Kidzania was one of the gobsmacking highlights of our time in Tokyo.

Kidzania is essentially a miniature city of make believe, where kids pretend to be adults for the day, choosing their jobs and take part in the world of commerce. On arrival you enter a streetscape of miniature buildings and vehicles (scaled to two-thirds the size of the real world equivalent), where kids can earn and spend ‘Kidzos’, and learn to be whatever they dream of: businessmen, builders, firemen, cooks, doctors, postmen.

What’s more, each of the 80 activites are dedicated adult-free zones.

It’s not always easy to remember what life was like as an eight- or ten-year-old but I reckon this would have pretty much been a form of heaven for me.

Putting on the uniform required for your dream job, and learning how to work on a radio station, run a police investigation, work on a building site, hire a car, be a travel agent or hairdresser or fashion model are just some of the activities on offer to kids at this amazing theme park. And for the bookworms there was even a publishing house!

With the involvement of major brands like Coca Cola (at the bottling plant), Johnson & Johnson (at the hospital) and Mitsubishi (at the caryard), the creators of this unique theme park have ensured an incredible attention to detail and level of quality.

Something about to overt sponsorship and the stereotyping of some of the roles in this world did make me a little bit uneasy, but nevertheless, I know I would have loved this make-believe world as a kid and I can’t help but think that it teaches some valuable lessons about careers, independence and finances.

Unfortunately going to Kidzania was a form of torture for Rowan. A bit too young to really participate, he had numerous tantrums revolving around a need to drive the fire engine. He did go for two rides on the Kidzania bus (while his Japanese cohorts learnt to be bus tour guides and politely convinced him that he shouldn’t be driving). Eventually we located the Kidzania kindergarten. Here, he was shown a train set and he was sold. Meanwhile, eager Japanese kids learnt to be his kindergarten teachers.

You can imagine the noise of hundreds of exited primary school kids in a confined space, even if it is 6000 square metres, but we nevertheless spent several hours in this amazing world for kids. And when it got too much, there was the ‘Parent Zone’ with free internet and coffee and newspapers…

I would have said ‘Only in Japan’ but Kidzania was a concept born in Mexico. Japan was the first country to adopt it outside Mexico, but other versions have opened or are planned in Indonesia and Dubai. A good article on the concept can be found here.

Kidzania is located in the also fairly gobsmacking Lalaport shopping centre at Toyosu. I didn’t realise it at the time, but have since learnt Lalaport is one of Tokyo’s biggest shopping malls, which makes it a good destination for a rainy day (which it was). While there, I stumbled upon a beautiful craft store called Mano Creare (and bought some treasures which I will have to reveal in a few weeks once my parcel arrives via surface mail…), a branch of the famous ‘Creative Life Store’, Tokyu Hands (a DIY department store with an amazing variety of the normal and bizarre for everyday life) and a branch of the beautiful cooking school, ABC Cooking Studio.

Another reason for it being a good day trip for kids (and big kids) is the mode of transport you can use to get there. From Toyosu you can take the Yurikomome line, which is an elevated and fully-automated type of train. Because the system is operated solely by computers, you can sit right up the front, which meant Rowan could pretend to ‘drive’ the train. (After his frustrations at Kidzania, this was a just reward…) Being elevated, the route also affords views across the bay to the city and past some amazing architecture. A ride on Yurikomome is well worth it as an activity in itself, and was one of my ‘Why-don’t-they-mention-this-in-the-Lonely-Planet?!’ moments!

Is it obvious how much I loved Tokyo?