【Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai】How to Snag Last-Minute Pavilion Reservations (3 Days in Advance)｜Tips & Tricks for Booking at Exactly Midnight—Including Backup Strategies if You Keep Missing Out!

2025-06-27

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At Expo 2025 Osaka, many of the most popular pavilions require advance reservations.
Among them, the “last-minute slot reservation system”—which opens exactly three days before your visit—is an intense, split-second competition.

In this post, I’ll share the methods and timing that actually worked for me, including some key tips for how to successfully grab a slot (even if you’ve had no luck so far)!

📩 When Last-Minute Reservation Opens: Notification Will Be Sent

As the reservation window approaches, you’ll receive a notification via email or message from Expo 2025.

For example, if you have a ticket for July 1, you’ll be able to make pavilion reservations starting June 28.
That means the reservation actually opens at midnight on June 27 (right as the clock turns to June 28).

⏰ Reservations Start at Midnight, 4 Days Before Your Visit!

First, the most important thing: when reservations open.
Reservations begin exactly at midnight (00:00), four days before the date you want to visit.

But be careful…
By 12:01 AM, all available slots might already be gone.
Yes, it’s that competitive!

🧭 Tips for a Successful Reservation (Based on What I Actually Do)

STEP

Make sure you’re logged in by 11:50 PM the night before

I personally start logging in around 10:00 PM, and stay on standby from there.
Why so early? Because if you’re even a little late, you might not be able to log in at all.

For example

Try logging in around 10:30 PM, and you could be stuck in a 1-hour queue.
At 11:00 PM, it might already be a 2-hour wait.

And if that happens, you’ll probably miss the 12:00 AM reservation window.

STEP

Keep refreshing the “My Tickets” page to stay logged in

Even if you’re logged in, don’t let your guard down.
If you leave the screen idle for more than 10 minutes, you’ll be automatically logged out.

So here’s what I do:

After logging in, I refresh the page every 10 minutes to keep the session active.
Then around 11:58–11:59 PM, I hit the “My Tickets” button again to reload the screen and make sure I’m fully ready to go.

STEP

At exactly midnight, the “Reserve” button turns red — click it immediately!

Once the button changes from gray to red, you need to click it right away.
Important tip: The color won’t change automatically — you’ll need to manually refresh the page to make it appear.

That’s why I always click the “My Tickets” icon again around 11:58–11:59 PM to reload the screen.
I wait for the red button to show up and get ready to click as soon as it appears.

⚠️ What if the page shows an error?

If there’s heavy traffic, you might see an error screen like the one below.
Don’t panic — just wait about 1–2 minutes, then try clicking the My Tickets icon again.

If your timing is right, the screen might load properly on the next try!

But honestly, when traffic gets crazy, you might get kicked out and have to log in again.
It’s kind of a lottery at that point 😂

At 12:03 AM, there were already 8,000 people waiting with an estimated 17-minute wait time!

STEP

When the search bar appears — act fast!

As soon as the search screen pops up, don’t hesitate — start searching right away!

Option 1: Leave the search field blank and hit the Search button.
This will show you a list of all pavilions available for reservation that day.
Option 2: If you already know which pavilion you want, enter a keyword directly.

For example, try just typing “GUNDAM” or “Japan” — you don’t need to include the word “Pavilion.”
Short keywords work faster and are easier to match.

Bonus tip:

I personally prepare a list of keywords in a memo app in advance, so I can just copy and paste them into the search bar when it’s go time.

Also, be careful when typing names in English — capitalization matters!
For example, “PASONA” will work, but “Pasona” won’t show up in search results. (Yes, really 😂)

STEP

Click on the Available Time Slot to Confirm Your Reservation!

This part is a race against time —
Don’t hesitate. Just click.
You won’t have time to think — every second counts!

🙌 If You Can’t Get Your First Choice, Just Book Something!
Even if you don’t manage to grab a spot at a popular pavilion,
it’s still worth reserving at least one, just to make the most of your visit!

⚠️ Pre-Login and Heavy Traffic Countermeasures Are Essential!

Honestly, just logging in before the reservation time can be a real challenge.
From my experience, if you haven’t logged in by 10 PM, you’re taking a big risk.

Especially the “My Tickets” page often gets overloaded with traffic,
and if you hesitate, you might see a “1 to 2 hour wait” message,
which could cause you to miss the reservation window altogether.

✅ Key Tips to Avoid Login Issues

Ideally, log in to “My Tickets” by 10 PM!: After 10 PM, the page gets extremely busy, and you might face a 1 to 2 hour wait just to access it.
Be careful—if you stay inactive for more than 10 minutes while logged in, you’ll be automatically logged out.: I personally refresh the page every 10 minutes to keep my session alive.
Traffic peaks especially after 11 PM!: Trying to access your account during this time often results in a 1 to 2 hour waiting message.

Because of this, I always make sure to be logged in by exactly 10 PM, keep the “My Tickets” page open, and frequently click the “My Tickets” icon to stay connected and ready.

You might think, “This sounds a bit tricky…“
But once you get the hang of the process, it’s all about timing and focus!

Pavilions That Disappear Immediately After Reservation Opens

Italy Pavilion
Monster Hunter
GUNDAM NEXT FUTURE PAVILION
null²
PASONA NATUREVERSE
Future of Life, the Signature Pavilion of ISHIGURO Hiroshi / 石黒浩「いのちの未来」
Japan Pavilion / 日本館
Osaka Healthcare Pavilion Nest for Reborn / 大阪ヘルスケアパビリオン（本館）リボーン体験

Pavilions That Usually Still Have Availability When Reservations Open

Thailand Pavilion / タイ館
Women’s Pavilion / ウーマンズパビリオン
三菱未来館
ブルーオーシャンドーム
飯田グループ
未来の都市 / Future City

The “Future City” zone tends to have more availability and is generally easier to book.
Among the pavilions in this zone, this one is my personal favorite! ✨
If you’re not sure which one to choose, I definitely recommend giving this one a try♡

If you’re aiming for a specific pavilion, definitely give these tips a try!
When you succeed in booking, the experience will be all the more rewarding ✨