Nintendo Museum at a glance
Detail | Info |
|---|---|
Location | 2 Toro, Uji, Kyoto Prefecture |
Opening hours | 10:00–20:00 |
Closed | Every Tuesday (or Wednesday if Tuesday is a public holiday); 30 December–3 January |
Tickets | Lottery only via museum-tickets.nintendo.com |
Getting there | Kintetsu Kyoto Line to Ogura Station (East Exit), 5-min walk |
Photography | Permitted on 1st floor and exterior; prohibited on 2nd floor |
Parking | None — no car, motorcycle, bicycle, or taxi drop-off |
If you're a Nintendo fan from Australia with a Japan holiday on the horizon, Uji City just jumped to the top of your itinerary. Opened in October 2024, the Nintendo Museum sits inside the company's original Hanafuda card factory — a beautiful red-brick building that now houses decades of gaming history, hands-on experiences, and some seriously covetable merchandise. One catch: you can't just show up. Tickets are lottery-only, and for Australians planning months ahead, that actually works in your favour.
Here's everything you need to visit the Nintendo Museum without a wasted trip.
⛩️ Make the Most of Your Kyoto Visit ⛩️
✈️ Arrive via Kansai International Airport
🚄 Getting Around Kansai & Beyond
🚗 Explore at Your Own Pace
📱 Stay Connected in Japan
🎨 Pair Your Visit with Kyoto's Top Experiences
What you need to know before you go
Image credit: Nintendo Museum
The Nintendo Museum is in Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture — about 10 kilometres south of central Kyoto. It occupies the same factory where Nintendo once hand-made Hanafuda playing cards before pivoting to electronics. The building itself is part of the story.
Inside, you'll find a no-photography exhibition hall tracing Nintendo's history from 1889 to the present day, eight coin-based interactive experiences, a custom burger café, and a shop stocked with museum-exclusive items. As of mid-2026, there's also a Super Mario Bros. 40th Anniversary special exhibit running alongside the permanent collection.
The most important thing to know upfront: there is no walk-in option, no third-party booking, and no on-the-day availability. Tickets are sold exclusively through Nintendo's own lottery system.
How to get Nintendo Museum tickets
Book through Nintendo's official ticketing site at museum-tickets.nintendo.com. You'll need a free Nintendo Account first (a mobile number is required for verification). For Australians, this is easy to set up before you leave home. Here's how the lottery works:
- Applications open three months before your target visit month. Planning a September trip? Applications open in June — well before most Australians even book flights.
- Choose up to three preferred visit dates and time slots — they don't all need to fall in the same week.
- The draw happens on the 1st of the month before your visit. Results go out by email and are posted on the ticketing site.
- If you win, pay by credit card (Visa, Mastercard, or JCB with 3D Secure) by 23:59 on the 7th. That locks in your booking.
- QR codes are issued from 14:00 the day before your visit. Once generated, cancellations are no longer accepted.
Didn't win the lottery? Unclaimed and cancelled slots are released for direct purchase roughly two weeks after results go out. Checking the ticketing site regularly in those days is a legitimate way to score tickets without the draw.
Ticket prices
Visitor type | Price (incl. tax) |
|---|---|
Adults (18+) | ¥3,300 (~AUD $34) |
Youth (12–17) | ¥2,200 (~AUD $23) |
Children (6–11) | ¥1,100 (~AUD $11) |
Under 5 | Free |
Hanafuda Play workshop | +¥500 (~AUD $5) per person |
Hanafuda Craft workshop | +¥2,000 (~AUD $21) per person |
Every person in your group — including young children — needs valid photo ID at the entrance. For overseas visitors, that means a passport for each person. Expect airport-style X-ray screening at entry.
Getting to Nintendo Museum from Kyoto or Osaka
There is no parking at the museum, and taxis are not permitted to drop off at the entrance. Public transport is your only option.
Most Australians visiting base themselves in Kyoto or Osaka, both of which give easy access to Uji. If you're planning to use trains across the Kansai region during your stay, the JR West Kansai-Sanin Area Pass can save you money across multiple day trips.
From Kyoto Station
Kintetsu Railway (recommended): Take the Kintetsu Kyoto Line to Ogura Station (about 20–25 minutes, ¥360. Exit from the East Exit and walk five minutes to the museum.
JR alternative: Take the JR Nara Line to JR Ogura Station about 35 minutes, ¥310, then walk eight minutes from the North Exit.
Klook Tip: If you're using a wheelchair or travelling with a pram, the underground passage at Ogura Station has stairs only. Download the museum's accessible route map from their official site before you go.
From Osaka
Allow around 60–90 minutes total. The most direct route is JR Special Rapid to Kyoto Station (about 30 minutes), then the Kintetsu Ogura leg. If you're near Namba, Kintetsu connections can get you there in under an hour.
What's inside Nintendo Museum
The historical exhibition (2nd floor, no photography)
This is the heart of the museum. More than 20 display cabinets trace Nintendo's full history — from 1889 Hanafuda cards through to the Switch 2, added after its 2025 reveal. You'll find original consoles, cartridges, and accessories spanning Japan-only and international releases, alongside cut-away models showing internal hardware.
Prototypes and development materials, including an E3 2004 Nintendo DS prototype, make up some of the most compelling cases. Photography is prohibited throughout this floor. If you're visiting with someone who doesn't have Nintendo background knowledge, the displays can feel sparse — for fans, it's deeply rewarding.
Interactive experiences (1st floor, coin system)
Each paid ticket includes 10 digital coins loaded onto your Play Ticket. Coins can't be bought, topped up, or earned back, so plan how you spend them before you arrive.
The Zapper & Scope SP experience (4 coins) is the most-talked-about. If shooter games are your thing, head there first before queues build. Nintendo Classics — a retro gaming lounge with 80+ classic titles — costs just 1 coin and rarely has a queue. It's consistently flagged as an unexpected highlight.
Hanafuda workshops
Same-day workshops run on a first-come, first-served basis from the information counter, and operate separately from the coin system.
- Hanafuda Play (about 30 minutes, ¥500): Learn the traditional card game with tech-assisted guidance.
- Hanafuda Craft (about 60 minutes, ¥2,000): Design and make your own set of playing cards to take home, with 12 monthly pattern options.
Both are worth doing if time allows.
The shop — Bonus Stage
The merchandise store carries museum-exclusive items marked with a purple tag — not available anywhere else. Popular items include giant controller plushes ¥11,000–13,200 , limited to 1 per person, retro console keychain blind boxes, pin badges, clothing, stationery, and Uji matcha-flavoured snacks.
Go to the shop before you start the exhibits. Popular items, especially the plushes, typically sell out by early afternoon.
How long to spend at Nintendo Museum
For a comfortable visit covering the exhibition, a few interactive experiences, and the shop, allow at least 2–3 hours. If you want to try most of the experiences, eat at the café, and browse properly, budget 3–4 hours. Families with young children typically spend close to four hours.
Klook Tip: Visiting after 17:00 means shorter queues at the interactive experiences, though the shop will be more picked over by that point.
Is Nintendo Museum worth it?
Image credit: Nintendo Museum
For anyone with genuine Nintendo history — games you grew up with, consoles you owned, characters you care about — yes, absolutely. The prototype section, the physical scale of the giant controller room, and the depth of the historical displays are things you won't find anywhere else. The coin system adds a planning element that makes the visit feel intentional, not overwhelming.
For casual visitors without that Nintendo background, the experience is more mixed. Limited interpretive text means the display cases don't do much explaining on their own.
For families, the verdict is broadly positive. Children respond well to the interactive floor — particularly Ultra Machine, Zapper, and Big Controller — and the coin system gives kids something to strategise over. Under-5s enter free and can access some experiences with their included playing cards.
Tips before you go
- Apply three months ahead. If your trip falls in September, the application window opens in June — sort this before you finalise your flights.
- List up to three dates in one application to improve your chances. Australians travelling with flexible itineraries have the advantage here.
- Bring passports for everyone in your group, including children. Australian passports are fine — just make sure they're not expiring within 6 months of your travel date.
- Shop first. Plushes and popular items sell out by mid-afternoon.
- Plan your coins. With 10 coins and 8 experiences ranging from 1–4 coins each, decide which ones matter before you arrive.
- Eat beforehand. The Hatena Burger café gets mixed reviews — it's functional but pricey for what it is, and crowded between 12:00 and 15:00.
- Photography: The 2nd floor exhibition is no-photos. The interactive floor and exterior allow photos. No selfie sticks or tripods anywhere.
- Free cancellations apply until your QR code is issued (from 14:00 the day before). After that, bookings can't be changed.
- Free Wi-Fi is available inside in 60-minute sessions.
What is Klook?
Klook is a leading pan-regional experiences platform in Asia Pacific, purpose built to digitalize experiences and make them accessible to every traveler.
Our mission is to build the digital infrastructure for the global experience economy — empowering merchants to share their passions and travelers to discover the heartbeat of each destination. We operate a mobile-first, curated platform featuring diverse experiences across global destinations.
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