The Epcot Japan Store (the Mitsukoshi Department Store) is probably the most popular shopping destination at Epcot’s World Showcase and possibly the whole park (although Mouse Gear is great too). It is certainly my favorite store to visit when enjoying World Showcase as it has a wide variety of interesting products to see and purchase. In this post I’ll guide you through what to expect and share some Mitsukoshi Department Store photos too.
There is a lot to see inside the store and as it is so popular, we thought we would share what to expect and what we enjoy when visiting the Japan Store at Epcot – Mitsukoshi Department Store.
Find Out More About Epcot:
- What’s Inside the Epcot Ball?
- What Rides are at Epcot
- Epcot World Showcase Guide
- The Best Attractions at Epcot
- Helpful Epcot Tips
- Best Breakfast Locations at Epcot
- Epcot Drinking Around the World
Where is the Epcot Japan Store?
The Japan pavilion on World Showcase is located between the America and Morocco pavilions. The pavilion itself is a great location to get some photos from across World Showcase Lagoon.
You will find a towering, blue-roofed pagoda, which is surrounded by beautiful gardens. Here you will find Footbridges cross streams brimming with water lilies and colorful koi carp. A great spot to take a break and relax before or after you hit the store.
You will find the the Mitsukoshi Department Store on the right hand side as you enter the main area of the Japan Pavilion on World Showcase. It is located inside the ground floor of the main building that makes up the Japan Pavilion.
The building is a replica of the coronation and ceremonial halls of Japan’s Imperial Palace. Named for the oldest department store in the world, the original store goes back three centuries. This shop is “the mall” of Epcot’s World Showcase where you will find a large variety of Japanese gifts and souvenirs.
It is a large department style store and covers a lot of floor space. There is an entrance at the front of the Japan Pavilion and one at the back of the pavilion. You can enter from either entrance where you can make your way through the Japan store leaving at the other end.
The Teppan Edo and Tokyo Dining restaurants are located above the Mitsukoshi Department Store.
What Does the Japan Store at Epcot Sell?
Being a department store you will find a wide selection of Japanese products from clothing, jewelry and homeware to food, snacks and drinks.
There really is a lot to see when inside the store. You really do need to take your time and I’m pretty sure you will still miss quite a bit. More than one visit to the Mitsukoshi Department Store will be required to take everything in.
There are thousands of different items on sale inside the store and you will often find that things will sell out and on your next visit during your vacation new products will be on the shelves.
Here is an overview of what to expect find in the Japan Store at Epcot:
- Merchandise from popular Japanese Properties.
- Jewelry.
- Clocks.
- Homeware.
- Clothes – including Kimonos.
- Solar powered toys.
- Dolls and action figures.
- Swords.
- Wind chimes.
- Bonsai trees.
- Japanese food.
- Japanese confectionary.
- Sake and plum wine.
Food and Drink at Epcot Mitsukoshi Department Store
One of the highlights at the Mitsukoshi Department Store is the large selection of Japanese foods. The sweets and confectionary are very popular with our kids. Our daughter loves the Ramune Sodas that to open you have to push a marble stopper down into the drink.
In the past we have tried sweets and chips from Mitsukoshi and you will find lots of interesting flavors to try. We always enjoy purchasing interesting snacks from World Showcase during our Disney World vacations. If you are going to pay Disney World prices for snacks you might as well take something interesting back to your hotel room.
You can also purchase sake and plum wine from the Sake Bar area at the back of the store. I personally have never been a Sake fan so I tend to try the Japanese beers that you can find at the kiosks located outside of the store.
Akoya Pearls at Epcot Mitsukoshi Department Store
Among the jewelry on offer at Mitsukoshi there is also the fun option to pick one of the Akoya Pearls. This is something we have done in the past where our children have picked the pearls which we have then had made into a nice piece of jewelry for the children to gift to both of their grandmothers when we return home.
The performance side of picking the pearl is fun to watch and you never quite know what size of pearl you are going to get. Take a look at the video below that I filmed of the performance from a few years ago.
Pop Culture Merchandise at the Japan Store at Epcot
There are a lot of famous Japanese Pop Culture properties that you will inside the store such as Nintendo, Pokémon, Hello Kitty and Sega. You will find T-shirts, clothing, toys and action figures for all sorts of famous Japanese properties. Some you will be very familiar with such as Super Mario and others less so unless you are a big fan of anime.
You will find quite a selection of Funko Pops too based on characters from famous Japanese properties.
If you have a member of your family who is a Pokémon fan they will love it. But be prepared as they may not want to leave the store empty handed.
My one tip would be to check prices before you purchase anything that you may be able to get easily outside of Disney World. On our last trip I very nearly purchased a Sonic the Hedgehog figure for my games room, but I found it on Amazon for a lot less money. There will be items you won’t find so easily, but it is always worth checking.
What I love Most about the Japan Store at Epcot
I love the wide selection of eclectic products from Japanese Culture that you don’t normally see when shopping outside of Disney World. Being a big geek, I also love all the gaming related items from Nintendo and Sega and other little items that you find. In the past I have come away from the Japan Store with small Godzilla and Mega Man figures. If like me, you have a nerdy side you will love it.
I also love the fact that all the family enjoys and looks forward to visiting this store. My son and I love all the geek toys and merchandise and my daughter loves all the Japanese sweets and sodas.
Take a look at our Epcot Disney Genie Plus Guide
We also have an Epcot World Showcase Guide here.
Here’s a really good insightful video tour of the Japan Store from The Dis YouTube Channel:
The Epcot Japan Store – Mitsukoshi Department Store
I hope you have found this article on the Japan Store Epcot helpful. It really is a fun store to explore with lots of interesting products to see and buy. Definitely take a good look inside the store when you are visiting Epcot during your Disney World vacation. Please feel free to share this post on social media. It helps us reach a wider audience of families planning their Disney World vacation.
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