Sanrio Hello Kitty Town – 26 November 2012

Puteri Harbour Family Theme Park which houses both the Sanrio Hello Kitty Town and The Little Big Club opened its door last month. Located at Nusajaya, it is only 10 minutes away from Legoland. The indoor theme park with Sanrio characters Hello Kitty and Friends as well as Angelina Ballerina, Thomas and Friends, Bob The Builder, Barney and Pingu promises visitors an unforgettable experience.

Since Jarod was away on a choir trip to Desaru, we decided to take Ashley there. She was looking forward to the trip and dressed herself in Hello Kitty dress and put on matching Hello Kitty accessories. We purchased the 2 Park Pass and were given this Daily Activity Card where we would be entitled to each activity in the Wishful Studio once. Ashley was excited as we walked into the Hello Kitty Town. Standing right before our eyes were none other than Hello Kitty and Dear Daniel! We had a photo opportunity with the characters before entering the Hello Kitty House.

 

Everything from the living room, kitchen, bedroom, walk-in wardrobe and bathroom are decorated in Hello Kitty style. You can explore Hello Kitty’s world here where there are plenty Hello Kitty details to look out for. Even the television and computer are shaped in Hello Kitty!

Ashley was trying out everything in the house, living the imaginary life of Hello Kitty. In fact, we saw lots of women gushing in excitement as they posed for photos.

Across from Hello Kitty’s House is the Wishful Studio where we can engage in various activities. Our first activity was jewellery making. We were each given a silver necklace and shown a box of charms where we can choose from. Naturally, Ashley got to choose all the 3 charms and brought home 3 necklaces.

Next activity we had was the Costume Dress Up Photo Studio. You get to dress up as one of the 3 characters – Hello Kitty, My Melody or Badtz Maru. Ashley and I dressed up as Hello Kitty while ZA was Badtz Maru. We posed for photo and seeing that there was no one in the queue, the staff offered to let Ashley dress up as My Melody as well! Ashley beaming with delight.

We went to the Cookie Studio next. We were given a Hello Kitty shaped cookie on a Hello Kitty plate each. We were also given sprinklers, chocolate chips and glitters to decorate the cookie. Ashley thoroughly enjoyed decorating her own cookie and it tasted good too! Our next activity was the Nail Salon where we can adorn our finger nails with lovely colours and stickers. Ashley painted her nails in sweet pink.

After completing all our activities at the Wishful Studio, we went for the Tea Cup Ride. Ashley had so much fun spinning the tea cups and we rode it several times.

 

It is time now for the parade. The various Sanrio characters – Hello Kitty, Dear Daniel and friends take to the Purrfect Stage for a Caribbean-inspired time of music, dancing and singing across town. This is a high energy fun show where kids are invited to join in the as part of the parade. Ashley was elated as she danced to the music. The catchy tunes from the parade remained in our heads even after the performance is over!

Over at the other end of Hello Kitty Town is the Black Wonder. Conceptualised by Japan, we were tasked to solve a series of puzzles to rescue Hello Kitty who has been kidnapped and trapped within a medieval castle. This activity required us to work together as a team to make our way through the Black Wonder, solve the clues and unravel the mystery of the Black Wonder. We were still very distracted by the earlier activities and we did not accomplish our mission. Nevertheless, we had fun exploring the castle.

We also stopped by at Friendship Land – a padded play structure. There are balls everywhere and Ashley had such a great time and she did not want to leave. It is amazing that she had so much energy picking up balls and shooting balls while ZA and I rested.

We decided to check out Level 2 next where The Little Big Club is located. The Little Big Club gathers Angelina Ballerina, Barney, Thomas and Friends, Bob The Builder and Pingu under one roof complete with a series of 6 themed interactive play zones – with games, rides, soft play areas, live shows and meet & greet sessions.

As we entered, there was the interactive live Barney show at The Little Big Club Stage where Ashley enjoyed herself. She was singing to favourites like “If You Are Happy” and danced freely to the performance. There was also Barney’s Playhouse by the entrance – a mini playground which is more suitable for younger kids. The slides were low and Ashley did not spend much time in it.

Wanting to see what else this place has to offer, we ventured to Level 3 where the entire level is devoted to Thomas and Friends. There were many rides here. We tried the Windmill Ride which is like the ferris wheel, Harold’s Helitours Ride, Bertie The Bus, Thomas Bumpers, and Ashley’s favourite : Knapford Station Thomas Train Ride. This is where you take a train ride aboard Thomas that brings you round the indoor play area. Ashley loved the driver’s seat. As the queue was relatively short, we tried each of the rides several times. However, Ashley did not want to try the Colin Crane Drop Ride. Apart from these, there is also an enormous Sodor Playground with lots of climbing structures, slides and even trains which double as tunnels that kids can crawl through. While Ashley climbed through the structures, ZA and I  just lounged comfortably in the huge sofas just outside the playground, keeping a watchful eye over her. Perfect!

After experiencing all the rides, we headed back to Level 2 again, this time to Angelina Ballerina’s Dance Studio. Ashley put on her tutu and headband and waved her pink wand around, pretending to be a ballerina dancing around the studio. When Angelina walked in, all the little girls got to hold her hands, hug her and danced with her. Miss Mimi was there too to lead a dance routine. We spent quite a fair bit of time at the studio.

Over at the Pingu’s igloo, different types of arcade games were awaiting. Ashley had a go at the air hockey as well as the Whack-A-Fish games. What makes it different here is you can play as many games as you like without the need for tokens.

There was also Bob The Builder’s Playzone where we headed to next. This is another indoor playground with climbing structures and giant slides. However, there is this unique ‘Build It’ zone where aspiring builders can build a house. Ashley was using various soft interlocking bricks of different shapes and sizes to build her house in Bobsville. Ashley also had fun helping to transport the bricks via a conveyor belt system.

Strangely, we missed all the meet-and-greet at The Little Big Club!

We came back to Hello Kitty Town just in time for the afternoon parade. The music and songs were different but still catchy. During the second half of the show, kids were taught some dance steps and invited to join in the fun in front of the stage. Ashley loved this experience and still spoke about it fondly.

There was also a Dream Photo Garden where you can take photos with the characters at various time slots. We did not manage to catch any though as we were kept so occupied with all the activities going on. Nonetheless, it did not bother Ashley as she climbed on happily for yet another Tea Cup ride.

As the day draws to a close, we stopped by at the gift shop on our way out. The shop was decked in a sea of pink and stocked with Sanrio merchandises of Hello Kitty and Friends. There is also another section filled with merchandises from characters of The Little Big Club, Ashley picked a cute Angelina Ballerina plush before we left.