How Ghibli Museum tickets are sold
The museum's ticket page is clear on three points (checked 12 October 2026):
- Reservations are taken on the Lawson Ticket website, and the ticket desk at the museum does not sell tickets.
- Tickets for the following month go on sale at 10:00 on the 10th of each month. Tickets for a July visit, for example, go on sale on 10 June.
- Visitors from overseas can buy either through the JTB Group or on Lawson Ticket's English-language site.
The English home page says the same thing more briefly: all admission is by advance reservation only. Plan your Mitaka day around a ticket you already hold, not the other way round.
The museum's pages that we read do not say whether tickets carry the buyer's name or whether staff check ID at entry. Before buying for other people, check the seller's terms during checkout. The ticket page does say that resale for profit is prohibited, so a ticket bought from a reseller may be refused.
Ticket prices by age
Prices include tax and come from the museum's ticket page (checked 12 October 2026):
| Visitor | Price |
|---|---|
| Adults and university students | ¥1,000 |
| High school and junior high school students | ¥700 |
| Elementary school students | ¥400 |
| Young children, age 4 and over | ¥100 |
| Under 4 | Free, no reservation needed |
The age bands follow Japanese school years rather than birthdays, so a 12-year-old in junior high pays ¥700, while a 12-year-old still in elementary school pays ¥400. The page says there are no group or early-booking discounts.
For two adults with a 9-year-old and a 5-year-old, the tickets come to ¥2,500. Add a 2-year-old and the total stays at ¥2,500, because under-4s need no ticket. The museum does not publish any extra fee on its ticket page, so check the final amount at checkout.
Entry slots, hours and closed days
The museum is open 10:00 to 18:00. Tickets are for one of seven entry times: 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 14:00, 15:00 or 16:00, and you must enter within one hour of your time. The page adds that it is not a rotating session, so once inside you can stay until closing. However, the visitor information page says re-entry is not allowed, so leaving for lunch outside ends your visit.
The ticket page says the museum is closed every Tuesday, plus other closures that change each year. The home page has an opening-calendar link (開館カレンダー). Look at it before you choose a date, because long closures do not follow the Tuesday pattern (checked 12 October 2026).
If tickets are sold out
The museum's pages do not describe a waiting list, returns or a day-of release. The options they do support are:
- Wait for the next release on the 10th if your trip runs into the following month.
- Try the other official route for overseas visitors: the JTB Group, which the ticket page names alongside Lawson Ticket.
- Do not buy from resellers. The museum prohibits resale for profit and says resold tickets will not be accepted.
If several timed attractions are competing for the same Tokyo days, such as teamLab tickets or Tokyo Disney Resort tickets, fix the Ghibli Museum date first, since it is the hardest to move, and book the others around it.
Getting to the museum
The museum is at 1-1-83 Shimorenjaku, Mitaka, inside the West Garden of Inokashira Park. According to the museum's directions page (checked 12 October 2026):
- To Mitaka Station: about 20 minutes from Shinjuku on the JR Chuo Line rapid service.
- On foot from Mitaka Station: leave by the South Exit and walk along the Tamagawa Josui canal for about 15 minutes at an easy pace; signs point the way.
- By community bus from Mitaka Station: about 5 minutes from the South Exit. Get off at the Ghibli Museum stop (三鷹の森ジブリ美術館).
- From Kichijoji or Inokashira-koen stations: about 15 minutes on foot.
There is no visitor parking, and the museum asks people not to drive. Bicycle parking for about 100 bikes is available on the grounds.
Community bus fares
The bus is the Mitaka City Bus (みたかシティバス), and two routes from Mitaka Station South Exit stop at the museum. Mitaka City's fare notice set these fares from 1 September 2024, and the museum's directions page lists the same amounts (checked 12 October 2026):
| Fare | Cash | IC card |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | ¥230 | ¥230 |
| Child | ¥120 | ¥50 |
The round-trip ticket for the Ghibli Museum route was discontinued with that change, so you pay each way. Buses do not run on the museum's closed days, and the museum says timetables can change without notice.
For two adults and a child paying the child fare by IC card, the bus costs ¥510 each way, or ¥1,020 for the round trip. The walk costs nothing and takes about 10 minutes longer. A card such as Suica or PASMO gives the lower child fare; our guide to Suica, PASMO and paying with a foreign card covers which card to get.
At the museum
The visitor information page sets out the rules that affect your visit (checked 12 October 2026):
- No photos or video inside the museum.
- No eating or drinking inside; café food can be eaten in the café or on its deck.
- 96 free lockers (80 small, 16 medium) need a ¥100 coin, which you get back.
- Strollers stay in the stroller area.
- The shop, café and reading room accept credit cards, e-money and QR payments.
- A permanent exhibit on B1 uses flashing strobe light.