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The wildly popular Pokémon franchise is set to launch its first permanent theme park, “PokePark Kanto,” in Tokyo in spring 2026.
The Pokémon Company, a subsidiary of Nintendo, announced that the 2.6-hectare (6.4-acre) park will be located within Yomiuri Land, Tokyo’s largest amusement park.
Junichi Masuda, the chief creative fellow at The Pokémon Company, stated in a video announcement, “We want to create a space where Pokémon are always present and where people can have fun with them.”
The park will feature two distinct areas: a “spacious wilderness” Pokémon forest and a dedicated zone for shopping and rides.
This development comes as Japan experiences a record surge in tourism, driving demand for attractions, including the “Making of Harry Potter” film studio park that opened in Tokyo in 2023.
The Pokémon franchise, which began as a role-playing game for Nintendo’s Game Boy in 1996, quickly became a global phenomenon.
Inspired by the Japanese tradition of bug-collecting, the franchise allows players to catch, train, and battle hundreds of “pocket monsters” and has since expanded into movies, an animated TV show, and the popular “Pokémon Go” mobile game.
