A Summer Festival with Hello Kitty & Friends
From July 11 to September 2, Sanrio Puroland theme park is hosting a special event: a matsuri, or summer festival. Mixing retro and futuristic neon themes, the Puroland Neo Natsu Matsuri is bringing fun festival games, workshops, character greetings, seasonal menus and merchandise.
Neo Ennichi Games
The Neo Ennichi is an entertainment hall where guests can enjoy game booths, lotteries and workshops under neon lights. Play games at the Kawaii Ennichi and Digital Ennichi booths to win original prizes. There’s a participation fee of ¥800 per try (cash only), and players are guaranteed to win a random prize. If you collect six raffle tickets by participating in the game booths, you can participate in a special raffle for the chance to win an exclusive My Melody and Kuromi stuffed toy, a perfect way to continue celebrating the characters’ 50th and 20th anniversaries respectively. Guests who do not win the raffle toys will still receive an original sticker.
The Hoppe-chan Shibori Workshop invites guests to make their own handmade jewelry. The workshop costs ¥2500 per person (cash only), and guests can create two pieces per experience. Participants will also receive a limited-edition card. Exclusive silicone character straps will be available for purchase only for guests who have participated in the workshop. The straps feature Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, My Melody, Kuromi, Pompompurin, Tuxedo Sam, Kerokerokeroppi and Pochacco and cost ¥1000 each. A wide collection of other Hoppe-chan inspired merchandise will be available at the 3rd floor Entrance Shop.
Character Greetings
Characters will make appearances at the entertainment hall’s Neo Stage and the Tree of Wisdom Stage for special meet-and-greet interactions. Characters include Hello Kitty, Dear Daniel, Kuromi, My Melody, Bad Badtz-Maru and Cinnamoroll from July 11 to August 6. Pompompurin, Usahana, Tuxedo Sam, and Hangyodon will be joining the cast from August 7 to September 2. Visiting character appearances are random and will vary every day, so guests can look forward to a surprise greeting. Characters will be wearing their seasonal natsumatsuri costumes and yukata.
The Event Corner will host a special greeting featuring all of the above-mentioned characters in their seasonal costumes. A reservation, and participation fee of ¥3000 on top of the theme park’s standard passport ticket, is required to attend this greeting. A total of four people can join the greeting per participation ticket. Guests can take photos and videos with the characters, and will also receive a set of three exclusive postcards following the attraction.
Photo Spots
Various seasonal photo spot installations will be available throughout Puroland for guests to take festival-inpired photos. By the entrance of the theme park, a photo spot decorated with colorful lanterns and Neo Natsu Matsuri artwork will welcome guests. The Neo Ennichi area will also have a fun installation where cute “fireworks” featuring various Sanrio friends will appear. Guests can enjoy the decorations and the glow of the retro neon signs.
Merchandise
An array of limited-edition goods will be available during the festival period. Retro-inspired merchandise includes CD-shaped keychains, mini mirrors, neon acrylic badges, socks, stickers, memo books and snacks.
Seasonal Menu
Like any other summer festival, the Neo Natsu Matsuri has an assortment of fun new items to kick off the matsuri spirit. The 1st floor character food court and the 4th floor Sanrio Rainbow World Restaurant will each have several new additions to their menus.
The neo lightbulb drink has a refreshing peach flavor with red jellies, poured into a novelty lightbulb bottle. Each bottle comes with one of 13 randomly selected stickers. The Gudetama shaved ice mont blanc parfait has chocolate cereal, custard, strawberry jam and whipped cream. The Kuromi anmitsu crepe takes a traditional classic and gives it a modern reinvention. The crepe is filled with dango, warabimochi, whipped cream, mandarin oranges and cherries. Hangyodon’s summer cutlet and roast beef plate comes with french fries, salad and an exclusive novelty card. The cards are designed to look like instant camera prints; guests will receive one random card from a total of 13 designs. For the full seasonal menu, please check the website.
