Summer fun with kids in Japan: ③ Character shops

A brand new Snoopy Village, a shop filled with Snoopy merchandise and Snoopy themed food, opened in Kawagoe (Saitama) last month. I have been three times yet, but without the kids. I wanted to snoop it out first, if you'll pardon the pun. They are dying to go and I am dying to see their reaction! It is not the only character themed shop in Kawagoe. There are several. The most popular being the Chiikawa Shop and the Miffy Bakery. They have been to those and really enjoyed visiting them.

Most children, that like characters, will delight in a trip to a character shop in my experience. The great thing about them in the summer is that you can get out of the heat and most of them are chilled nicely with air conditioning. You can find stores that are dedicated to just one character, such as the ones mentioned above (Snoopy, Kawagoe and Miffy). There are also stores that are dedicated to a brand and will have several different characters, such as the Sanrio or Disney shops. Then there are stores that have a mishmash of brand characters, such as Kiddyland. 

What each of them have to offer varies greatly. Some just sell merchandise. Others have play options, such as the Crayon Shinchan store in Lalaport Fujimi (Saitama). Some have photo spots, such as the aforementioned Chiikawa store in Kawagoe. Then there are mega stores with various additional attractions such as crane games, capsule machines, computer games and photo booths. For example, the Coro Coro Base store in Lalaport Fujimi (Saitama) always has experiences on offer. Moreover, they change them periodically. We've had some fun playing games here, the most memorable of them a pop up 'Ojiisan fart shooting game'! 

Do you enjoy visiting character shops? 

(You will find reviews for each of the stores mentioned in this post in the review section of City-cost).