teamLab Planets is an immersive digital art museum in Toyosu, on the waterfront in eastern Tokyo, where you take off your shoes and walk barefoot through a sequence of huge artworks. In some rooms you wade through knee-deep water while projected koi swim around your legs; in others you sink into soft floors or stand in a forest of hanging lights that seems to go on forever. teamLab Planets is a strongly physical experience, and it is one of the most popular paid attractions in Tokyo.
Why visit teamLab Planets
Unlike its sister museum, teamLab Borderless, which you explore freely, Planets follows a set path. That makes it easier to plan and harder to get lost. The idea is that you become part of each work with your whole body: the water, the mirrors and the soft floors all change how you see and move.
The museum opened in 2018 as a temporary exhibition and has been extended several times. It is due to run for a fixed period, so if it is on your list, check the official site for the current end date.
Works include a room of water where projected fish turn into flowers when they touch you, a mirrored space filled with strings of changing lights, a room of floating orchids that rise and fall around you, and an outdoor garden area. Some of the garden works can be seen without going through the water rooms.
How to get to teamLab Planets
The closest station is Shin-Toyosu on the Yurikamome, the driverless line that runs from Shimbashi across Odaiba to Toyosu. The museum is only a minute or two's walk from the station.
Toyosu station is the other option and is useful if you are coming on the Tokyo Metro Yurakucho Line. From there, it is roughly a 10 minute walk along the main road, or you can change to the Yurikamome for one stop. Pay with a Suica or Pasmo card on both lines.
teamLab Planets tickets
Entry is by date-and-time ticket, and you should book ahead through the official teamLab website (teamlab.art). Weekend and holiday slots often sell out, and prices vary by day. Children's tickets are cheaper, and very young children may enter free, but check the current rules. Arrive close to your time slot; there is often a short queue at the entrance even with a ticket.
Check opening hours on the official site before you go, as they vary across the year and some days have special opening times.
What to wear and bring
This is the part that catches visitors out. You will be barefoot, and in the water rooms the water can come up to around knee height. Practical tips:
- Wear trousers that roll up easily above the knee, or shorts. Shorts have been available to borrow for free at the entrance.
- Some floors are mirrored, so a skirt is not ideal. The free shorts solve this too.
- Lockers are provided for shoes, bags and coats. Phones can come with you, but keep a firm grip near the water or use a waterproof pouch.
- Towels are provided for drying off after the water sections.
Best time to visit and how long to stay
Weekday mornings and the first slots of the day are the least crowded. Evenings can also be good, and the museum is a useful rainy-day plan as most of it is indoors. A visit generally takes about one and a half to two hours, including changing and lockers. Because the route is linear, crowds move steadily, but the popular rooms can feel full at peak times, so be patient for photos.
Nearby on the same stop
Toyosu Market, where Tokyo's wholesale fish market moved from Tsukiji in 2018, is one stop along the Yurikamome at Shijo-mae. Visitor walkways let you look down on the market floors in the early morning, and there are sushi and seafood restaurants inside. Close to Toyosu station, the shopping mall at Urban Dock LaLaport Toyosu has a waterfront deck and plenty of places to eat. Ride the Yurikamome in the other direction and you reach Odaiba, with its beaches, malls and views of Rainbow Bridge.
See more around the station on the teamLab Planets page, and find other things to do across the city in our Tokyo subway guide.