Play equipment that delights children. Toys and play tools that can be enjoyed from early childhood.
We’ve put together a collection of play items that kids will love!
We’ll introduce lots of toys and play gear that both boys and girls can enjoy, so use this guide to make trips to the park more fun, fill downtime on camping trips, or keep kids entertained indoors on bad-weather days.
In addition to gift-worthy items, there are plenty of affordable playthings that are easy to find at 100-yen shops and similar stores.
Even though they’re from 100-yen shops, the quality is surprisingly high, making them perfect when you want to try something a little new!
Playthings Kids Love: Toys and Play Equipment Enjoyable from Toddler Age (1–10)
3D puzzle
In recent years, 3D puzzles have become popular not only with children but also with adults—have you tried them? Unlike flat jigsaw puzzles, 3D puzzles, as the name suggests, are assembled into three-dimensional objects.
You might think they’re a bit difficult for kids, but these days even 100-yen shops carry lots of puzzles—cars, airplanes, and more—that you can play with after you finish building them.
There’s a wide variety, like working vehicles, dinosaurs, animals, and fish, and 100-yen shops make it easy to get started.
Ice cream sand mold set
At the nearby park, the sandbox gets covered with a blue tarp at night.
This is to prevent cats from coming and using it as a litter box.
Still, some parents may worry that “no matter how much you try, park sandboxes aren’t exactly sanitary…” So why not make a private mini sandbox at home using “less-mess sand” sold at 100-yen shops? If you also pick up ice cream molds or cookie cutters, your child will feel like a pastry chef! Less-mess, easy-to-shape sand is also available at large toy stores.
This way, kids can enjoy it indoors even on rainy days.
I think children around age three and up will have fun with it!
soap bubble
Back in the Showa era, the standard way to make soap bubbles was to dissolve dish detergent in water and blow through a straw, but these days you can buy bubble solution at 100-yen shops.
They even have tools for making giant bubbles and items that let you create lots of bubbles at once.
Once kids are old enough not to accidentally inhale the solution, it’s an easy activity to enjoy.
If you want to make huge bubbles, try mixing glycerin and liquid laundry starch to create your own original bubble solution.
skateboard
Skateboarding became widely known thanks to the Tokyo Olympics held in 2021, spreading from children to adults.
People who had previously only glanced at young skaters out of the corner of their eye may now recognize it as a sport.
More parents are also thinking, “I’d like my child to try it.” Even if they don’t pursue it seriously as a competitive sport, casually playing from early childhood seems likely to build core strength and develop explosive power.
Just be careful when playing on roads and similar areas.
soft gun
Nerf is popular among adults these days.
Simply put, Nerf refers to toy guns that shoot foam darts.
They’re sold in various styles like bazooka-type, machine-gun-type, and rifle-type.
And amazingly, you can even buy toys similar to Nerf at 100-yen shops! I think it’s fine to play with the 100-yen versions first and then buy a pricier one if you want to get more serious.
You could line up plastic bottles as targets, or arrange snacks and have everyone compete to win them—both sound fun.
Kids around kindergarten age and up might enjoy playing with them.
hula hoop
The hula hoop craze that swept the United States in 1958 made its way straight to Japan, sparking a major hula hoop fever here as well.
The price at the time was 270 yen each.
Some people overdid the hip-wiggling so much that they felt unwell, and there were even schools that banned hula hoops.
Of course, that’s an extreme case—there’s no problem at all if you just play with them normally.
Seniors, let’s reminisce about the old days and enjoy hula hooping together.
Kids pick things up quickly, so they’ll probably have them spinning in no time.
radio-controlled (RC) / remote-controlled
I think drones are the ultimate radio-controlled gadgets.
You see drone-shot videos and photos on TV every day—filming from high places or slipping into tight spaces.
A flying RC used to be a hobby only a select few enjoyed 50 years ago.
RC vehicles are loved by adults too, and big toy stores even have dedicated sections—the hobby seems incredibly deep.
You can find inexpensive ones for around 3,000 yen, so it feels easy to get into.
Renting out a gym and hosting an RC day with everyone could be a lot of fun!
katana
Among the squadron heroes and anime characters that little kids love, many of them fight with swords.
That’s why children adore pretend sword-fighting.
In fact, it seems that 100-yen shops sell not only toy swords made of soft, sponge-like materials that don’t hurt when they bump into you, but also swords that light up and make sounds when you swing them.
Swords made from hard materials are fine for light swinging play, and with soft swords, parents and kids can enjoy mock sword-fighting together!
water balloon
They’re also called mizutama balloons in some regions.
They even made a splash on TV: there’s a special product that lets you make about 50 water balloons at once just by attaching the balloons to a faucet and filling them.
The balloons pop out one after another like eggs being laid—wow, the developer’s passion really shows! On hot summer days, it’s fine if the balloons burst and everything gets soaked, so it’d be great to have a water balloon fight in the yard.
It’s also fun to compete to see how much water you can fit into a big balloon.
In colder seasons, you can even enjoy water balloons while taking a bath!
Assembly glider
How about trying a build-it-yourself glider made of Styrofoam? You assemble the glider yourself and have fun flying it.
The assembly is very simple—you just pop out the pieces and slot them together—so even small children can do it.
You can find them not only in toy stores but also at 100-yen shops, so it’s easy to get started.
Unlike paper airplanes, they fly really well, making them perfect for playing in wide-open spaces! And since they’re made of soft material that won’t break if it bumps into something, you can even play with them indoors.