Learn Hardcore Japanese: kondo no syuumatu ni yuuenti ni ikimasu. - I will go to the amusement park this coming weekend.

In English, we must say “I will go to the amusement park…”.
In Japanese, 今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。 literally just says “(will) go to the amusement park this coming weekend.”

Who is going (I / we / you / he / she) is understood from context:

If you are talking about your plans, it naturally means “I”.
If you are talking about your family, it could mean “we”.

So there is no explicit word for “I” (私) in the sentence, but Japanese listeners don’t find this strange at all.

Why is the present tense 行きます used when the meaning is “will go” in the future?

Japanese doesn’t have a special future tense like English. The polite present tense form (行きます) is used for:

Present/habitual actions:
- 毎日学校に行きます。= I go to school every day.
Scheduled/future actions, especially with a time expression:
- 明日、東京に行きます。= I will go to Tokyo tomorrow.
- 今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。= I will go to an amusement park this coming weekend.

The time word (今度の週末, “this coming weekend”) tells you it’s in the future, so Japanese doesn’t need a different verb form like “will go”.

What is the role of の in 今度の週末?

の here acts like an “of” or a possessive/connecting particle that links two nouns:

今度 (this coming time / next time)
週末 (weekend)

今度の週末 literally means:

“the weekend of this coming time”
→ Naturally understood as “this coming weekend”.

In general:

Noun A の Noun B → “Noun B of Noun A” / “Noun A’s Noun B”
- 日本の映画 = Japanese movie
- 東京の天気 = Tokyo’s weather
- 今度の週末 = this coming weekend

Why is に used twice? What’s the difference between the に after 週末 and after 遊園地?

They’re both に, but they mark different types of information:

週末に – time marker
- に after a time word often means “at / on / in (time)”.
- 今度の週末に = on this coming weekend
遊園地に – destination marker
- に after a place with a motion verb (like 行く, 来る, 帰る) marks destination.
- 遊園地に行きます = go to an amusement park

So:

今度の週末に → when (time)
遊園地に → where to (destination)

It just happens that the same particle に is used for both roles.

Could I use へ instead of に with 遊園地? What’s the difference between に and へ here?

Yes, you can say:

今度の週末に遊園地へ行きます。

Both 遊園地に行きます and 遊園地へ行きます are correct.

Nuance:

に:
- Most common in conversation.
- Slightly stronger sense of “reaching / arriving at” a destination.
へ:
- Has a “toward” feeling: “towards the amusement park”.
- Often sounds a bit more formal/literary or used in written announcements, speeches, etc., but it’s not wrong or rare in speech.

In everyday spoken Japanese, 遊園地に行きます is more typical.

What exactly does 今度 (こんど) mean here? Does it mean “this time” or “next time”? Is it ambiguous?

今度 (こんど) can be tricky because it’s somewhat flexible and context-dependent.

Common meanings:

This coming / the next upcoming (future):
- 今度の週末 = this coming weekend / next weekend (from now)
- 今度の休み = my next day off
This time (the one we’re talking about now) (could be present or future):
- 今度は気をつけます。= This time I’ll be careful.
Last time (in some contexts, especially past narratives):
- この前(このまえ) and 前回(ぜんかい) are clearer for “last time”, but in casual speech someone may say 今度 to refer back to a previously mentioned occasion.

In your sentence:

今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。
→ It clearly means “this coming weekend” / “next weekend” (the next weekend from now).

So yes, 今度 can be ambiguous on its own, but with 週末 and future-like context it’s understood as the upcoming one.

What’s the difference between 今度の週末, 今週末, and 来週末?

All relate to weekends but with slightly different reference points:

今週末 (こんしゅうまつ):
- Literally “this weekend (of this week)”.
- Usually means the weekend that belongs to the current week.
- If today is Wednesday, 今週末 usually means the weekend in a few days.
来週末 (らいしゅうまつ):
- “next weekend (of next week)”.
- The weekend of next week.
今度の週末:
- Most naturally: “this coming weekend / the next weekend from now”.
- If today is early in the week, 今度の週末 and 今週末 often refer to the same weekend.
- If it’s already Friday night, some people might use 今度の週末 to mean the next weekend (not the one that’s practically already here), depending on context.

In learner-friendly usage:

Use 今週末 for “this (current) weekend”.
Use 来週末 for “next weekend”.
Use 今度の週末 as “this coming weekend”, but be aware of slight ambiguity around boundary days.

Why is there no object marker を in this sentence?

The verb 行きます (to go) does not take a direct object; it takes a destination.

Direct object in Japanese is marked by を and answers “what?”:
- 本を読みます。= I read a book. (book is object)
- ご飯を食べます。= I eat rice. (rice is object)
For motion verbs like 行く (go), 来る (come), 帰る (return), the place you go to is marked with に or へ, not を:
- 学校に行きます。= I go to school.
- 日本へ行きます。= I go to Japan.
- 家に帰ります。= I go back (return) home.

So 遊園地 is not an object but a destination, so it uses に, not を.

What level of politeness is 行きます compared to 行く? When should I use each?

Japanese verbs have plain and polite forms:

行く = plain form (dictionary form)
行きます = polite -ます form

Usage:

行きます (polite):
- Used in most conversations with people who are not close friends/family.
- Appropriate at school with teachers, at work, in shops, etc.
- Safe default for learners.
行く (plain):
- Used with close friends, family, or in very casual situations.
- Also the form used in dictionaries and many grammar explanations.

So:

今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。 → polite, neutral, good for most situations.
今度の週末に遊園地に行く。 → casual, good with close friends.

Can I change the word order, like putting 遊園地に earlier in the sentence?

Yes. Japanese word order is relatively flexible as long as the verb comes at the end. These are all natural:

今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。
今度の週末に行きます。遊園地に。 (more spoken / slightly dramatic)
遊園地に今度の週末に行きます。 (possible, but less common order)

Basic patterns usually keep time before place:

[Time] に [Place] に行きます。
- 今日、学校に行きます。
- 明日、友だちの家に行きます。
- 今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。

For learners, the safest and most natural pattern is:

[Time] に [Destination] に行きます。

What is the difference between 遊園地 and テーマパーク? Do both mean “amusement park”?

Both can refer to places with rides and attractions, but there are nuances:

遊園地 (ゆうえんち)
- Traditional Japanese term for amusement park.
- Can be large or small, sometimes older-style parks with various rides.
- Not necessarily strongly themed.
テーマパーク (loanword from English “theme park”)
- Often used for big, strongly themed places like Tokyo Disneyland, Universal Studios Japan, etc.
- Emphasis on having a unified theme (characters, stories, worlds).

In everyday usage, people might still casually call a theme park 遊園地, but:

東京ディズニーランドはテーマパークです。 sounds more natural.
A small local amusement park is more likely called a 遊園地.

Can I drop some words or particles in casual conversation, like the second に or 今度の?

Yes, in casual speech Japanese often omits information that is clear from context.

Possible casual variants:

今度の週末、遊園地に行く。
- Dropped the time に (週末に → 週末).
- Still natural; time に is often optional in casual speech.
週末に遊園地行く。
- Dropped the subject and the に after 遊園地 (遊園地に → 遊園地), but the meaning is clear from 行く and context.
- Very casual and spoken-like.
今度の週末、遊園地行く。
- Drops both に particles; extremely common among friends.

However, for learners:

Keep the particles in place at first:
- 今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。
Once you’re comfortable, you’ll naturally catch how native speakers drop them in context.

If I want to say “I will go to the amusement park with my friends,” where do I put “with friends”?

You use 〜と for “with (person)” and place it before 行きます:

今度の週末に友だちと遊園地に行きます。
- 今度の週末に = this coming weekend
- 友だちと = with (my) friends
- 遊園地に = to an amusement park
- 行きます = will go

Other possible positions (all are okay):

友だちと今度の週末に遊園地に行きます。
今度の週末、友だちと遊園地に行きます。 (more casual with dropped に after 週末)

Key pattern:

[Time] に [Person] と [Place] に行きます。
→ “I will go to [Place] with [Person] at [Time].”