teamLab Tokyo: which museum location and how to book

teamLab Borderless and teamLab Planets are two entirely separate museums in different parts of Tokyo, with different artwork, different booking pages, and different practical requirements — the confusion is understandable, because Borderless moved to a new location (Azabudai Hills) after its original Odaiba site closed, and search results and older articles still mix the two together. If you’re trying to decide which one to book, the short answer is: Planets involves walking through water and requires rolled-up trousers, while Borderless is a drier, walk-through installation space — pick based on that difference first, then on location.

Why the two museums get confused

The original teamLab Borderless opened in Odaiba in 2018 and closed in 2022, then reopened in a new, larger form at Azabudai Hills in central Tokyo. Because the name carried over to the new location, older travel content written about the Odaiba museum still circulates, sometimes with outdated directions or a booking link that no longer applies. teamLab Planets, meanwhile, has operated separately in Toyosu the entire time and was never the same museum as Borderless, despite frequently being mentioned in the same breath.

What makes Planets different

teamLab Planets is built around walking barefoot through water and soft, uneven surfaces as part of several installations, which means visitors are asked to roll up trousers or wear shorts, and shoes come off at the entrance. The experience is more physical and sensory than a typical museum walk-through, and the wet-floor sections are a deliberate part of the art, not an incidental inconvenience.

What makes Borderless different

teamLab Borderless at Azabudai Hills is a dry, walk-through digital art space spread across a large, deliberately maze-like layout, where installations blend into one another without fixed walls or a single set path. The scale and layout reward wandering rather than following a fixed route, and the museum sits inside the Azabudai Hills complex, which also includes shops and dining if you want to extend the visit.

Getting to each location

Azabudai Hills, home to Borderless, sits centrally in Tokyo and is reachable by several subway lines with a short walk from the nearest station. Toyosu, home to Planets, is further out near Tokyo Bay and is typically reached via the Yurikamome line or Tokyo Metro with a connecting walk — worth factoring in if you’re planning to visit both in one day, since they are not close to each other.

Booking tickets for either museum

Both museums sell timed-entry tickets online in advance, and popular time slots — especially weekends and Japanese holidays — sell out days or weeks ahead during busy seasons. Each museum has its own separate official booking page, and buying through the correct one matters, since a ticket for one museum does not grant entry to the other despite the shared teamLab name.

Visiting both in one trip

Because the two museums sit in different parts of the city and offer genuinely different experiences, some visitors choose to do both on separate days rather than back-to-back, especially since Planets involves drying off and putting shoes back on before heading anywhere else. If you do want both in one trip, booking Planets for a time slot with a looser schedule afterward gives more comfortable transition time.

What to bring for Planets specifically

Beyond clothing that can get wet at the ankles, a small towel and a bag that can hold shoes and socks while you walk through are worth bringing, since storage at the entrance is limited. Borderless requires no special preparation beyond comfortable walking shoes, since the space stays dry throughout.

Borderless versus Planets at a glance

	teamLab Borderless	teamLab Planets
Location	Azabudai Hills, central Tokyo	Toyosu, near Tokyo Bay
Experience	Dry, walk-through, maze-like	Barefoot, walking through water
What to bring	Comfortable shoes	Rolled-up trousers or shorts, towel

Booking and navigating from your phone

Both museums’ booking pages and the surrounding neighborhoods are easiest to manage with working data from the moment you land — confirming which station exit to use, pulling up your ticket QR code, or checking the other museum’s opening hours if you’re doing both in one trip. Install the Japan eSIM app before you fly and activate it after landing so this is already working; see plan sizes and the setup guides for a quick pre-flight setup.

The question behind the question

Most people searching “teamLab Tokyo tickets” aren’t asking about teamLab as a brand — they’re trying to figure out which of two very different museums matches what they actually want to see, and where it is now that Borderless has moved. Decide based on the water-versus-dry distinction first, confirm the current location and booking page for that museum specifically, and book early if your dates fall on a weekend or holiday.