Shinsaibashi with Kids (Babies and Toddlers, Too!)
Last Updated on November 18, 2024 by Kay
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Shinsaibashi (心斎橋) is a shopping district located in the Chuo (Central) Ward of Osaka, north of Dotonbori. In particular, it’s known for its malls and covered shopping street called Shinsaibashisuji (心斎橋筋). So if you want to shop until you drop in Osaka, this is the place to be.
It’s also a popular place to escape to when it rains! (But this also means it can be very crowded, especially on weekends and holidays. It’s pretty bonkers, don’t say I didn’t warn you.)
But you might be wondering… is this a good place to take kids? I mean, kids can only do so much shopping before the whining begins, because unless they’re in a toy or candy store, it’s not that much fun.
Fear not, dear parent! In this article, I’ll share my personal recommendations on what to do with children in Shinsaibashi. All of these places have been tried and tested by a child — my daughter.
If you’re wondering how much time you should dedicate to Shinsaibashi, I would say an entire day. Even then you might not have seen everything (depending on what you and your kids want to do)!
Table of Contents
What to Do in Shinsaibashi with Kids
① PLUS KIDSLAND ACADEMY
PLUS KIDSLAND ACADEMY is an indoor playground that’s perfect for rainy days with plenty for kids to do. There’s a slide that goes into a ball pit, dolls, a small race track for cars, huge trampolines, lots of toys, and an area just for babies.
I think this playground is best suited for children under the age of eight.
PLUS KIDSLAND ACADEMY is a great option for kids who wake up early since it’s open daily from 9 AM to 8 PM. It has free WiFi as well as snacks and drinks for purchase.
Kids can do crafts, too, for an additional fee.
They also offer manga for parents to read for free, although it’s only in Japanese. But hey, the pictures alone are entertaining enough and with Google Translate, you can get the gist of the story. (My husband happily read the last volume of Bleach while I devoted Naruto. And yes, we are nerds.)
This indoor playground requires a minimum 30-minute stay and you can stay for up to 3 hours. My kid played for two hours and that still wasn’t enough for her but it looked like most families stayed for only an hour. Keep in mind, though, that the longer kids play, the more tired they might get, which might be a problem if they’re going to be walking for the rest of the day. If you have a stroller, though, you don’t need to worry as much.
Note that you need to take off your shoes at the entrance before going in. Press the red button and a locker door will open. Put your shoes inside and grab the small receipt, which will come out under the red button. Don’t lose this because you will need to scan the receipt to open the locker and get your shoes.
⛩️ Kay’s Tip: Namba Shrine is only a 5-minute walk from PLUS KIDSLAND ACADEMY. It’s small but I think it’s worth a visit, especially since it’s so close!
② Dinosaur karaoke
We randomly stumbled on this since it was close to the hotel we were staying at in Shinsaibashi (Mimaru Osaka Shinsaibashi East).
If your kid likes dinosaurs and karaoke, this is the place to be. And even if they don’t like karaoke, they can ride on the giant mechanical dino (Triceratops?) outside the shop!
Rooms are dinosaur-themed and if you press the red button, you can hear a dinosaur roar. There are also toys kids can borrow and play with, as well as costumes (although they looked more for adults).
Note that this place might scare very young children, such as toddlers since the light in the elevator turns red after it starts moving and alarm sounds start blaring. My daughter was a little surprised but thankfully wasn’t scared, though.
I’ve also heard that the food here isn’t great, but we were fine with just soft drinks. The quality of the karaoke wasn’t bad either and they had lots of official videos for songs such as Disney.
It cost us only 1100 for each adult for one hour with free soft drinks and our daughter was free.
If you only have time for one place to enjoy karaoke, I recommend Pasela Resorts in Dotonbori, which I talk about in my Dotonbori with kids article.
③ Daimaru and PARCO
Daimaru is a popular multi-floor department store in Japan and interestingly, the one in Shinsaibashi is connected to PARCO, which is a shopping mall chain. Daimaru has 10 floors while PARCO has 14. Floors 2 to 10 are connected to each other, so they allow you to easily go from one building to another.
Daimaru also has a South Building and a Main Building. There aren’t many shops in the South Building but if you’re a tourist living outside of Japan, you will need to go there for the Tax Duty Exemption Counter (4th floor). So when I talk about Daimaru from now on, I’ll be referring to the Main Building (本館).
Daimaru and PARCO open at 10 AM daily. They might not have much for younger children such as babies and toddlers (although my daughter enjoyed the Pokemon Center when she was a toddler), but older kids will love this place (and I imagine parents, too!). Well, if it’s not too crowded. (It’s a little crazy when it rains.)
Places that my child likes, and other kids might enjoy as well, include the following:
Kid-Friendly Shops in Daimaru
Floor 7 — Baby and Children’s Goods
Okay, this is more for parents if anything but if you’re looking for higher-end Japanese clothes for your kids such as MIKI HOUSE, then you’ll want to stop here. There’s also a small toy store called for kids by KOGUMA.
Floor 9 — Japan Pop Culture
This floor has everything related to anime and popular Japanese characters.
There’s a JUMP Shop that sells products featuring beloved JUMP comic characters such as ONE PIECE, Dragon Ball, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Naruto. And for some reason Oshi no Ko.
You can also find Pokemon Center Osaka here as well as the Pokemon Cafe and the Kirby Cafe (opening November 21st). If you’re curious about my experience visiting the Pokemon Cafe in Osaka and how I successfully made a reservation, read this article.
This floor also has a Doraemon store filled with lots of goods featuring Japan’s beloved blue cat-like robot.
Kid-Friendly Shops in PARCO
Floor 5 — Variety & Pop Culture
🤱 Has a baby room
On this floor, you can find a mofusand store (I am obsessed with this cat, they’re so cute!).
As well as a Kiddy Land, an amazing toy store that also carries lots of Japanese character goods. I especially like going to Kiddy Land to find cute hair ties for my daughter.
Floor 6 — Pop Culture Shinsaibashi
💴 Has money exchange
There is so much on this floor that it can be a little overwhelming.
There are stores dedicated to CAPCOM, Ultraman, LEGO, Chikawa, Sumikkogurashi, Rilakkuma, Snoopy, and Godzilla.
My daughter’s favorite (and mine) is undoubtedly the Ghibli store, Donguri Republic. This is the best Ghibli store I’ve found in Japan to take photos because they have the No Face train scene from Spirited Away and the bath tokens!
This store also carries cute products for babies and kids.
If you’re looking for food, Daimaru has restaurants on the 10th floor while PARCO has restaurants on the 13th floor.
You can also find food-court-style dining at Shinsaibashi Neon Restaurant Street, located in PARCO’s basement (B2). On the same floor, Daimaru has a food hall and grocery store. There are cafes throughout both buildings as well.
These buildings are also great places to find clean toilets and baby rooms where you can nurse your child and change diapers. Baby rooms are located on the 5th and 9th floors in PARCO.
Floors 9F to 11F — Tokyu Hands
If you haven’t heard of Tokyu Hands before, it’s a store that carries lots of lifestyle goods such as stationery, kitchenware, and cosmetics.
You can find cute Pokemon suitcases here, too!
There’s a nanoblock Square store, too, which kids might like exploring, as well as special fairs where they sell different kinds of character goods that kids are likely to enjoy.
There’s also a shopping mall right across the road from Daimaru/PARCO called OPA, but I don’t think there’s too much for kids other than an ABC Mart if you need shoes for them (for more on shopping for kids’ shoes in Japan, read this article), a Can Do 100 yen store, some purikura machines, and some minor anime theme cafes and restaurants that change frequently.
There’s an underground shopping center in Shinsaibashi called CRYSTA, which is another option for rainy days. It has cafes like Starbucks and Doutor that open from 7-7:30 AM, restaurants, and shops like 3COINS, Seria, and MUJI. The shops don’t open until around 11 AM, though.
④ Explore Shinsaibashisuji Shopping Street
There are lots of little shops lining Shinsaibashisuji Shopping Street and this is a great place to stock up on diapers, baby food, or other baby/toddler supplies from various drug stores such as Sun Drug Shinsaibashi and Daikoku Drug Ultra Shinsaibashi.
There’s another ABC Mart here as well.
There’s also a candy store that my daughter likes called CANDY A GO GO, but mainly because it carries lots of Western candies that you don’t see often in Japan. (It reminds me of my childhood so I can’t help buying my daughter a few!)
They carry these adorable marshmallow lollipops as well that are worth getting as a little treat for kids.
If you’re looking for some affordable souvenirs, there’s a DAISO here, too.
As you walk along Shinsaibashisuji Street, you’ll be led straight to Dotonbori. Depending on where you start from (and whether or not you stop by stores, etc), it should take around ten minutes. I have an article on what you can do in Dotonbori with kids so make sure to check it out!
Where to Eat in Shinsaibashi with Kids
There are lots of restaurants in Shinsaibashi to choose from but keep in mind that the restaurants in Daimaru and PARCO, as well as Shinsaibashisuji, can be very crowded.
Personally, I like Manno Sankyubashi, which is a yakiniku restaurant near PLUS KIDSLAND ACADEMY. Their prices, especially for lunch, are super reasonable, especially since you can get wagyu in their lunch sets. They might only have counter seating available, though. (Also, I saw someone on Google Maps write that they’re not friendly to foreigners, but I saw an international family there who couldn’t speak Japanese and they were treated completely fine!)
An even better yakiniku restaurant is JOJOEN, which we first took our daughter to when she was 7 months old! (No, she did not have any yakiniku, it was way too early for that.) They have private rooms, which we used at the time, but you probably have to make a reservation for one in advance. This restaurant is quite pricey but very delicious.
I also really like Teppanyaki Okonomiyaki Oribe, which is a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant that is absolutely delicious. I recommend making a reservation in advance for this restaurant since it’s very popular.
I’ve written an article about kid-friendly Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurants in Osaka so please check it out for other options!
If you want to dine at a unique restaurant, Aquarium Italian Dining Shinsaibashi Lime has, as the name suggests, a bunch of small aquariums throughout. Although the food isn’t necessarily memorable and it’s not oriented to kids, my daughter enjoyed looking at all the fish when we took her back when she was two years old.
Lastly, this shabu-shabu restaurant is another favorite of mine. It’s really good for the price!
Where to Stay in Shinsaibashi with Kids
If you’re looking for family-friendly accommodation in Shinsaibashi, here are my recommendations.
Looking for more recommendations on what to do in Osaka with kids?
For other articles on traveling in Osaka with kids, read these: