What We Learned From Three Weeks of Kawaii Hunting in Japan

We spent three weeks in Japan, traveling through Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. Kawaii things were definitely part of the plan. We had character stores we wanted to visit, places we wanted to see and, of course, certain characters we were hoping to find.

But after three weeks, what I remember most isn’t a particular store or everything we bought.

It’s how different kawaii hunting in Japan felt from what I had imagined before the trip.

Kawaii Japan Isn’t One Particular Place

Before our trip, I tended to think of kawaii Japan in terms of destinations.

Go here for character stores. Go there for anime and manga. Visit this attraction. Shop in that neighborhood.

Once we were actually in Japan, those categories started to disappear.

We would go somewhere for one reason and find something completely unrelated that interested us. A museum could have a cute gashapon machine. An aquarium could lead to a Sumikko Gurashi find. A bookstore could keep us occupied much longer than expected.

After a while, I stopped thinking so much about whether somewhere was a “kawaii destination.”

Kawaii was simply mixed into everyday Japan much more than I expected.

Knowing What You Like Makes It More Fun

There is an overwhelming amount of cute stuff in Japan.

At first, it’s tempting to look at everything.

But three weeks is a long time to look at everything.

Kid 2 was particularly interested in Chiikawa, while I was always watching for Sumikko Gurashi. Having our favorites turned shopping into a hunt rather than simply buying whatever happened to be cute.

It also made finding something unexpected much more satisfying.

I didn’t need another generic souvenir from Japan. Finding Shirokuma somewhere I wasn’t expecting him? That was different.

We Got Pickier as the Trip Went On

This was something I hadn’t expected.

At the beginning of the trip, almost everything felt exciting because it was new. By the end, we had seen enough character merchandise, stationery, manga, plushies and little collectibles that simply being cute wasn’t enough anymore.

We started comparing.

Had we already seen something similar? Was this actually special? Did we really like it, or were we interested because it was sitting in front of us in Japan?

That was probably a good thing.

Three weeks gave us enough time to get past the initial “Everything is so cute!” stage. We became much better at recognizing what we genuinely wanted to bring home.

Famous Doesn’t Automatically Mean Better

Some places had been on our list long before we arrived in Japan. Others we barely knew anything about until we walked through the door.

Being famous didn’t necessarily predict which ones we would enjoy most.

We visited Animate and didn’t find what we wanted. Other times, a random shop or bookstore gave us much more to look at.

The same thing happened with experiences. Some of the places I had researched extensively were good, but they didn’t automatically become our favorites simply because they were famous.

That changed the way I would plan another trip.

I’d still research. I like knowing what’s available, and there are some places I would absolutely plan in advance.

But I wouldn’t build the entire trip around somebody else’s list of “must-see” kawaii places.

Cute Things Became Part of the Memories

I expected to come home with souvenirs.

What I didn’t really think about beforehand was how strongly some of those little things would become connected to specific moments.

A Sumikko Gurashi gashapon isn’t just a keychain when I remember exactly where we found it. The practice shuriken Kid 2 won at the Samurai and Ninja Museum has a story attached to it. The manga and stationery we brought home remind us of the places where we found them.

Even some of the things we didn’t bring home became part of the trip.

That’s probably why the kawaii hunting was so much fun. It gave us something small to notice wherever we went.

Not Everything Had to Be Kawaii

This might be the most important lesson for a trip like ours.

We love cute things. I run a website called Cute Kawaii Life. Obviously, kawaii Japan was going to be a big part of this trip.

But I wouldn’t want three weeks of nothing but character stores.

We went to temples, museums, aquariums, restaurants, shopping streets and neighborhoods. We wore kimono in Kyoto. We went thrifting in Shimokitazawa. We ate sushi. We wandered around. We bought things that had absolutely nothing to do with kawaii characters.

And then, somewhere in between all of that, Shirokuma would appear.

I think that balance made the kawaii parts more enjoyable.

Three Weeks Changed How I Would Plan the Next Trip

My original idea was to spend two weeks in Japan.

That quickly became three once I realized how much we wanted to do.

Even then, I would organize things differently next time. I would give Osaka a little more time and Kyoto quite a bit more. And rather than trying to recreate this trip, I would want to see new places and discover different things.

That includes the kawaii side of Japan.

There will always be another character store, another collaboration, another gashapon machine and another thing we have never seen before.

So if we go back, I don’t think I need a bigger kawaii shopping list.

I’d rather have more time to see what we find.

After three weeks of kawaii hunting in Japan, that might be the biggest thing I learned: the hunt was more fun when we didn’t already know exactly what we were going to find.