Built in 1961, this Japanese theme park was a Disneyland knockoff. Visitors had all but stopped coming by 2006, so the amusement park was closed. It was not demolished and became a playground for urban explorer photographers. Have a beer and enjoy this photo tour of abandoned Nara Dreamland. Photo #1 by © Bram Dauw
Nara Dreamland was closed and abandoned in August of 2006. This photo of the Screw roller coaster was taken 5 years later in August 2011. Photo #2 by © Ralph Mirebs
Today: Satellite and Street View of the defunct Japanese theme park. It is located in Nara which is about 2 hours outside of Osaka, Japan. Photo #3 by Google / GeoEye Maps
Yes, like abandoned Six Flags in New Orleans, Nara Dreamland has security guards. If caught exploring, you could be arrested and fined. We are grateful to the photographers who dared to explore so we can tag along on their illegal tour. This is derelict Nara Dreamland as of 3-3-11. Photo #4 by © Bram Dauw
The wooden roller coaster Aska was in operation from 1998 to 2006. It’s 3,547 feet 11 inches in length. Here’s the abandoned amusement park in August 2011 from Aska. Photo #5 by © Ralph Mirebs
Nature reclaiming Aska, September 2010. According to Wikipedia, Aska was based on the wooden roller coaster ‘The Cyclone’ at Coney Island. Photo #6 by © Michael John Grist
Screw coaster cars, August 2011. This double corkscrew roller coaster operated from 1979 to 2006. It was a “single train with 6 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 24 riders.” Photo #7 by © Ralph Mirebs
October 2010: High noon abandoned Main Street. In Japan, ruins of abandoned places are called haikyo, but haikyo is also associated with urban exploration or urbex. Photo #8 by © Jordy Meow
Faded dreams April 2011. According to an urban explorer, “Nara Dreamland is a rip-off of Disneyland in Anaheim. Disneyland was opened in 1955, Nara Dreamland followed in 1961. You have copies of the Sleeping Beauty Castle, Adventureland, Main Street USA, Autopia, Skyway, Tea Party Cup Ride, Submarine Voyage, Flying Saucers, the monorail, the fire station, a pirate ship, double decker omnibusses, vintage cars, and a train station (called DreamStation). Even the entrance looked the same!” Photo #9 by © Michael Libby
Climbing inside Aska, August 2011. The roller coaster database states this ride had “7 cars per train. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 28 riders per train.” Photo #10 by © Ralph Mirebs
Witch and werewolf at abandoned Nara Dreamland, Japan, in 2008. Photo #11 by © drzeus
July 2010. A former park visitor explained, “This was a maze building with a difference. You were given a card on the way in and had to find 3 checkpoints inside and get the card stamped.” Photo #12 by © Kyle Merriman via BrandKnewMe
September 2010: Merry-go-round under the stars. Photo #13 by © Michael John Grist
In July 2010, the photographer wrote, “The bumper cars, screw coaster, merry-go-round and even Japan’s largest wooden roller coaster were still intact and almost tempting to climb aboard.” Photo #14 by © Kyle Merriman
Carousel as seen in October 2010. Photo #15 by © Jordy Meow
Dried up derelict water fountain in 2010. Photo #16 by © Florian Seidel via Abandoned Kansai
Dreamland on rainy day: April 27th, 2011. Photo #17 by © Michael Libby
Nature reclaiming Nara Dreamland monorail in 2006, the year the park closed. Photo #18 by © kore/okamo
Top of Aska (98′ 5″) on August 15, 2011. The coaster went 49.7 mph, had 2.8 G forces, and the ride lasted 1:45. Photo #19 by © Ralph Mirebs
Main Street in October 2010. The photographer wrote, “WARNING: The park being not colorful at all (or in an awful way), at the time of working on the pictures I converted everything to strong HDR and deleted the originals. Later, really disappointed by it I tried to re-work on them, and try to them look a bit softer.” Photo #20 by © Jordy Meow
February 2012: Snowy abandoned Nara Dreamland. Photo #21 by © Florian Seidel
October 2010: Mold and mildew creeping in. Photo #22 by © Jordy Meow
Going up. The Screw Coaster was 1,253 feet and 3 inches long. It reached 55.9 mph and the ride lasted 1:20. Photo #23 by © Ralph Mirebs
August 2011: Screw Coaster and castle. Photo #24 by © Ralph Mirebs
Sinking boats in abandoned Jungle Adventure section. Photo #25 by © Michael Libby
Snowy Aska on February 2, 2012. Photo #26 by © Florian Seidel
Nature reclaims abandoned Nara Dreamland’s main attraction, the Aska roller coaster. In 2010, the urban explorer / photographer wrote, “I’ve been to Nara Dreamland three times so far (during daytime and nighttime), spotted security twice and got caught once.” Photo #27 by © Florian Seidel via Abandoned Kansai
2008, no lines for Aska. Photo #28 by © drzeus
August 2010, overgrown lineup. Photo #29 by © Jordy Meow
August 2011:5 years after abandonment, nature is starting to take back portions of Nara Dreamland. Photo #30 by © Ralph Mirebs
Waiting cable cars. Photo #31 by © Kyle Merriman via BrandKnewMe
Screw Coaster. The photographer noted, “The main entrance, filled with shops, restaurants, makeshift police and fire stations, ticket booths and even a public hall was showing clear signs that the plant life wanted back what was once theirs.” Photo #32 by © Kyle Merriman via BrandKnewMe
Rusty and crusty seen on October 2010. Photo #33 by © Jordy Meow
Coaster taken over by jungle overgrowth September 2010. Photo #34 by © Michael John Grist
Top left: Nara Dreamland, Main Street in October 1963; Top right: Abandoned main street now; Middle left: Dreamland main entrance then; Middle right: Main entrance now; Bottom left: Screw roller coaster in 2004 while still open; Bottom right: Abandoned Screw coaster today. Photo #36 by © kevf, #37 by © Kyle Merriman via Imagineering Disney, #38 by © kore / okama, #39 by © Florian Seidel, #40 by © Theme Park Review, #41 by © Kyle Merriman via indoblogger
Abandoned waterpark ride in October 2010. Photo #42 by © Jordy Meow
Lonely Viking ride at derelict Dreamland in August 2011. Photo #43 by © Ralph Mirebs
Inside the Matterhorn-like mountain where the photographer captured this rusted heavy machinery with heavy overgrowth in September 2010. He wrote, “A coaster ride goes round the outside, while the cable-car goes through.” Photo #44 by © Michael John Grist
Overgrown as seen in April 2011. Photo #45 by © Michael Libby
Excellent. August 2011: Nature reclaims surveillance cameras. Photo #46 by © Ralph Mirebs
Some sort of swan-mobiles hidden behind weeds in March 2011. Photo #47 by © Bram Dauw
Top left: Nara Dreamland castle in 2005 while still open with the British park mascot; Top right: Abandoned knockoff Disney castle in April 2011; Bottom left: Snow wtf White while Dreamland was open; Bottom right: Derelict Dreamland kiddie rides. Photo #48 by © Ivan Lucas, #49 by © Michael Libby, #50 by © MSN Money, #51 by © Florian Seidel
Control booth in the ruins of Nara Dreamland. Photo #52 by © Bram Dauw
Urban explorers often have to dodge security and remember someone may be watching. “Say cheese,” the photographer wrote. He arrived at the park “a little after midnight. The streets were quiet and calm as we walked the 30 minutes to the Dreamland site. Both of us were pretty excited. There was always the possibility that the security guard might do night sweeps. There was still the threat of fines, motion sensors, alarms.” Photo #53 by © Michael John Grist
Artistic shot of “pink attraction” ride in October 2010. Photo #54 by © Jordy Meow via haikyo
Dreamland no more October 2010. Photo #55 by © Jordy Meow
July 2010: ‘Dreamland Sleeping Beauty.’ Photo #57 by © Kyle Merriman via Speigel Online
03.03.2011: Dreamland Abandoned Park. Photo #58 by © Bram Dauw
October 2010: Castle, maybe more like Grimm Brothers than Disneylike Dreamland? Photo #60 by © Jordy Meow
Abandoned pink Cadillac, March 2011. Photo #61 by © Bram Dauw
July 2010: Derelict dreams or urbex fantasy? Photo #62 by © Kyle Merriman via BrandKnewMe
Nightmare at abandoned Dreamland? Photo #63 by © Bram Dauw
Sunrise. Watch out for security! Photo #64 by © Michael John Grist
Wow what a beautiful place, Id move right in!~
Fantastic photos and location – an audio field recordist’s dream!
wonder why this dreamland is abandoned….
It basically just took Disneyland… degraded it to a six flags level and people started to catch on and this Dreamland was shut down for several copyright issues but it is still so cool to see pictures of an abandoned theme park like this one and how much it looks like Disneyland… what were those people thinking.
Thats not right.
It shut down because a bigger and newer park oppend called universal and they lost the costumers to keep it going, its not because of copyright issues, lol.
Yeah, what were those people thinking…for 45 YEARS! It’s not like it opened and flopped because people hated it or it got shut down in a few years because Disney came after them for copyright infringement. It lasted almost five decades! You think Disney just “caught on” after 45 years and then went after them? Please.
top kek
Japan does not have likeness copyright laws, there was and is nothing Disney could do about this blunt clone. And before construction, Walt Disney was actually asked tons of questions about Disneyland by the designers, which is willingly gave up. Ole Walt was actually more pissed off that they has the balls to drill him for questions, when they were secretly creating a clone of his park.
That said, it closed down because of attendance numbers. The Japanese don’t drive out to far away locations, like Americans will. So as other parks were created closer to major cities, attendance kept plummeting and it eventually closed down.
I guess this shows us we should not copy someone elses vision. Erie but familiar.
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This looks like a lonely theme park
Yes … the design is clearly needed to be changed 🙂
What would be brighter , nebudu (
Thank you for posting these! Hauntingly beautiful.
Hauntingly beautiful.You are macabre. What is nice hier except the photos?
The human cretinism to ruin the nature to build something beautiful and to destroy it?
Sorry i speak not english i need the google to translate. But I can write so much: that civilization is very, very sick. Our destruction become of God a blessing for the next civilization!
Learn english if you are going to post in an American forum!!!!!!!
*fart noise*
americanbully
You’re are an idiot.
Sad to look at, but I can see how a knockoff would lose business once Japan got a real Disney park.
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How much? and when can I move in?
What a shame. Looks like it was a very nice place before. Unfortunately the scrap steel boys will eventually eat it up. Wish my country could have some of those rides, even if they are old (Nicaragua.) Wonder what happened. China also has one of these skeleton parks and they never got off the ground. What goes around comes around.
Awesome collection of photos. Theme park is very much amazing!!…Lovely pics
[…] These photos from an abandoned amusement park in Nara, Japan which from the sounds of it shut down when they realised trying to run a copycat Disneyland in a country that already had a Disneyland probably wasn’t a great idea. […]
I think this place is awesome. You call it a rip off disney but hey everyone deserves to go to Disney even if it’s not the real one. Not everyone can afford to go to the real disney. If I could I would buy this place, clean it up, and reopen it. That’s just me.
I feel sorrow looking at these pictures. This whole Dreamland must be lonely, waiting for people to come and have fun. But it is now, just a faded dream. 🙁
Awesome photos. HDR, in particular, really lends itself to highlighting everything about abandonment and subsequent degeneration. Believe me, the risks taken to get these photos are really appreciated by those of us Urbex wannabies (me especially) who don’t get the opportunity or don’t have the balls to go and check these places out ourselves. They really capture the desolation and deterioration so well. I love abandoned theme parks. There’s nothing so captivating as a place originally designed to bring joy, laughter and fun which, once closed and in the process of deterioration, seems to then reflect the exact opposite ambience to that which was originally intended. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Even if Disney had a hand in shutting this park down, I find it REALLY weird that no other company wanted (or was allowed)to purchase the land, boats, cars, or rides in general. I live near a park and they are constantly buying & selling attractions from all around the world. They transport used rides. Weird.
I guess when Disney came to town they cleaned house & obliterated the competition.
Great Pics! Thanks for sharing!
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I find it interesting here that the bulk of the comments here are about copyright instead of all the waste portrayed in these photos.
It took a LOT of resources to make this place. Now it sits there rotting. In a world on its knees because of waste, I find it really sad that the focus here is on copyrights.
@AJ Klein, if it hadn’t have been for copyright issues, the themepark would never have shut down and hence, less waste.
Seriously? You really believe that? That it took Disney 45 YEARS to get it shut down for copyright issues? Pay attention. Yes, the park closed in 2006, but it didn’t open in 2000 or 2002…it opened in 1961!
And people want to bemoan the “waste”? Is EVERY business that opened in 1961 still open? How are the resources that it took to build this park–in 1961!–wasted when it operated and entertained families for 45 YEARS?! I guess people shouldn’t build ANYTHING then, because in a few DECADES it might go out of business and “waste” those resources. Sheesh.
And as for “reopening” it. Um, business pros, there’s a REASON it closed (no, NOT copyright), you know? As in losing business to a bigger, newer competitor? Like the way businesses go out of business every day? So why would that reason suddenly disappear and the park be a smashing success again if it suddenly reopened?
Face it: It had its time, filled a need during that time, and now its time has passed. No waste. No “misuse” of resources. Sad, yes, as we find all aging and dying sad. Look at us, as humans. Should we have never lived because one day our time, too, will have passed?
Couldn’t agree more. Things come, things go. Just the way it is. I find it a great thing that the place hasn’t been demolished and we are lucky enough to enjoy these fantastic photographs (even more lucky for the people who can get to go there and explore). It could just as easy be a completely cleared area with just a few concrete blocks left around as a reminder. The sad day will come when there is nothing left to make people remember that it ever existed.
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The cadillac man! Noone speaking of that? 😀 Itlooks good enough to repair and ride.
Exactly what I was thinking. That poor car just sitting there collecting dust 🙁 it truly breaks my heart
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no queue’s!!!!!! brilliant
OMG!!!!!! How wouldnt I know about this amazing place.
What a photo clarity & daring this photographer has!
This place looks so stunning especially the Wooden roller coaster
…Am I the only one who noticed the guy in the forest, in the boats picture?
It’s not a guy; it’s a dummy of a Native American (American Indian) that is a part of the Jungle Adventure ride at Disneyland (yet another thing they copied–gotta admire their attention to detail!).
would love to buy that Cadillac!!!!!!!!!!!
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These are gorgeous. BUT THE PINK CADDIE. Somebody needs to bring some gas, fill her up and ride her out.
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I want that Cadillac
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The park was closed when a black guy was caught peeing in the fountain at the main entrance
[…] Illegal Tour: Abandoned Amusement Park Nara Dreamland [65 PICS] […]
This is so fascinating. It looks like they literally closed it for the day and never came back. These pictures are incredible.
C’mon folks, the place lasted 45 YEARS!
It’s not unusual for a facility like that to go away after a decade.
Disneyland and Knotts are the exceptions for longevity, supported by a healthy (expensive) marketing campaign and booming communities around them. If this place was built in the wrong area without a supporting population, it’s a miracle that it lasted as long as it did.
People won’t spend money to go to a park that looks old or tacky… if the facility and its’ features aren’t kept in top shape they won’t stay for long or make a return trip.
Blade the place flat and start over. Fun while it lasted.
I’m so going to this next time I’m in Japan…
This reminds me of many other parks that lost it luster. But in its current state it makes a great place for those futuristic movies where earth has lost the battle. Anyone remember the movie “Hannah” where one of the scenes was an abandon amusement park. I wonder ifvit was done here or Germany.
It was filmed at Spreepark, Germany.
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I actually visited this park back in1983 when I was living in Japan. It was just off the rail line that connects the cities of Osaka and Nara. We visited in March when the hundreds of cherry trees that were throughout the park were just coming in to bloom. Amazing to see how nature is reclaiming the site.
Wow! Great collection. Done very well. Grateful to see them.
So you said there was security there, so you’re saying there were like infra-red trip lines and modern cameras? I assume you must’ve gone in some camouflage gear and gone all metal gear solid on the guards.
Why has ths not be re-done?
and why the hell is security still around?
It’s a shame that this has gone to ruins but a great set of pictures 🙂
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My kingdom to go back in time and spend a day there. Im not a rollar coaster man but I will LOVE that water slide
As crowded as Japan is, I’m surprised it has not been torn down for land to build housing.
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