Things to Do in Japan With Kids: 16 Family Favourites by Age, From a Japanese Local

On this page

1. All 16 at a glance
2. 1. Tokyo Disney Resort
3. 2. Universal Studios Japan
4. 3. Skiing and snow play
5. 4. The deer of Nara Park
6. 5. PokéPark KANTO
7. 6. Riding the shinkansen
8. 7. Ghibli Park
9. 8. Fuji-Q Highland
10. 9. Game centres and capsule toys
11. 10. Sanrio Puroland
12. 11. A ninja experience
13. 12. Seeing snow monkeys in a hot spring
14. 13. Asahiyama Zoo
15. 14. Fruit picking
16. 15. Making Japanese sweets (wagashi)
17. 16. A sushi-making class
18. How to get the tickets
19. Halal food with children
20. Practical tips for parents
21. How to fit it into your trip
22. Your must-sees, your season, your Japan

Planning a family trip to Japan and wondering what your children will enjoy most? In this guide, I introduce 16 places and experiences that children love in Japan, from theme parks and characters to real snow and animals, many of which you won’t find in the Gulf.

I was born in Japan and lived there for 26 years before moving to Dubai. They are listed in order of how popular they are with families, and each one is a single place or experience you can add to your plan as one outing. For each, I explain what children love, why it’s popular and the best age, so you can find the ones that suit your family.

Ages in this guide: under 6 (preschool), 6 to 12 (primary school) and 13 to 17 (teenagers).

All 16 at a glance

#	Place or experience	Where	Best age	Why it’s popular
1	Tokyo Disney Resort	Tokyo (15 min from Tokyo Station)	Under 6 to 12	DisneySea exists only in Tokyo
2	Universal Studios Japan	Osaka	6 to 17	Mario and Harry Potter in one park
3	Skiing and snow play	Hokkaido; Niigata (about 75 min from Tokyo by shinkansen)	All ages	Real powder snow (December to March)
4	The deer of Nara Park	Nara (about 45 min from Kyoto)	Under 6 to 12	Feed over 1,000 free-roaming deer
5	PokéPark KANTO	Yomiuriland (about 40 min from Shinjuku)	6 to 12	The first permanent Pokémon park
6	Riding the shinkansen	Tokyo to Kyoto and beyond	Under 6 to 12	Nearly 300 km/h, with Mount Fuji views
7	Ghibli Park	Aichi (about 2.5 hours from Tokyo)	6 to 12	Walk into the Ghibli films
8	Fuji-Q Highland	Mount Fuji (about 2 hours from Tokyo)	13 to 17	World-famous coasters below Mount Fuji
9	Game centres and capsule toys	All over Japan	6 to 17	Crane games and gachapon on every street
10	Sanrio Puroland	Tama (about 40 min from Shinjuku)	Girls, under 6 to 12	Hello Kitty’s home, indoors
11	A ninja experience	Tokyo, Kyoto	6 to 12	Train like a real ninja
12	Seeing snow monkeys in a hot spring	Nagano (about 3 hours from Tokyo)	6 to 17	Monkeys bathing in the snow (December to March)
13	Asahiyama Zoo	Asahikawa, Hokkaido (about 1.5 hours from Sapporo)	Under 6 to 12	Penguins walking through the snow (winter)
14	Fruit picking	Farms around Tokyo and beyond	Under 6 to 12	Different fruit in every season
15	Making Japanese sweets (wagashi)	Tokyo, Kyoto	6 to 17	Shape flowers from sweet bean paste
16	A sushi-making class	Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka	6 to 17	Make your own sushi with a chef

1. Tokyo Disney Resort

• What children love: the parades and castle at Tokyo Disneyland, and at Tokyo DisneySea, the newest area, Fantasy Springs, with the worlds of Frozen, Tangled and Peter Pan
• Why it’s popular: there is no Disney park in the Gulf yet, and DisneySea exists only in Tokyo
• Best age: under 6 to 12 for Disneyland, 6 to 17 for DisneySea. Teenagers love the night shows
• Local tip: to ride the Fantasy Springs attractions, get a free Standby Pass or a paid Premier Access in the Tokyo Disney Resort app as soon as you enter. Avoid weekends and Japanese school holidays

2. Universal Studios Japan

• What children love: three worlds in one park: Super Nintendo World with Mario Kart and Donkey Kong, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter with Hogwarts castle, and the Minions
• Why it’s popular: Super Nintendo World exists in only a few places in the world, and none in the Middle East
• Best age: 6 to 17. Under 6 can enjoy the Minions and the area made for small children
• Local tip: on busy days you need a timed entry ticket or an Express Pass to enter Super Nintendo World, so check this when you book

3. Skiing and snow play

• What children love: soft powder snow for skiing, sledging and snowball fights
• Why it’s popular: the Gulf has indoor snow, but nothing compares to a mountain covered in real snow, with snow falling around you. For many Gulf children, it is their first time
• Best age: all ages. Ski schools take children from about 3

Resort	Why families love it	Getting there
Niseko (Hokkaido)	English-speaking ski schools from age 3, English menus	Fly to Sapporo (New Chitose), then 1.5–3 hours by bus
Tomamu (Hokkaido)	Built for families, with gentle slopes, an ice village and an indoor wave pool	Fly to New Chitose, then bus or train
Rusutsu (Hokkaido)	Hotel connected to the lifts, with an indoor amusement park; best for older children	Fly to New Chitose, then bus
Gala Yuzawa (Niigata)	The shinkansen station is inside the resort, so it’s a day trip from Tokyo	Shinkansen from Tokyo
Hakuba and Nozawa Onsen (Nagano)	Big mountains, English lessons, onsen villages	Shinkansen from Tokyo, then bus

• Local tip: the best snow is from late January to mid-February. Avoid the Japanese New Year, about 28 December to 3 January, when resorts are busiest

4. The deer of Nara Park

• What children love: feeding special deer crackers to the deer, right from their hands
• Why it’s popular: more than a thousand deer live freely in the park and around the temples, with no fences or cages. Children can walk among them and feed them up close, which is something they cannot do at home
• Best age: under 6 to 12, but every age enjoys it
• Local tip: Nara is under an hour from Kyoto or Osaka. The deer can push when they see crackers, so keep small children close

5. PokéPark KANTO

• Where: Yomiuriland, about 25 minutes by train from Shinjuku to Keio-Yomiuriland Station, then a short gondola ride
• What children love: a Pokémon forest, rides, parades and meeting Pokémon, at Yomiuriland in Tokyo
• Why it’s popular: it opened in February 2026 as the first permanent Pokémon park, in the country where Pokémon was born
• Best age: 6 to 12, but all ages enjoy it
• Local tip: tickets are sold by lottery: apply from the 1st to the 12th of the month, three months before your visit. If you don’t win, visit a Pokémon Center in Tokyo, Kyoto or Osaka, full of goods you can’t buy at home

6. Riding the shinkansen

• What children love: riding the bullet train at nearly 300 km/h
• Why it’s popular: for many children, the shinkansen is the moment they remember most from Japan
• Best age: under 6 to 12, but everyone enjoys it
• Local tip: from Tokyo to Kyoto, sit on the right side (seat E) to see Mount Fuji on a clear day. Train-loving children will also enjoy the railway museums in Omiya, near Tokyo, and in Kyoto

7. Ghibli Park

• Where: Aichi, near Nagoya. About 1 hour 40 minutes by shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagoya, then about 40 minutes by train
• What children love: walking into the world of the films, from the Grand Warehouse to Totoro’s countryside and Howl’s Castle
• Why it’s popular: it exists only in Japan, and parents who grew up with the films love sharing them with their children
• Best age: 6 to 12, and anyone who loves the films
• Local tip: it is in Aichi, near Nagoya, which is on the shinkansen line between Tokyo and Kyoto, so it fits well on the way. Tickets go on sale two months ahead, on the 10th at 2 p.m. Japan time. Bring your passport. If you are staying only in Tokyo, the smaller Ghibli Museum in Mitaka is easier to reach; its tickets go on sale on the 10th of each month and sell out fast

8. Fuji-Q Highland

• Where: at the foot of Mount Fuji, about 2 hours from Shinjuku by express bus
• What children love: some of the world’s most famous roller coasters, with Mount Fuji behind them, and a famous haunted house
• Why it’s popular: its record-breaking coasters are famous among thrill-ride fans, and riding them with Mount Fuji in view is a unique experience
• Best age: 13 to 17. The big coasters usually require a height of 130 cm and age 10 or older. For small children, Thomas Land has rides for 2- and 3-year-olds
• Local tip: combine it with a night at Lake Kawaguchiko and the famous view of Mount Fuji

9. Game centres and capsule toys

• What children love: multi-floor game centres with crane games, rhythm games and photo booths (purikura), and capsule toy machines (gachapon) with thousands of tiny toys
• Why it’s popular: you find them on almost every shopping street in Japan, and the variety of prizes and toys changes all the time
• Best age: 6 to 17. Younger children love the capsule toys, teenagers the game centres
• Local tip: for the biggest choice, go to Akihabara in Tokyo or Dotonbori in Osaka. Bring plenty of ¥100 coins

10. Sanrio Puroland

• Where: Tama Center, about 40 minutes by train from Shinjuku
• What children love: Hello Kitty and her friends, with shows, parades and photos with the characters
• Why it’s popular: Hello Kitty was born in Japan, and this is her home. It is especially loved by girls
• Best age: girls from under 6 to 12. Teenage girls who love cute things enjoy it too
• Local tip: it is indoors, so it’s a good choice for a rainy or very hot day

11. A ninja experience

• What children love: throwing shuriken and learning ninja moves from a teacher
• Why it’s popular: ninja are famous all over the world, and in Japan children can learn from real instructors in the places where ninja stories began
• Best age: 6 to 12. Teenagers enjoy it too
• Local tip: most experiences take about an hour and need a booking, so choose one with English guidance. In Kyoto, Toei Kyoto Studio Park adds an Edo-period town and ninja shows

12. Seeing snow monkeys in a hot spring

• Where: Jigokudani, Nagano. About 1.5 hours by shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagano, then about 1 hour by train and bus, plus the walk
• What children love: wild monkeys bathing in a steaming hot spring surrounded by snow, at Jigokudani in Nagano
• Why it’s popular: it is one of the few places in the world where monkeys bathe in hot springs
• Best age: 6 to 17. It is hard for small children: the path is about 35 minutes on foot, often icy, and not suitable for strollers
• Local tip: go from December to March to see the monkeys in the snow. January and February have the deepest snow

13. Asahiyama Zoo

• Where: Asahikawa, Hokkaido. About 1 hour 40 minutes by plane from Tokyo to Asahikawa, or about 1.5 hours by train from Sapporo
• What children love: the penguin walk, when king penguins waddle through the snow right past you, and seeing polar bears and seals up close through glass tunnels and domes
• Why it’s popular: the zoo is designed to show animals moving naturally, and the penguin walk in the snow is something children cannot see in the Gulf
• Best age: under 6 to 12, but every age enjoys it
• Local tip: the penguin walk is held only in winter, usually from about late December to March, when there is enough snow. Combine it with a ski trip to Hokkaido

14. Fruit picking

• What children love: picking and eating fruit straight from the tree or plant
• Why it’s popular: Japanese fruit is famous for being large and sweet, and many farms let you eat as much as you like for a set time. There is a different fruit in almost every season:

Season	Fruit	Popular areas
About January to May	Strawberries	Around Tokyo, Shizuoka, Tochigi
June	Cherries	Yamagata
July to August	Peaches	Yamanashi, near Mount Fuji
August to October	Grapes	Yamanashi, Okayama
September to November	Apples	Nagano, Aomori

• Best age: under 6 to 12
• Local tip: farms are in the countryside, so a private car makes it easier. Peaches and grapes in Yamanashi fit well with a trip to Mount Fuji

15. Making Japanese sweets (wagashi)

• What children love: shaping sweet bean paste into flowers, leaves and seasonal shapes, almost like modelling clay, then eating them with a bowl of matcha
• Why it’s popular: wagashi are works of art that change with the seasons, and making them is a calm, creative hour that the whole family can share
• Best age: 6 to 17. Younger children can join with a parent’s help
• Local tip: wagashi are made mainly from beans, sugar and rice flour, so they are often easier for Muslim families than many other Japanese foods. Still, ask the class about every ingredient. Classes in Tokyo and Kyoto take about an hour and need a booking

16. A sushi-making class

• What children love: learning from a chef how to shape the rice, add the fish and make their own sushi, then eating what they made
• Why it’s popular: sushi is Japan’s most famous food, and making it in Japan is a story children tell when they get home
• Best age: 6 to 17
• Local tip: choose a class that can prepare halal or fish-only ingredients, and ask about soy sauce and mirin, which can contain alcohol. Children who don’t eat raw fish can make sushi with cooked fish, egg or vegetables

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That’s all 16. Below are the booking rules, food tips and practical advice that will make these days easier.

How to get the tickets

This is where most families get caught out. Always check the official site before you book. Several of the most popular places sell tickets by lottery or open sales months ahead.

Place	How tickets are sold
PokéPark KANTO	Online lottery: apply from the 1st to the 12th, three months before your visit
Ghibli Park	On sale two months ahead, on the 10th at 2 p.m. Japan time
Tokyo Disney Resort, Universal Studios Japan	Book online in advance; popular days sell out

Halal food with children

• Theme parks: halal food is very limited inside, so bring snacks from your hotel or a supermarket
• Convenience stores: plain rice balls with salmon or tuna are a common choice, but check the label for mirin or meat extract
• Cities: Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka have halal restaurants, including ramen made without pork

Our guide to whether Japan is Muslim-friendly explains how to find halal restaurants and prayer spaces. Many large stations and airports have prayer rooms. The Japan National Tourism Organization also lists Muslim-friendly facilities across Japan.

Practical tips for parents

• Strollers: stations have lifts, but they can be far from the platform. A light, foldable stroller is easiest
• Baby rooms: most department stores, stations and shopping centres have them
• A private car and driver: on days with many stops, small children or a lot of shopping, it saves a great deal of energy, especially for trips to Fuji-Q or fruit farms
• Rest time: with small children, plan one big activity a day and leave the afternoon free
• Safety: Japan is very safe, but stations are crowded. Our guide to whether Japan is safe has more tips

How to fit it into your trip

Our 7-night family route through Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka already includes Tokyo Disney, the deer of Nara and Universal Studios Japan. For a winter trip, add two or three nights in Hokkaido for the snow and Asahiyama Zoo. Near Mount Fuji, a night at a ryokan with a private onsen is a family favourite: see our top 10 ryokan with private onsen. For ideas for the whole family, see the best things to do in Japan.

Your must-sees, your season, your Japan

Tell us the one thing your children can’t miss, the theme of your trip and the season you’re travelling in. We’ll create an original plan built around it, with the places and moments only Japanese people know about. We can also help with the lotteries and bookings in Japanese. Plan my original trip.

Travelling in the winter school holidays? See Japan in December with kids for snow, winter lights and New Year.