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Japanese coins are pretty cool, what with their hidden messages and other unexpected properties. As a matter of fact, I hung onto a a five-yen coin from my very first trip to Japan for several years, and I imagine many other travelers bring home a piece of the country’s metallic currency for sentimental reasons.
However, no matter how big a Japanophile you are, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ll arrive at the airport with more yen coinage in your pocket than you want. With the smallest paper money denomination in Japan being the 1,000-yen, all the change you’ve gradually acquired during your travels could be worth quite a bit, but unfortunately currency exchange counters won’t generally take coins.
But if you can’t convert your yen coins into your home country’s currency, at least you can convert them into cool souvenirs, thanks to this awesome setup at Narita Airport, the major air hub for foreign travelers flying into and out of the Tokyo area.
At Narita Airport, Japanese toymaker Takara Tomy Arts has set up massive banks of capsule toy vending machines, alternatively called “gachapon,” “gacha gacha,” or just “gacha.” The area contains 171 machines, marked by sings announcing “Japanese Capsule Toy Gacha,” and can be found on basement level 1 of Narita’s Terminal 2 building.
The quadrinlingual signs, with explanations in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean, invite outbound passengers to use their leftover yen coins to enjoy one last quintessentially Japanese experience. Takara Tomy Arts says it stocks the machines with items it thinks will be popular with foreign travelers, and has included instructions on the signs of how to make purchases, for the benefit of gacha-newbies.
Prices for capsule toys vary by item, but the most common point is 300 yen, so with 171 machines, you should have no trouble using up all your leftover coins. After all, it’s either that or stack them into elaborate towers when you get home.
Source: Yahoo! News Japan/withnews via Hachima Kiko
Read more stories from RocketNews24. -- Bandai to launch online capsule machines controlled by smartphone -- Beat your phone into submission with these Street Fighter 2 capsule toy stands -- Flying out of Narita Airport? Don’t miss its awesome departure area mattress-soft sofas
© Japan Today
8 Comments
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JonathanJo
I don't mind taking my leftover 100 and 500 yen coins back home, it's the wretched 1 yens that clog the pocket. The capsule machines take them? No I thought not.. And aren't those rather expensive pieces of plastic junk they vend?
sensei258
You're right, I have to empty my wallet of the 1s and 5s every day, and save them in a big jar. When it's full, I take it to the bank and get surprised at how little it adds up to.
kaynide
I never seem to have too many coins... as a rule I spend my coins first and my wallet has a coin pouch so I guess that helps?
Strangerland
I pride myself on always having the least number of coins possible, by always putting out the optimal number of coins from what I have, to get back the least amount of coins in my change.
That said, when I'm in another country and don't know the coin denominations as well, I sometimes end up with a lot more change than I would here in Japan where I know them inside-out. Even when I go home to my own country I sometimes have troubles, as I'm out of practice.
badsey3
Obviously an under utilized coin market. These rare Gacha are like Pokémon Go in a way in that you may now need to goto the damn airport to find a rare one = Tomy needs an app to track and find these rare capsule toys.
bruinfan
@sensei258
How much did they add up too ? What was the reaction of the teller? Just curious ...
noriyosan73
What would happen if the solution were to issue new coins and paper money by moving the decimal point? 100 old yen=1 new yen. It is great to brag to friends that you are a millionaire in Japan (1000000=8529.10 USD), and the bank book isn't wide enough if a person really has money. But, the Japanese way is cash "under the futon" isn't it? To answer the first question - Counterfeiters would have to go on vacation.
Akula
I have a jar full of money from my travels and it's mostly coins although there are a lot of low denomination notes floating around as well. I'd happily donate these at the end of any trip.
Hanging onto yen is never an issue as I'm always going to be headed back there but I've still got some pre-Euro coins floating about. Probably not much use now!