11 best Hello Kitty attractions and hotels in Japan

Hello Kitty Smile is on Awaji Island in Hyogo prefecture, just across the bay from Osaka. It’s home to an underwater Hello Kitty princess-themed digital art exhibit with multiple interactive activities and a light show. Plus there are two shops where you can purchase exclusive merchandise including rare designer handbags and phone cases decked out with Hello Kitty. There are also four different restaurants serving dishes like dim sum and seafood barbecue on Hello Kitty plates, and some of the food is even Hello-Kitty-shaped.

Next door, you’ll find Hello Kitty Show Box, the perfect place to meet Kitty in person and watch a live musical performance by the cat and her friends. Don't miss the apple-shaped house that features a 360-degree projection mapping theatre and a spectacular observation deck.

On the western outskirts of Tokyo in Tama-shi, Sanrio Puroland is about half an hour by train from Shinjuku Station. This theme park is dedicated to all things Sanrio, the company that created the patron saint of hypercuteness.

Attractions include a Hello Kitty musical, peeking into Hello Kitty’s house to see her go about her daily life, and of course the chance to meet the cat herself complete with great photo ops. As expected, the shops are extensive and they offer everything imaginable stamped with Kitty-chan’s likeness.

One of the more interesting offerings is the Hello Kitty mailbox, a working post-box that will affix cute Sanrio-themed postage to letters and postcards dropped into it and send them on their way.

While the main attractions at Sanrio Puroland are located within the theme park, you don’t even have to go inside to see plenty of Hello Kitty. You’ll get to enjoy adorable displays as soon as you arrive at Tama Center Station. The signs, vending machines, departure board, elevators and ceilings are decked out in Hello Kitty motifs along with other Sanrio characters including Pom Pom Purin, Little Twin Stars, My Melody and more.

From Hello Kitty and Pochacco to Gudetama and My Melody, this character café serves up cute dishes featuring your favourite Sanrio characters, available for eat-in and takeaway. 

Here you can order hamburgers with your choice of character imprinted on the bun. You can also choose either beef with BBQ or Mexican sauce or a special shrimp patty. As for desserts, you can’t go wrong with the adorable and fluffy soufflé pancakes featuring Hello Kitty, Kuromi, Pompompurin or Cinnamoroll. The cute factor continues in the drinks menu: coffee is topped with colourful latte art while cream sodas come complete with ice cream shaped as your favourite characters.

Aside from the café, this Sanrio outlet also has a retail corner offering exclusive merchandise such as cutesy food-themed keychains, tote bags, file folders and more.

You can’t miss this Sanrio store with its facade of a giant Hello Kitty holding a red apple that forms the entrance. Inside you’ll find a host of Sanrio characters from the aforementioned kitty to Cinnamoroll, Gudetama, My Melody and others, available in all shapes and forms including plush dolls, apparel, suitcases and gift-ready snacks and sweets known as omiyage.

Since the store is located in Tokyo’s historical Asakusa neighbourhood, just around the corner from Sensoji Temple, the shop offers several unique items made in collaboration with local artisans, such as bags from Inujirushi Kaban, a long- established Japanese label known for its rugged canvas bags.

Japan’s most famous character, Hello Kitty takes over an entire shinkansen with its signature pink and white colours. The passenger car, also known as the ‘kawaii room’, is as adorable as it sounds, all decked out with Hello Kitty print.

There’s lots to explore on this train: in the other cars you’ll find small exhibitions, photography areas, souvenir kiosks and rest areas that are awash in pink and adorned with images of Hello Kitty and friends. This bullet train runs between Hakata and Shin-Osaka stations on the Kodama line (one round-trip per day, with some exceptions). Tickets are priced the same as the regular shinkansen plying that route.

Most people know Tokyo’s Sanrio Puroland, but there’s also an outdoor Sanrio theme park in Oita prefecture. It has 16 character-themed attractions including roller coasters, a ferris wheel, go-karts, a tea cup ride, and even a gigantic pink Hello Kitty castle, where you’ll get to take a tour through her home. You’ll also have a chance to see the feline herself through meet-and-greets and live entertainment shows.

Don’t forget to visit one of the four eateries to dine on hamburg curry that comes with rice shaped like Hello Kitty, snack on a steamed bun shaped like Kitty’s face and drink lattes from an adorable Hello Kitty mug.