TBJ TRAVELS TOKYO JAPAN 2016 4: Shinjuku and Sanrio Puroland Guide + Itinerary

We're now down to our last leg of our 2016 Tokyo, Japan trip. On a sunny Sunday, we went to Shinjuku, one of Tokyo's biggest business districts to visit Capcom Bar (will blog about this on a separate post) and for some shopping.

If you're looking forward to purchasing second hand luxury bag labels within the city, Shinjuku is the place to be. Tons of shoe stores are lined up near the train station too!

TIP: Shinjuku has a massive train station with lots of exits leading to different parts of the district. A wrong exit can result to walking blocks and blocks to get to your destination. When visiting places in Shinjuku, it's best to find out the nearest train station exit to your destination to save time and energy.

Our main purpose for visiting Shinjuku was to try out Capcom Bar and did some shopping on the side at Isetan. There's a huge Uniqlo store in the area and I grabbed a couple of their cotton undies for mom; it's pretty affordable and lucky me, Uniqlo was on sale during my visit!

SANRIO PUROLAND

My primary reason for visiting Japan was to see Sanrio Puroland. I've always been a Hello Kitty lover and it's an opportunity that I couldn't pass up on so even if I was pressed for time and I knew that it would just be a quick visit, I went anyway all for the love of  Hello Kitty! Mikki and I have parted ways for a couple of ours to make time for the places that we personally wanted to visit: She went to Square Enix building where there's a Final Fantasy cafe and I went to Sanrio Puroland, about 6 train stops from Shinjuku via the Keio semi- special express.

TIP: To get to Sanrio Puroland from Shinjuku, go to KEIO train station right inside Shinjuku station. Ride the train going to Tama Center Station; travel time is approximately 23 minutes. Alight at Tama Center Station. Exit at the South Exit, turn left at the first corner and go straight for at least 5-8 minutes and you'll see Sanrio Puroland at the end.

Tama Center Station is pretty far from Shinjuku given that I was riding an express train. For reference, distance of Shinjuku station to Tama Center Station is like Paranaque to Tagaytay. I already saw hills, rice fields, and mini forests while on my way to Tama Center, thus it felt pretty far from the city! But Tama Center is a laid-back district; it has a quiet charm and even if it has its own lifestyle centers, it's not as busy as Shinjuku, Shibuya, or Ginza.

Where! Photofinish at Sanrio Puroland! I purchased the after 3 PM pass. The park closes at 7pm during Sundays and I got there at 6 PM. The gate staff almost didn't let me in, but I literally begged and they pitied me haha! Lesson learned, the next time I will visit, I'll surely go there at least 2-3 hours before closing time!

Sanrio Puroland is a 4- storey theme park featuring Hello Kitty and friends. It's literally a fairyland inside and the market is usually kids and Sanrio character lovers like myself.

The entrance is at the second floor and at the basement, you will find Fairy Forest where shows are being held every hour. It's also where the mini train ride and some of the main toy exhibits are located. Here's a toy exhibit called Marchen Plaza.

These are moving toy exhibits and they're basically showcasing a magical town where Sanrio animals that bake and can do human work exist. :p Honestly, I don't know who these characters are. Gawd. I got stuck at the time of Hello Kitty and friends like Pochacco, Zashikibuta, Little Twin Stars, My Melody, and the likes. 

Hedghogs running a bakery. How cute! The cartoon music made that little girl inside me all giddy and smiling!

Come night time and before the park closes, the magical tree lights up! So cute and magical!

I dropped by the souvenir shop for my Hello Kitty collectibles fix. I also found out at the park that Gudetama is a Sanrio character!

My Melody cafe at the 4th floor. It was closing time already and they weren't entertaining guests any longer. It was okay because by this time, I was close to spending my entire budget for this trip already!

Sanrio Puroland at night

I wish I had more time to explore, like an additional 1 or 2 more hours, but I couldn't be any more thankful for being in such a feel- good place for at least a full hour. Besides, all the rides are for kids and it would be weird for an adult like me to squeeze myself in tiny rides haha!

TIP: How to save on tickets at Sanrio Puroland: 1. ) If you're on a budget, purchase the AFTER 3 PM pass. Save even more by downloading the discount coupon for this type of pass. 2.) If you want to purchase the full day pass, download the discount coupon for this type of pass; 'tis great if you are going as a group. Click HERE for the link to the discount coupons.

**I just found out that the Sanrio Puroland discount coupons are available until September 30, 2016 only. If you're going on a much later date, just wait for official announcements at Sanrio Purloand's official website.

After Sanrio Puroland, I went back to Shinjuku to meet up with Mikki and we headed to Roppongi for dinner; wasn't able to do much at Roppongi because we were already tired and places were about to close already. The next day, I personally headed back to Omotesando, my favorite district, to absorb the place before leaving, do a bit more shopping, try Heiroku Sushi and Pablo cheese tart, and flew to back to Manila in the evening.

Thank you for joining me in this week- long Tokyo adventure on my blog. Until the next TBJ Travels blog post! :)

View and download my Tokyo, Japan 2016 itinerary HERE.

**Please be reminded that fares and rates vary depending on the latest currency conversion rate and change in rules on your time of visit.

Check out my other Tokyo, Japan diaries:

TBJ TRAVELS TOKYO, JAPAN 2016 1: Tokyo Disney Sea

TBJ TRAVELS TOKYO, JAPAN 2016 2: Ueno, Asakusa, Akihabara

TBJ TRAVELS TOKYO, JAPAN 2016 3: Shibuya, Harajuku, Omotesando, Ginza