Plushies spending nights at Japan museums gain traction

TOKYO – Sending favourite stuffed animals to museums and art galleries to “spend the night” and view exhibits on their owners’ behalf is proving popular in Japan, with organisers hoping that such programmes will stir interest and attract more visitors to the facilities.The Hikone Castle Museum in Shiga Prefecture and Nagoya City Art Museum are among those who have joined a growing number of facilities hosting so-called sleepovers for plushies.The event, believed to have originated in US public libraries as a fun way to spark children’s interest in reading, is spreading across Japan, fuelled by the recent trend of people bringing their favourite plushies along with them, taking their photos and sharing them on social media.The activity is known as “nuikatsu”, a portmanteau of “nuigurumi” and “katsudo”, meaning “stuffed toys” and “activity” in Japanese.According to its officials, when the city art museum introduced the sleepover event for stuffed toys in 2025, the slots filled up instantly, only a minute after online registration opened.The Hikone Castle Museum held a similar event to commemorate its 40th anniversary,in 2027 with owners allowing their plushies to stay at the museum for a week through early August.The programme received 122 applications for just 10 available spots when applications opened in July.Hikonyan, Hikone’s mascot, served as their guide, and the stuffed animals were pictured looking at the display – swords and armour passed down through the Ii family, the feudal lords of the Hikone domain.Updates on their activity were posted regularly on social media, with a post receiving over 5,000 “likes”.Naoya Okaniwa, 47, and his wife, fans of the mascot, who travelled from Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, said: “We have visited the museum many times, but through these stuffed animals, we discovered charms we had overlooked.”Kanato Muraki, a seven-year-old from Kusatsu in Shiga Prefecture, who visited the facility for the first time, was impressed.“The actual armour suits were bigger than I expected. I was surprised. I want to come again.”Only about 20 per cent of visitors to Hikone Castle visit the museum, which is located next to it, its official said.“We hope this event will spark interest in our exhibits and help increase visitor numbers,” said Yuto Nakahashi, 26, a staff member at the museum. KYODO NEWS