World Character Summit in Hanyū

This is a once-a-year chance to meet mascots from all over Japan — and the world.

What happens?

If you’ve encountered any cultural news from Japan, you’re almost certainly familiar with the concept of yuru-chara, the kawaii mascots used to promote things like regions, companies, and organizations. They make cameos across marketing materials and appear at events, with their designs often inspired by what they’re meant to promote (from cultural signatures to produce).

You know Kumamon? He’s a yuru-chara — and an extremely successful one at that.

Within the genre of yuru-chara is a subset called gotōchi-chara, meaning local characters. And that’s what the World Character Summit celebrates.

Highlights 2026

The 2026 summit runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both days, and the organizers are billing it as their first with a full 200 characters. In previous years the program has run to parades, dances, photo ops and a public vote for the best character jingle, and we expect much the same this year, though the details for this edition are not up yet.

Tickets

The event is free to attend. Food and merchandise have a separate cost.

How to get there

The World Character Summit will be spread out across Hanyū City Hall and the nearby Hanyū Peace Park. To get there from Tokyo you can catch the Jōetsu or Hokuriku Shinkansen to Kumagaya and then catch the Chichibu Railway to Hanyū Station. From Asakusa, take a Tobu Skytree Line train, change to the local Isesaki Line at Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen Station, then change again at Kuki Station for the local train to Hanyū. In previous years a couple of morning expresses have made special stops at Hanyū on summit days, and we expect the same this year, but the timings have not been published yet. Alternatively, you can catch the Ueno-Tokyo Line to Kuki Station and then change to the Tobu Isesaki Line for Hanyū Station. The festival area is a roughly 20-minute walk from Hanyū Station. Check the official website for information on parking if you plan to come by car.