to get inside the first doors in just a few minutes. When we left at almost 3pm the line was outside and wrapped around the building, probably over an hour wait.

    This article doesn’t actually tell you how to optimize visiting the top locations first. When you first go in, DON’T go upstairs to the athletic forest. If you find yourself there turn around and go back to a different room. Do the nest or the floating lamps as soon as you can. We found the lamps maybe an hour in and were able to go twice waiting < 15mins each time. We didn't find the nest until much later and waited over an hour. You don't necessarily have to make a beeline for these, part of the experience is discovering new rooms as you wander about and skipping them takes away some of the fun. But try to do them within the first hour.

    The nest is on the right side of the big flower forest room that you first enter into if you have trouble finding it. The floating lamps I can't say exactly… it's more towards the middle and up some stairs I think. The crystal room is also nice but has more capacity so you don't have to wait long to get in.

    Finally, I don't suggest waiting more than 30-40 minutes for the nest, as you can still see the same show, but standing up, at the cave thing. When you make it into the nest though then try to get a spot towards the middle (subjective, but I think that's more immersive). Don't forget to look to the sides and down though at least once.

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      04/08/2019 at 9:46 am

      How funny, I didn’t wait for the nest at all in the mid-afternoon! The hanging lamps might be good to find first, though. I spent a long time looking for those! It’s such a maze in there.

      Reply
  7. Salma says

    06/08/2019 at 9:54 am

    Thankyou for your post! It really helps me since I’ll go there alone too. I’m a little surprised to see there are no other people in your photos. Are there tips for getting photos like that? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      06/08/2019 at 12:00 pm

      For the most part I just waited it out until the moment when I could manage it. In the forest of resonating lamps it’ll be a matter of angle.

      Reply
  8. Nicole says

    06/16/2019 at 7:42 pm

    Do you know if there were storage lockers for larger luggage?

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      06/17/2019 at 10:22 am

      Perhaps you can email them first to ask because my locker was pretty small.

      Reply
    • A says

      07/07/2019 at 11:43 pm

      The lockers only fit a medium size backpack! I didn’t see any larger size lockers. Maybe the closest place with larger lockers would be at the train station close by

      Reply
    • Anonymous says

      12/02/2019 at 6:51 pm

      There are 100yen refundable lockers that can fit a backpack, but i also saw many big luggages secured to a long ‘handrail’ in the locker area.

      Reply
  9. catelijne says

    08/14/2019 at 3:33 am

    Your blog looks really amazing, thank you so much for sharing!

    Do you know by any chance if they have a giftshop? And if they ship their book?

    I am dying to have their book.. it is so inspiring!

    Keep up your amazing work, love it

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      08/14/2019 at 9:36 am

      Hmm, I never went to any gift shop but it seems like it would be a good idea for them to have one. Is the book not available online?

      Reply
  10. Sonia says

    11/06/2019 at 9:45 am

    Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to visit TeamLab will have to return, heard it is amazing !
    Great post !

    Reply
  11. Franciska says

    12/02/2019 at 9:41 pm

    I just purchased tickets to the museum but without the Tea House option. Will we still be able to purchase the tea while we are there?

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      12/03/2019 at 4:55 am

      Yes that’s what I did!

      Reply
  12. Roy Varghese says

    12/14/2019 at 12:36 am

    We had high expectations since we had heard and seen so much about the space and the exhibits. Being Graphic Designers ourselves, we were mostly disappointed and unimpressed.

    ‘The Crystal World’ was immersive, ‘Memory of Topography’ was an interesting play of scale and props, ‘Light Shell & Light Vortex’ was impressive in it’s use of light coordination and synchronisation.

    However, these alone did not redeem the overall experience, which was lacklustre and unimaginative. The scale and technical capacity of the project is impressive, however we were let down by the simplistic, repetitive and mostly meaningless content of the computer generated graphics. The motion graphics in most of the areas were like glorified screen-savers projected on to a large canvas. Their interactive capabilities were limited, predictable and dumbed down and in many spaces, where each individuals presence was supposed to affect the artwork, the interaction could not be experienced due to the constant presence of a hundred people at a time. After waiting in line for 45 minutes to see ‘Floating Nest’, we were terribly disappointed by a massive immersive screen space wasted with more meaningless computer graphics. It could have been sensational but the grandiose concepts are lost in translation. The only saving grace was that we got there at 9am and didn’t have to wait in line for most exhibits.

    Borderless is a good photo-op for selfie lovers, only looks good in pictures, and is overrated.

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      12/14/2019 at 10:47 am

      Aw I couldn’t disagree more! I loved it and spent most of the day there!

      Reply
  13. Anonymous says

    12/15/2019 at 4:41 pm

    You missed the butterfly room

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      12/16/2019 at 2:15 pm

      Is that at Teamlab Borderless? I didn’t see it on their website either.

      Reply
  14. Ah Yin says

    02/12/2020 at 11:44 am

    Hi may i know how long approx you finished walked around inside teamlab ? I am going to Tokyo this March and would like to plan my journey to Teamlab when I visit there

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      02/13/2020 at 10:28 am

      I spent about half the day there but you can easily do longer or shorter.

      Reply
  15. Lisa Poetzschke says

    06/12/2023 at 12:32 pm

    Thank you for your wonderful article. I was wondering if you had any experience with the bad foot odour at this venue. I have ready several posts by people mentioning that this was an issue for them. Particularly at the end of the day.
    Thanks.

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      06/15/2023 at 2:29 pm

      well your feet keep getting washed as you go through so not for me!

      Reply

Stay Connected

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact Me
  • Archives
  • Privacy Policy and Disclaimer

© 2025 · Be My Travel Muse. All Rights Reserved

footer-icon