How to Spend 3 Days in Nagoya with Kids

Traveled in October 2025

Everyone visits the big cities when they travel to Japan, but don’t skip the smaller cities! We actually prefer them, especially with kids, because they’re calmer, less crowded, and so much easier on easily overstimulated toddlers. This was our first time in Nagoya, and we were pleasantly surprised at the many kid-friendly activities there are. Legoland Japan is perfect for younger kids with short lines and toddler-friendly rides. Little train lovers will go crazy for one of Japan’s biggest train museums. There are great aquariums, playgrounds, and even the castle is fun for kids thanks to all the ninja and samurai touches. Nagoya is also great for shopping because they have all the big name stores, but with fewer crowds so you can actually enjoy the shopping experience. If you’re visiting Nagoya with kids, follow this itinerary to make the most of your time!

Itinerary

When to Go

I love traveling during shoulder season, especially when we’re visiting busy cities like those in Japan. Asian metropolises tend to be much more densely populated than most U.S. cities. So even if you’re used to city life at home, the sheer number of people in Japanese cities can feel overwhelming. That’s even more true if city living isn’t your norm, or if you’re traveling with kids. Visiting during less busy times means more breathing room, shorter lines, and a more relaxed experience.

Late spring and late fall are the sweet spots for visiting Japan. During that time, there is a balance of mild weather and lighter crowds. That’s because early spring is packed for cherry blossom season, summer is hot and humid, September brings a higher chance of heavy monsoon rains, and winter can be cold and snowy. Personally, I prefer visiting in mid-May, just after Golden Week, or October to November for the best mix of weather and crowd levels. We did this Japan with kids itinerary in mid October and had a mix of cloudy weather with hot days in the 80s.

How to Get There

Nagoya is a 1.5-2 hour direct shinkansen (bullet train) ride away from Tokyo and just a 35 minute shinkansen ride from Kyoto. When traveling to Nagoya with kids, I definitely recommend booking shinkansen tickets ahead of time to reserve your seats.

• Use Klook to book your train tickets ahead of time to ensure you get the departure time you want. This is the easiest way when using a non-Japanese credit card.
• Another option is to book directly through the Smart-Ex website. However, note that it is a little picky about accepting foreign credit cards. I had to try a couple different cards before the transaction processed successfully. My Chase card did not work, but Amex did (use my contact form to reach out if you want a referral with extra bonus points!)

Where to Stay

Nikko Style Nagoya

We stayed at the Nikko Style Nagoya and cannot say enough good things about it. The Nikko Style Nagoya is such a great choice for families when visiting Nagoya with kids because the rooms are large by Japanese standards. They have a variety of room types, including twin rooms, triple rooms, and even a bunk style room that is perfect for bigger families. It’s only a 10 minute walk (that actually feels like 10 minutes) away from Nagoya Station. And compared to Tokyo, the room rates at Nikko Style Nagoya feel much more affordable for what you get!

Children under 12 stay free if they are sharing a bed with a parent. They also have a variety of kid-friendly amenities that you can borrow free of charge. Since supplies can be limited, I would recommend contacting the hotel to request these after you book.

• Baby Crib *For children up to 24 months old
• Bedwetting pad
• Bed guard *For children 18 to 60 months old
• Baby stroller
• Toilet seat for infant (Combi)
• Step stool for children
• Bottle sterilization set (Combi) *Pleae bring the bottle to the Front Desk.
• Baby soap (arau.baby Foam Baby Soap)
• Deodorizing Diaper Pot (Aprica)
• Pajamas (For 125 cm to 135 cm height)
• Kids amenity set (toothbrush, slippers, body towel)
• Picture book

How to Get Around

Nagoya has an easy system of trains and metros to take you anywhere you need to go. Nikko Style Nagoya is a short walk to both Nagoya Station for train access to Legoland and the SCMaglev and Railway Park, and a metro station to Nagoya Castle. The best part is that most of these train rides are direct rides!

Show Me the Money

The currency in Japan is the Japanese Yen. Unlike many other countries, cash is still very widely used (and preferred) in Japan. While we usually rely mostly on our credit cards when traveling and only withdraw a small amount of cash, that was not the case in Japan. Many of the restaurants and smaller stores prefer cash and may not even accept credit cards.

The easiest way to withdraw cash in Japan is to look for a local 7-Eleven or the 7 Bank atm in train stations. The ATMs in the 7-Elevens accept international debit cards and are open all the time. (7-Elevens in Japan are magical and deserve a tribute post of their own. We went into one at least once a day – for breakfast, a snack, or cash, and it never disappoints.) Always choose to withdraw cash in Yen for the best exchange rate!

Saving tip: to avoid ATM fees (from the foreign bank and your bank), look for a checking account that offers ATM fee reimbursements. I can personally recommend the Schwab investors checking account and the Betterment checking account for this purpose.

How to Stay Connected

There are three main options for staying connected in Japan. You can use a pocket wifi, an e-sim, or a physical sim card.

Pocket Wifi

• Good For: groups that are traveling together who will not be splitting up.
• Pros:
  • Good for phones that are still locked because you can’t change sim cards.
  • If you’re planning on going to Tokyo Disney, then having a pocket wifi might come in handy to ensure you have fast internet to book the passes since cell service might be slow.
• Cons:
  • It is an extra device to keep charged and carry around during the day.
  • Must arrange for delivery to receive it and send it back at the end of the trip.

E-Sim

• Good For: people with unlocked phones who only need internet data
• Pros:
  • Easiest and cheapest option to have internet data available on the phone right after landing. You can install the e-sim while back at home, and just toggle it on once you get to Japan.
  • The data packages are surprisingly cheap, and it’s easy to top up more data as you go. Airalo is our favorite e-sim company and we have used it in Canada and Europe without problems. You can buy a Japan only e-sim or a regional Asia e-sim if traveling to multiple Asian countries.
    • Use my referral code ATEASP4988 for $3 off your first Airalo e-sim!
• Cons:
  • Must have an unlocked phone to install an e-sim.
  • The e-sim only provides data and has no cellular service for making or receiving calls.

Physical Sim Card

• Good For: Those who want data and the capability to make local phone calls while in Japan.
• Pros:
  • Will have calling capabilities.
• Cons:
  • Probably the most expensive.
  • Have to make an extra stop to pick one up. You can find physical sim cards at stores in the airport or order it online for pick up at the airport to start using it right away.

Nagoya with Kids Itinerary at a Glance

Day	Activity	Sleep In
1	SCMaglev and Railway Park	Nagoya
2	Legoland Japan	Nagoya
3	Nagoya Castle Meijo Park

Day 1: SCMaglev and Railway Park

• Age Range: all ages!
• Cost: 1200 yen for adults, 200 yen for kids 3 and older, 500 yen for school age children.
• How to Get There: from Nagoya Station, take the Aonami Line 10 stops to Kinjofuto Station. After exiting the station, turn left for the Railway Museum.
• Hours: 10am – 5:30pm, closed Tuesdays

If your kid is a train enthusiast like ours, then they will love the SCMaglev and Railway Park. This interactive museum has a bunch of different trains and shinkansens on display that you can go inside. They also have a large train room for kids that like to watch electric train dioramas and a room with a Maglev train simulator. A highlight for older kids (and adults!) is a shinkansen and train simulator where you can experience what it’s like to be a shinkansen or train conductor. Another highlight of the museum is a kids playroom, where kids can play with plarail train tracks. Unfortunately, you have to make reservations for both the train simulator and the kids playroom. Reservations are first come first serve, and both were booked up by the time we arrived to the museum in the late afternoon.

Day 2: Legoland Japan

• Age Range: all ages!
• Cost: Dynamic pricing based on expected crowds ranging from 4700 – 6900 yen for adults and 3500 – 4500 yen for kids 3-18 years old when purchased online (500 yen more expensive when purchased at the gate). Kids 2 and under are free.
• How to Get There: from Nagoya Station, take the Aonami Line 10 stops to Kinjofuto Station. After exiting the station, turn right for Legoland Nagoya.
• Hours: 10am – 6pm

Visiting Legoland Nagoya was the main reason we included Nagoya on our itinerary and it did not disappoint! I have not been to any other Legolands, so I don’t have a point of comparison to know if Legoland in Japan is any different. But the rides, photo ops, and playground were such a blast for our kiddo. He enjoyed Legoland more than Disney! This is one of the highlights of visiting Nagoya with kids!

One of the main reasons I think Legoland was such a hit with our kid was the shorter lines. We visited on a Sunday before a school holiday, so it was more crowded than usual, but we still never waited more than 20 minutes for any ride. While there are height restrictions for some attractions, many rides allow smaller kids as long as they’re with an adult. For toddlers, the Duplo Valley, Adventure, and Lego City areas have the most ride options and was where we spent the most time. Our little one especially loved the Lego City area, which has a large play structure. We walked through Knight’s Kingdom, Ninjago World, and Pirate Shores but our kid wasn’t tall enough for most of those rides and the lines were longer, so we just checked out the Lego displays there.

I did notice that there were many more locals at Legoland compared to Tokyo Disney, and there were fewer staff who spoke English. That seems to be the case once you get outside the bigger tourist cities, which was actually more what we expected. We got by just fine using a mix of Google Translate and a bit of pantomiming.

Day 3: Nagoya Castle and Meijo Park

Nagoya Castle

• Age Range: all ages!
• Cost: 500 yen for adults, kids junior high school and younger are free.
• How to Get There: take the Tsurumai (blue) subway line to Sengen-cho Station
• Hours: 9am – 4:30pm, closed New Year’s Holidays (12/29-1/1)

Nagoya Castle is a beautifully reconstructed example of a historic Japanese castle. While you can’t currently go into the main tower keep because of earthquake safety concerns, you can go into the restored Hommaru Palace and enjoy the grounds. There are actors dressed up as samurais and ninjas roaming around the grounds that you can take photos with, which was random but interesting for our kiddo.

Behind the main tower keep, there is an area with a bunch of large stepping stones. There is a great view of the main tower keep from here. But more importantly, all the kids were having great fun jumping from rock to rock.

Meijo Park

Meijo Park is only a 15 minute walk from Nagoya Castle and has some fantastic play structures for kids! This is the largest playground we saw on this trip to Japan, and our kid had a blast here. There are swings, a big kid structure, a little kid structure, and a sand pit, all next to a pretty lakeside path. We spent a good amount of time here, and needless to say, our kiddo was sufficiently tired for our shinkansen trip back to Tokyo.

Other Fun Activities in Nagoya with Kids

I had researched a couple other activities in case we ended up with extra time in Nagoya, but we didn’t get to these activities. I’m saving them on my list for our next visit!

• Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium: this aquarium has an outdoor area with dolphin and orca shows, and an indoor area featuring different ocean ecosystems from tropical reef fish to Antarctic penguins.
• Sea Train Land amusement park: this amusement park next to the aquarium is like a beach boardwalk, with 16 rides.
• Tokugawaen Garden: a beautifully landscaped Japanese garden with plenty of space for kids to run around.
• Ghibli Park: a Ghibli-themed theme park located about 45 minutes away from Nagoya. Not to be confused with the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo, Ghibli Park is a much larger immersive theme park with five themed areas that lets you experience iconic settings from different Ghibli films.
• Nabano no Sato Winter Illumination: this winter flower park is a beautiful mix of flowers and twinkling LED lights, including a light tunnel you have probably seen all over social media. It’s about a 35-50 minute train ride from Nagoya, and is usually open at night from mid-October to end of May.

Shopping in Nagoya with Kids

If you have your heart set on certain popular Japanese goods (like Onitsuka Tiger sneakers!), shopping in Nagoya can feel much more relaxed than in Tokyo. There is generally less competition from tourists and often better stock in store. You’ll still find all the major retailers here (including Bic Camera, Don Quijote, Onitsuka Tiger, Muji, Uniqlo, Daiso, and Seria), but in a calmer, easier-to-shop environment.

Grocery Stores

• Seijo Ishii supermarket: next to Nagoya Station
• Meidi-ya Supermarket: inside Takashimaya department store connected to Nagoya Station
• Kinokuniya Nagoya Meitetsu Store Supermarket: 1 min walk from Nagoya Station
• Mega Don Quijote: Don Quijote but with a supermarket on the basement level. Located next to Naya Bridge along the river.

Where to Eat in Nagoya with Kids

You can still eat well in Japan with kids! It just takes a little more research to find restaurants that welcome kids and have foods kids are likely to eat. These restaurants in Nagoya are all noted to welcome children, have some kid-friendly food options (if your child is used to some Japanese foods), and have pretty good reviews on Tabelog.

Near Nagoya Station:

• Sawamura Bakery Restaurant: breakfast, sandwiches for lunch
• Jibundoki Meieki Hirokojidori: dinner izakaya restaurant with private booths
• Torikizoku: dinner yakitori chain
• Jiro Yakiniku Yanagibashi: takeaway wagyu bentos, also has lunch sets and dinner menus
• Choko Choko: izakaya
• Crepes de Anne: cute animal crepes
• Kishimen Saryo Ishikon Nagoya Station: local specialty, wide soupy noodles with various toppings. Has kids utensils and some seats are big enough to park the stroller at the table.
• Solo Pizza Napoletano da Lucio: pizza

By Nikko Style Nagoya Hotel:

• Coffee House Kako: thick breakfast toast, old school coffee shop vibes. One of the few places actually open early. Usually has a long line – we waited about 20 minutes at 7:30am.
• Sumibi Yakitori: grilled chicken
• Yakitori-ya Sumire Nagoya: yakitori, eel (local specialty), udon
• Tsubame Bread & Milk: fluffy egg sandwiches. Need to line up to secure a return time for a seat. Can order certain sandwiches to go if you can’t get a seat.

By Nagoya Castle:

• Wafu Lasagna Senmon Ten Y: Japanese style lasagna. Western-style Japanese food is usually a safe bet with kids because it’s more familiar. Our lasagnas were really tasty and our kiddo devoured half of it!
• Chuka Soba Shirakabe Aoi: Miso ramen
• Locanda Okada: casual Italian, has a good lunch set, best to have reservations

Uber Eats: this was the one city where we were too tired to consider eating out and ordered Uber Eats to our hotel. The fees are much lower than the US, so after a long day it was worth it! We met the delivery person in the lobby and it was pretty seamless.

Packing Essentials for Kids in Japan

• Layers of clothing:
  • Light rain jacket: it’s helpful to keep a packable rain jacket that doesn’t take up too much space in your everyday bag. We didn’t want to bother with carrying multiple umbrellas so a rain jacket was clutch on the sprinkly days.
  • Comfortable walking shoes: everyone does a lot more walking in Japan than usual. Make sure kids have comfortable shoes that are easy on and off!
  • Sun hat
  • Socks: part of Japanese culture is taking shoes off indoors, so you will find yourself removing your shoes much more than usual. Make sure to pack the good socks without holes!
  • If you forget to pack anything, you can probably find what you need at Muji or Uniqlo at a good price!
• Snacks and hydration:
  • Favorite snacks: Japan is a snack paradise, so I’m sure your kiddo will eventually find something that they like at the convenience stores. But bring some favorite snacks from home to tide you over until you figure out which Japanese snacks your kids love.
  • Water bottle: tap water is generally safe to drink in Japan, though we still prefer bottled water to avoid stomach upset as a result of the difference in mineral content.

• Entertainment options for downtime:
  • Screens will usually keep kids occupied, and while our kiddo gets a lot more screen time than usual when traveling, we don’t like to rely solely on screens for entertainment because there are usually more massive meltdowns when we try to turn it off.
  • We bring one new book (search and find books or lift the flap books are great!), Water Wow coloring books, sticker books, and drawing pads for travel days.
  • We usually make a toy store one of our first stops and get a small toy for our kid to play with during the trip. This also doubles as a souvenir, because whenever he plays with the toy at home he remembers where he got it. In Japan, he picked out some Tomica Thomas Trains that he loved.

• Kids supplies for daily living:
  • Sleep essentials: bring anything that your kid needs to sleep well to encourage good sleep while traveling. For us, that is a sound machine.
  • Medications: it goes without saying to pack any prescription medications your kid is taking. I also bring over-the-counter kids medications like Children’s Tylenol, just in case. I’m okay with buying Japanese OTC meds for myself and winging it with the translation, but I prefer using the kids’ OTC meds we’re familiar with because I am sure about the dosing and ingredients.
  • If you forgot anything, look for these stores in Japan that sell all kinds of kids goods: Nishimatsuya, Babies “R” Us, Akachan Honpo
• Travel Stroller: If your kid is not used to walking a lot at home it can be helpful to bring a stroller. But keep in mind that Japan is not as stroller friendly as the US. There are many stairs in train stations and elevators are small and require a longer walk to find. Many restaurants and stores are small and can’t always accommodate a stroller. While we did use our stroller, we folded it up and carried it quite a bit during train transfers to avoid having to take the long way around. If you do bring a stroller, bringing a smaller travel stroller is key. We love our Babyzen Yoyo. The Gb Pockit strollers also pack up amazingly small.
• Hip Seat Carrier: A better alternative to a stroller if your kid is still small enough to carry is a hip seat carrier. We loved using ours during our trip to Switzerland because it’s one less thing to carry through train stations. The hip seat is clutch because it’s more comfortable to sit in for longer periods. We loved our version that had straps and could be worn in the front or back. It’s especially helpful for crowded places like Japan where maneuvering a stroller can be tricky.
• Power plug adapters: Japan uses two pronged plugs similar to the US, except the prongs are the same length. Most 2 pronged chargers will work fine without adapters. If you have any chargers that have 3 prongs, then you’ll need an adapter.

Reality Check of Visiting Nagoya with Kids

The main reason we included Nagoya in our itinerary was to visit Legoland Japan, so I did not have very high expectations of Nagoya itself. But I was so pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed our time in this city! Nagoya felt more compact and manageable than Tokyo, making it easier and quicker to get around with a kid. And the balance of theme parks and relaxing spots like playgrounds was great for keeping our kiddo from getting overtired. Our time in Nagoya was at the end of our Japan trip, so it was nice to have a more chill couple days for our kid to reset. We were initially just going to take a day trip to Legoland Japan from Tokyo, but I’m glad we decided to spend a couple days staying in and exploring the city instead.

To see how to weave this Nagoya itinerary into a bigger Japan trip, check out our full kid-friendly Japan itinerary!