Yokohama’s New “Poop Museum”: A Crappy, Kawaii Learning Experience

An Unprecedented Theme Park Dedicated to Poop

“Hello! A poopy day to you!”

At the entrance to the newly opened Unko Museum Yokohama Bay in Yokohama’s Naka Ward, staff greet visitors with a smile. The museum opened on August 1, 2026, and is the fourth permanent location after Tokyo, Nagoya, and Okinawa. It also marks a homecoming for the attraction, which got its start in Yokohama as a limited-time event in March 2019.

Since its debut, the Unko Museum has attracted attention with its unforgettable name and colorful pop visuals that turn conventional images of poop on their head. Its fan base has grown to encompass a wide range of ages, from families to groups of friends and couples. Including limited-time events held at eight locations in Japan and overseas, the museum surpassed a cumulative 3 million visitors in July 2026. It has also become a popular destination for international tourists, and its momentum shows no signs of slowing.

Stepping inside, visitors are greeted by pink walls and colorful pop lighting. There is none of the dirty or embarrassing imagery usually associated with poop. Instead, the playful surroundings immediately build a sense of excitement. The first room, “My Poop Maker,” is lined with toilet-like objects. Sit down and give a push, and your very own plastic “My Unko” appears. You can carry it around on a stick, making it something of a companion as you explore the museum.

At Unko Museum Yokohama Bay, visitors are greeted by neon signs featuring Yokohama scenery and words from around the world. (© Nippon.com)

“My Poop Maker,” where your new companion is born from a toilet. (© Nippon.com)

After the My Poop Maker experience, visitors move on to the pastel-colored main hall. Poop-themed attractions fill the space, including the “Unko Love Volcano,” which erupts with soft, poop-shaped colorful balls, and “The Princess of Poop,” a lavish tearoom overflowing with poop-shaped sweets. True to the museum’s “Unko Love” concept, every corner is a photogenic celebration of all things poop.

Poop erupts into the ball pit at the “Poop Love Volcano.” (© Nippon.com)

Get the perfect commemorative photo at the “Princess of Poop” table. (© Nippon.com)

Countless glowing turds float through a mirrored room in the “Galaxy of Poop.” (© Nippon.com)

Be prepared to wait in line for the attractions that use projection mapping and sensor technology. Children have a blast stomping on and carrying the poop characters that appear on the walls and floors.

Also popular with adults is the Crappy Game corner, featuring arcade-style games. The games are simple, with players fending off waves of incoming poop or trying to catch it in a toilet, but their quirky production values and finely tuned difficulty make them surprisingly addictive.

Even children who are embarrassed at first may soon find themselves smiling and calling out phrases like “Nice poop!” and “Thank you-nko!” to one another. Something we normally prefer not to look at takes on an adorable charm here . . .

Jump to transport the poop in “Poop Jump Together.” (© Nippon.com)

Squash them flat for a satisfying splat in the “Hop! Step! Jumpoo! Neo” attraction. (© Nippon.com)

The “U.G.A.” (Unko Graffiti Art) photo spot and “Let’s Draw Your Poop,” where visitors doodle on a digital toilet canvas. (© Nippon.com)

Push the lever to launch a hot-air balloon in “Poop Journey.” (© Nippon.com)

Race through the city using the steering wheel in “Go! Go! Poop Cart.” (© Nippon.com)

The Crappy Games Center, packed with poop-themed video games. (© Nippon.com)

Putting the “Poop” in Pop Culture

Because the Unko Museum can be enjoyed intuitively without understanding the language, it has proven particularly popular with international visitors. Limited-time editions in Shanghai, China, and Melbourne, Australia, were also well received. The museum has attracted attention overseas as a quirky attraction, with the British newspaper The Guardian describing it as an Instagram-friendly space that wraps the theme of defecation in kawaii aesthetics.

The familiar coiled shape of cartoon poop was popularized through Japanese manga, notably Toriyama Akira’s Dr. Slump. Its subsequent adoption as an emoji on mobile phones and smartphones helped turn it into a universally recognizable icon. Toilet humor exists around the world, but behind its transformation here into colorful pop entertainment may lie a distinctly Japanese sensibility for finding something kawaii in just about anything.

The museum plans to establish multiple permanent locations in Japan and overseas by 2029. Shout “unko” to your heart’s content, snap photos, play around, and feel like a kid again. Why not flush your preconceptions away and enjoy a world far removed from the everyday?

Don’t forget to pick up a souvenir on your way out. The most popular is the fill-a-bag “Puni Puni Unko” squishy toy station (front left). (© Nippon.com)

The gift shop also carries Yokohama-exclusive sukajan jackets (left) and other Japanese-style goods, perfect mementos of a trip to Japan. (© Nippon.com)

“Unko Gummies” (top) even come in clever toilet-shaped packaging. You can also try your un, or luck, with Yokohama’s famous fortune cookies. (© Nippon.com)

Unko Museum Yokohama Bay

• Address: Yokohama World Porters 2F, 2-2-1 Shinkō, Naka-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa
• Hours: 10:30 am–9:00 pm, year-round. Last admission is one hour before closing.
• Admission: Adults from ¥2,000; junior high and high school students from ¥1,500; elementary school students and children ages 3 and up from ¥1,100. Prices vary by date. Same-day tickets are limited, so advance online purchase is recommended.
  See the official website for details: https://unkomuseum.com/en/

(Originally published in Japanese. Reporting, text, and photos by Nippon.com.)