Sanrio Puroland

Early days

Sanrio Puroland opened on December 7, 1990, and would operate at a loss for the first few years of operation, due to factors such as the aftereffects of the Japanese asset price bubble burst and complaints from city locals.

Modern times

Notable temporary closures

Sanrio Puroland was temporarily closed from February 22 to July 20, 2020, during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.^[7]

Attractions

Live entertainment

Shops

• Entrance Shop - The largest shop in Puroland, located on the third floor. Original Puroland goods are available here.^[15] When the park first opened, it was called the “Souvenir Festival Plaza”. Inside the store was a castle and circus tent, and a moving trap bridge was built. Additionally, the cashier was set up inside of an enclosure similar to that of an Orient Express train car called the “Register Train,” and the entertainment part of shopping was displayed.
• Lady Kitty House Shop - A shop focused on selling Hello Kitty goods, located on the second floor of Sanrio Town. Original “Lady Kitty House” goods are also available here.^[16]
• My Melody & Kuromi Shop - Located directly above the entrance of Rainbow Hall on the fourth floor,^[17] Vivitix (a shop that closed on November 5, 2013, and was formerly Strawberry Lounge) was renovated.^{[citation needed]} This is a shop focused on selling My Melody and Kuromi goods, some of which are exclusive to Puroland.^[17] Attached to this shop was a room decorated entirely with My Melody goods, which was renewed as a photo spot called “My Melody Garden” in 2020.
• Gudetama Shop - A shop focused on selling Gudetama goods, located on the third floor of Rainbow Hall.^[18]
• Village Shop - A shop that mostly sells stationery, plush toys, etc. and is located on the first floor of Puro Village.^[19]
• Duty-free counter - A tax-free counter that sells candy, plush toys, cameras, etc. located on the fourth floor of Rainbow Hall. The duty-free counter and duty-free services are no longer available as of November 17, 2023.^{[citation needed]}
• Boat Ride Photo Corner - A shop located on the second floor of Puro Village that sells souvenir photos, headbands, etc. after exiting the Sanrio Character Boat Ride.^{[citation needed]}

Restaurants

• Restaurant Yakata - A buffet-style restaurant located on the fourth floor of Rainbow Hall. Visitors are able to meet and take photos and/or videos with six different characters at random - Hello Kitty, Dear Daniel, Cinnamoroll, My Melody, PomPomPurin, and Wish Me Mell - at this restaurant.^[20] There is a 70-minute time limit. Installed at the information desk is a “reception system to reduce waiting time.” To know when their turn is called, customers receive a numbered ticket from the information desk and use their mobile device to scan the QR code found on the ticket. Until their turn is called, customers can freely roam around inside the park.^[20] Operation was suspended after its temporary closure in February 2020^{[citation needed]}. In July 2020, the buffet was made available again. The same year, on August 10, the buffet format was suspended, and the restaurant reopened for business with a one-plate menu. As of 2022, greeting visitors at their seats has been suspended and characters appear onstage in the restaurant instead.^{[citation needed]}
• Sanrio Rainbow World Restaurant (sponsored by Coca-Cola East Japan) - Located on the fourth floor of Rainbow Hall,^[21] this “Food Machine Restaurant” underwent renovation and reopened as a rainbow-themed food court-style restaurant on December 23, 2016. The restaurant interior is decorated with colorful rainbow-like decor. Mainly depicted are the associated colors and messages of seven Sanrio characters (Hello Kitty, My Melody, Little Twin Stars, PomPomPurin, Keroppi, Gudetama, and Cinnamoroll), and aside from this, their objet d’art is placed at the entrance of the restaurant. The menu features desserts decorated with Sanrio characters such as Hello Kitty and Gudetama,^[21] as well as other dishes that can be found in food machine restaurants, regardless of the typical clientele. Additionally, a limited-time menu supervised by Koji Matoba was available to celebrate the restaurant's opening^{[citation needed]}. Seating capacity: 350 people.
• Character Food Court (sponsored by Coca-Cola East Japan) - A fast food-style food court/restaurant inside a renovated “gourmet bazaar”, located on the first floor of Sanrio Town.^[22] The menu is primarily aimed at young women and children, and features Japanese curries and desserts in the shape of characters like Hello Kitty, My Melody,^[22] etc., reminiscent of character bentos and food art, as well as the Sanrio characters that are popular on social media. Events like the “Character Curry General Election” are held periodically^{[citation needed]}. Seating capacity: 524 people.

In addition to these restaurants, there is the Dream Café^[23] (formerly Tea Time Terrace, seating capacity: 65 people), located on the fourth floor of Rainbow Hall. For a limited time, the café operated as “My Melody Dream Café,” “Cinnamoroll Dream Café,^[23]” etc. (sponsored by Nissei) and offers original sweets and other items with character designs. Additionally, on the first floor of Puro Village is Sweet Parlor^{[citation needed]}, which offers a selection of drinks, character-inspired ice creams, etc.