PokéPark Kanto is officially open, but is it worth the hype? Here’s what we think

The Pokémon Company has been pulling out all the stops for its 30th anniversary this year, including introducing a new Pikachu variant and a new line of Eeveelution merch, but that’s not all. As of February 5, the long-anticipated PokéPark Kanto, located about half an hour from the city centre inside amusement park Yomiuriland, is finally open.

The sizable 26,000sqm PokéPark Kanto is split into two main sections – Sedge Town and the Pokémon Forest – and features themed food and drinks, rides and attractions, exclusive merch and hundreds of life-sized Pokémon. Read on for a more detailed rundown on what to expect once you’re inside, plus how to get tickets and our thoughts on the whole shebang.

PokéPark Entrance Plaza

After passing by the main entrance, you’ll come to the Pokémon Research Lab, a building with passageways on either side. The entrance on the right leads to Sedge Town, full of shops and attractions, while the left side leads to the Pokémon Forest, home to life-sized Pokémon statues interacting with their native habitat.

But before even entering the venue proper, you’ll find something waiting for you: merch.

Right across from the lab lies the cosy Daisuki Shop. Here you’ll find a staggeringly wide selection of Poké-merch ranging from plushies and raincoats to themed biscuits and soup mix. The shop features a heavy leaning towards OG Mons and not much representation for the other 800-plus pocket pals, but with just over 150 characters to choose from in Gen I alone, guess we can’t complain too much.

Entering the Daisuki Shop requires a first-come, first-served ticket via the PokéPark Kanto app, but if you don’t manage to get one, there’s plenty more to purchase inside Sedge Town.

Sedge Town

This is where the bulk of the magic happens. This area includes the Trainers’ Market (pictured above), Pokémon Center, Poké Mart and Sedge Gym, plus rides and attractions.

Here you’ll find multiple stalls offering park-exclusive merch not found anywhere else. Think hats, T-shirts, pin badges, stickers and more. There’s also a stall with a free ring toss game, and another that prints free stickers, but other than that, this area is mostly just another place for buying things.

Time Out tip: Look for the stall loaded with Pokéballs to get a randomised pin badge for ¥1,200. If you were hoping for a different Pokémon in your ball, look around for staff members wearing pin badges themselves. Approach them to see if they have a pin badge you’re looking for, and request to exchange yours for free.

At the red-roofed Pokémon Center, you can experience healing a Pokémon in real life for free. The staff hand you a Pokéball, which you then give to Nurse Joy, just like you would in the games. An animation plays on-screen as she heals your Pokémon, and you’ll hear that familiar Poké-jingle. There’s not much else to it, but it makes for a cute photo op if nothing else.

Right across from the Pokémon Center is the Poké Mart. Here you can purchase bickies decorated with Pokéballs or potions, plus beverages themed after Bulbasaur (kiwi and melon), Charmander (strawberry and black tea) and Squirtle (lemon, oddly), among other refreshments.

One of the Trainers’ Market stalls serves up Eevee- and Pikachu-themed ice lollies and beverages, while another stall’s got Snorlax popcorn in barbecue or caramel corn flavour. A third features Western nosh like sandwiches and waffles, while yet another serves up Japanese classics like fried chicken bites and onigiri. In other words, when it comes to nibbles, there’s plenty to choose from.

One of the town’s rides is the spinner ‘Pika Pika Paradise’. Is Pikachu a Flying-type Pokémon? No. Might it have been a little more on-brand to utilise Flying-type Pokémon for this ride instead? Perhaps. Is the ride fun anyway? Absolutely.

The next ride is the Eeevee-themed carousel ‘Vee Vee Voyage’. Both Pika Pika Paradise and Vee Vee Voyage cost ¥1,200 for adults, ¥800 for children – tickets can be purchased on-site.

Sadly, these are the only two rides in the town. Once you’re finished with them, feel free to take a stroll about the grounds and see the hundreds of life-sized Pokémon dotted just about everywhere.

And we do mean everywhere, even on the rooftops. Keep a keen eye out to see how many Pokémon you can spot.

In addition to the merch, food and rides, don’t miss the super-kawaii Bubble Carnival, a mini-parade and dance show that takes place at select times throughout the day. It only lasts a few minutes, but the good news is that no ticket is required, so check the park’s website for scheduling details and keep your eyes peeled.

One of the highlights of Sedge Town, by far, is the adorable half-hour ‘Pika Pika Sparks!’ show, which takes place inside Sedge Gym towards the front entrance of the park. There’s no dialogue or narration during the performance, so Japanese language skills aren’t required.

The only downside is that two of the three PokéPark ticket types require you to enter a ticket lottery for entry to the show. If you do manage to see it though, your inner child will not be disappointed. On that note, don’t miss the outdoor area on the second floor of the gym to get a view of a life-sized Pokémon battle.

Inside the Pokémon Playhouse near the Eevee carousel, you can get a photo op with Pikachu, Eevee or other Pokémon. Just like Daisuki Shop, this place has a first-come, first-served ticket process found in the PokéPark app. If you’re finding yet another ticket process to be too much hassle, simply snap a few pics with the many statues instead.

Pokémon Go

What’s a PokéPark without Pokémon to catch? Pokémon Go players are in for a treat, as you can find everyday Pokémon to catch all throughout the grounds, including Shiny ones.

Special Field Research tasks and raids await as well. Find Articuno from October to January, Zapdos from February to May and Moltres from June to September. If you’re very lucky, you might just encounter a Shiny version of one of these big ol’ legendary birds too. Check the Pokémon Go website for more info.

Naturally, you’ll also find Pokémon to catch at our next stop: the Pokémon Forest.

Pokémon Forest

The Pokémon Forest is exactly what it sounds like: a wooded area absolutely brimming with life-sized recreations of your favourite pocket monsters. The path is only about 500m long, so it’s a fairly light stroll, though sadly not wheelchair friendly. (Check the official website for other restrictions.)

Here you’ll see Pokémon interacting not only with each other, but also with their natural environment to create a more life-like experience. We won’t give away too much, but there are hundreds of creatures of all sizes to see, from a giant Onix to tiny Bug-types.

Selecting your ticket

Tickets for PokéPark Kanto come in three types: the Town Pass, the Trainer's Pass and the Ace Trainer's Pass. Here's the breakdown:

• Town Pass: entry to Sedge Town; seating for a Sedge Gym show (ticket lottery required); photo ops in the Pokémon Playhouse. From ¥4,700 for ages 13 and up, from ¥2,800 for younger children.
  
  
• Trainer’s Pass: entry to Sedge Town; seating for a Sedge Gym show (ticket lottery required); time-slotted single entry to the Pokémon Forest; photo ops in the Pokémon Playhouse; from ¥7,900 for ages 13 and up, from ¥4,700 for younger children.
  
  
• Ace Trainer’s Pass: entry to Sedge Town; special reserved seating for one Sedge Gym show; unlimited access to the Pokémon Forest; use of priority lanes for attractions; photo ops in the Pokémon Playhouse and Sedge Condominiums; from ¥14,000 for ages 13 and up, from ¥11,000 for younger children

Ticket purchasing information varies depending on whether you’re living in Japan or overseas. Both sites require you to purchase your ticket months in advance though, so plan accordingly. If you’re living in Japan, visit the Japanese website for more details. If purchasing from abroad, use the English site instead.

Keep in mind that even with an entry ticket, you’ll still need to use the PokéPark Kanto app to apply via ticket lottery for Sedge Gym shows (Town Pass and Trainer’s Pass only), plus first-come, first-served entry tickets for the Daisuki Shop and Pokémon Playhouse (all ticket types). On the upside, all ticket types for PokéPark Kanto grant you access to Yomiuriland too.

Our verdict

PokéPark Kanto is a fun time, but the experience might not be what you’d expect from a multi-billion-dollar franchise with 30 years of history under its belt. The vibe is lively and the themed food and drinks are decent, but beyond the two rides and the short-lived parade, there’s not much else to look forward to in Sedge Town other than mostly Gen I merch and photo ops.

The Sedge Gym show is one of the best parts, but unless you have the pricey Ace Trainer’s Pass, you have to enter a ticket lottery to get in, so it’s a gamble whether you’ll even get to see it.

The layout of the place is genuinely impressive, but otherwise a bit lifeless. For instance, the replica of Professor Oak’s lab is pretty nifty, but where’s Professor Oak? The gym is cool, but where are the gym leaders? A few actors in costume here and there could add to the immersive feeling of being in an actual Pokémon town.

That same sense of lifelessness permeates throughout the Pokémon Forest. The scale and sheer number of the many life-sized statues is incredible, but some animatronics could really liven the place up and take things to the next level. Kids and adults alike would get more of a sense that the Pokémon they’re seeing are alive and interacting with our world in real time. As it is now, the hundreds of stock-still statues leave more to be desired.

In other words, if you do plan to visit, you might want to manage your expectations. This isn’t Disney or Universal Studios Japan, so you may find yourself underwhelmed if you set your hopes too high. Sedge Town has enough statues floating about that if you only want to snap some Poké-pics for the ‘gram, the basic Town Pass is good enough.

But given that tickets need to be purchased months in advance, you may as well spend a little more for the Trainer’s Pass and enter the Pokémon Forest once. We’re not sure if multi-entry with the Ace Trainer’s Pass is worth the extra cost, though.

Nevertheless, PokéPark Kanto is enjoyable, and certainly ambitious. With its impressive Poké-building replicas, themed food and drinks, fun rides and attractions and more than 600 life-sized Pokémon, the family-friendly place is worth experiencing at least once.

So go take a ride on a flying Pikachu, have yourself a Poké-snack, see a gym show if you can, and don’t forget the photo ops and merch. After all, you gotta catch ’em all!

PokéPark Kanto is now open. Check the official website in Japanese or English for more information.

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