Tokyo, Saturday, 6 December 2025.
The Happy Ride with Baymax opened last Tuesday at Tokyo Disneyland, adding a compact, IP-driven family dark ride presented by Daihatsu. Nursebot-themed tow vehicles pull guest cars through dynamic, spinning show scenes inspired by Big Hero 6, delivering high throughput despite a short 1.5‑minute cycle. For retail and operations teams that matters: branded sponsorship is deeply integrated into the guest journey, the ride’s small footprint and kinetic towing mechanics change maintenance schedules and staffing patterns, and the attraction’s strong early demand—queue peaks around 100 minutes—creates opportunities for timed merchandising, Premier Access upsell, and seasonal overlays. Planners should note implications for dispatch cadence, spare-part strategies for non‑conventional towing linkages, and cross‑promotion between sponsor activations and themed retail assortments. The installation signals Oriental Land Company’s continued capital allocation toward familiar IP with broad daytime appeal and suggests immediate testing grounds for capacity management tactics and revenue-driving peripheral offers aimed at family groups.