World Expo Japan: Our Honest Summer Review (And Why We’d Skip It)

Our World Expo Japan summer adventure promised wonder and innovation but delivered long waits, stifling heat, and more frustration than fun.

For those that just want the TL;DR answer to why we don’t recommend going to the World Expo in the summer:
PRO: Impressive country booths in Commons buildings
CON: Brutal heat, long lines, and lackluster food experience
CON: Pavilion lottery is frustrating and limited
Verdict: Skip the summer crowds and consider fall (maybe)

If you want more of the why and more details about the expo continue reading.

What Is The World Expo?

The World Expo is basically the planet’s biggest show-and-tell. A massive international event where countries set up pavilions to showcase their culture, innovations, and big ideas for solving global problems.

The goal? Inspire a more connected and sustainable future. The reality? A mix of impressive tech, cultural highlights, and a whole lot of walking and waiting in the blazing sun.

The Ticketing Maze: Win a Lottery, Lose Your Mind

When you buy your World Expo ticket you select a specific entry time, we bought tickets for July 5th and picked an 11:30am entry time (big mistake!).

Once you’ve purchased your entry ticket you then enter lotteries to get into specific country pavilions. You’re allowed to enter 5 lotteries per opportunity.

We purchased our tickets months and months in advance, so we had 3 lottery opportunities; 90-days prior, 30-days prior, and 7-days prior. So 15 opportunities to try to win a lottery for different country pavilions.

We entered the Gundam pavilion lottery four times and still lost. Clearly the universe thought we weren’t worthy of giant robots.

After all was said and done, we only won two lotteries and neither was high on our priority list.

Where To Store Your Luggage

The day of the expo we took the train in from Otsu and had two larger backpacks with us because we were switching to a new hotel in Osaka.

Getting to the expo site was easy with clear signage and staff everywhere.

However, one of the challenging things for us was finding storage for our backpacks because there was no way we were going to drag them all around the expo. We ended up finding the Expo Event storage area after following some signs and asking.

The expo storage area is a solid ten-minute walk that felt more like a backpack-laden pilgrimage. I was halfway to offering a prayer by the time we arrived. You can store your luggage for the day or have it delivered to your hotel.

I knew after a day at the expo we wouldn’t want to make the trek back to grab our backpacks so we decided to have it delivered to our hotel. It cost around 2,000 yen for two backpacks which, as far as I’m concerned, was money very well spent.

After we shipped our luggage we stopped at Starbucks for a quick snack and drink ( if they still have it when you go get the Earl Grey Latte it’s soooo good!). We were making sure we were fortified for the adventure ahead and thank goodness we did. Once we were refreshed, we hopped on our last train to get out to the expo.

Tip: This is a frequent train so if the first one you see is really packed consider waiting a few minutes for the next one.

The Hot, Slow Crawl to the World Expo Gates In Summer

When you get off the train you’ll walk through the station, tap your card to exit and make your way up the steps.

When you get outside get ready to wait and wait and wait…

We waited outside in temps of 105 F for just over an hour before we passed through the Expo gates.

For all the things Japan excels at they failed at the entry lines. Even though we had a timed ticket, our UV umbrellas, and water, it was still so hot and the sun kicking back up from the pavement was awful. I can see how people pass out at the Expo.

We kept on asking each other how long we would give it before we just bounced and took the L on the tickets. Which, as you can tell, we decided to wait it out, but it was a close call.

In our humble opinion, here are a few things they could have done to help people out. Put up shade clothes along the entry lines, provide industrial fans set to high, and definitely have some misters and places to buy water because our two bottles didn’t last nearly long enough.

They were passing out umbrellas at the entry if you didn’t have one but there definitely wasnt enough for everyone and so much more could have been done.

Helpful Tip: If you are going in the summer pack lots of water for the wait, UV umbrella, the cooling cloths ( I wasn’t a huge fan of these because of the smell but they do help), and a handheld fan.

Finally Inside… But Is It Worth It?

When you finally get up to the entrance you will go through security, metal detector, bags scanned, and then you are in.

Once inside we immediately needed to hydrate and we wanted to buy the stamp books from the gift shop. The lines were long for both so we decided to divide and conquer.

Deb went to Lawson which is located right by the entrance to get us water and I went to the Official Expo store to grab Expo stamp books.

How was it inside Lawson’s and the Official Expo Store? Imagine Black Friday meets Comic-Con, then remove personal space and add sweat. We grabbed our goods like they were survival rations and fled.

We regrouped at the benches by the stores for a little break and then headed over to the information center to buy a couple expo maps, the maps cost 200 yen each.

Commons Buildings – The Easiest Way To See Many Countries & Collect Many Stamps

After we grabbed our maps we started to explore and hunt down stamps. We explored Commons Building B,C, and D. Deb read on a Facebook that you could find lots of stamps at the Commons and they were right!

The Commons have multiples booths showcasing different countries. I would say there are about 10-20 countries per building.

Each country in the Commons had a stamp so be sure to find them. Speaking of stamps in the Commons is where you find the layered stamp that you create in the back of the book, each building has one stamp for it.

Commons Building B, C, and D were a lot of African countries which was pretty cool to check out. Going through the Expo Commons buildings I realized I seriously need to brush up on my geography. It turns out there are a lot more countries than I thought.

The booths were interactive, too. Deb even got talked into wearing a traditional Tanzanian outfit, which was a lot of fun! We also saw people playing musical instruments and teaching kids how to use them, there’s definitely plenty to see and do inside the buildings.

Helpful Tip: There is a wait to get into the Commons Buildings but it usually goes by quickly.

Between visiting the Commons we took fun photos of Pokemon, The Gundam and other characters we could find while walking around. There is also fun artwork throughout on the ground and buildings so keep an eye out.

Anime Food Expo

Part of why we chose to go to the Expo in July was for the Anime Food Expo that would be going on and all I can say was we came for anime magic and left with casual food‑court fare and cafeteria vibes.

With all the themed cafes Japan does and does them well, they really failed here.

I honestly don’t know what I was expecting but this was not it. The food expo gave off strong middle school cafeteria energy and absolutely zero anime magic. Once you enter the building you are directed to a line and given a menu and you quickly need to figure out what you want because once you get up to the counter you order.

The menus were giant and had a photo and I believe a description of what each item was, also throughout the line they had a table set up with fake food that they were selling. Once paid you were given a receipt and another piece of paper that I’m honestly not sure what it was.

After, you have to go find the booth that you ordered food from and show them your receipt and get the item. We tried 3 items: a flavored soda, dumplings and some fried chicken. It was ok, I think the best item was the dumplings.

For seating there are tables down the center some with seats and others just for standing, also note it was pretty loud in there. Located inside there is also a merch store. All in all I definitely wouldn’t go to the Expo for the Anime Food Expo.

After the little snack we slowly started to make our way to the exit. To say we were over the heat and the long waits was an understatement. I know we probably missed a bunch of free activities but the heat was getting to us.

Pavilion Wait Times

If waiting 90+ minutes to maybe get inside a pavilion sounds like your kind of party, then congrats, the Expo is your Disneyland. Just without the churros, the rides, or the fun. Bring patience, snacks, and maybe a podcast series. You’ll finish at least two seasons before you get into a pavilion.

Why We Don’t Recommend The World Expo in Summer

I think our recommendation might change if visiting in the fall. I think the cooler temps might make the Expo more tolerable, but the wait times were so wretched I’m not sure I ever need to go back. If you don’t mind long waits and have a couple days to spend at the Expo it might be worth it for you. For us, it just wasn’t our thing as much as we wanted it to be.

Pack This If You Dare to Go in Summer

• UV umbrella
• Cooling cloths (comes with strong menthol scent)
• Extra water bottles
• Handheld fan
• Comfortable shoes

World Expo Final Thoughts

• Buy Expo merch outside — it’s cheaper and less chaotic.
• Pack snacks — some prices are fair, others are wild.
• Hydrate constantly — bring way more water than you think you’ll need.
• Wear comfy shoes — you’ll walk a lot.
• Plan ahead — know your top goals and be ready to abandon them when the heat breaks your spirit.
• Expect Disney-level waits — but none of the payoff.

The World Expo may bring the world together but in summer, it mostly just brings the heat, the crowds, and the regret.

Things To Do Beyond The World Expo

Be sure to plan a few extra days to explore Osaka and the surrounding areas. We highly recommend the Moss Temple in Kyoto, the Otsu Cable Car, Shaun the Sheep Farm, and Nara.