We visit Hobonichi HQ in Tokyo to give you the highlights and our must-buy recommendations for next year’s range.
notebook
Exclusive range includes a planter cover, smartphone stand and a unique coffee-dyed Japanese tenugui.
It’s not too late to get organised with One Piece, Tomie, Mother, and Tamagotchi at your fingertips.
Grown-ups who first learned responsibility by taking care of virtual pets can now take care of their responsibilities with those virtual pets.
Spanning almost the entire length of Japan, this notebook carried the will and determination of train fans, bringing them together in a very special way.
In putting together an article for RocketNews24, I use just a laptop for the vast majority of the process. On rare occasions, though, it’s quicker or more convenient to grab a notebook and pen to jot down ideas or outline a story.
As much as I love writing, the physical act of putting pen to paper doesn’t really hold all that much mysticism to me. I’m not sure exactly why, but it might be because I’ve got terrible penmanship. In order to form letters that I’ll actually be able to go back and read later, I have to concentrate so intensely that I just don’t have the leftover mental capacity to get emotional about the subject at hand.
Soon, though, there’ll be a way for anybody to get misty-eyed, no matter how bad their chicken scratch, with a notebook that’s scientifically designed to make you cry when you write in it.
April is the start of the academic year in Japan, and for kids, parents and stationery manufacturers that means one thing: it’s back to school shopping season. And across Japan, as elementary school students carefully write their names in their notebooks for the new year, there’s a good chance that notebook will be Showa Noto brand. The company’s gakushucho (study notebooks) are a hugely popular series of school notebooks, used by school students all over the country. Showa Noto also makes character-branded goods, and we’re desperate to get our hands on one of these new Star Wars school notebooks!
A bookstore called Sanseido, in the Jinbo book selling district of Tokyo, on 1 April announced that they would be selling custom-made notebooks, and it wasn’t a joke. In fact, they have been flying off the shelves, which is good because these books are ready to take away moments after ordering them.
MOST POPULAR
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Japan’s final Penguin Suica train cards have already shipped, and when they’re gone, they’re gone
Farewell Final Ceremony announced for Tokyo’s life-size Gundam statue, will stream live
Japan approves foreign resident visa renewal fee increases of up to 967 percent, starts soon
Hobonichi unveils new 2027 planners, diaries and stationery with One Piece, Suica Penguin, Hello Kitty and a must-buy Mini Techo
Nonstop flights from U.S. to Okinawa return after 54 years, making travel faster than before
Starbucks Japan adds a gooey sweet potato Frappuccino to its menu this autumn
Starting this fall, you’ll be able to take a Pokémon Jet flight to Japan
Godiva Japan hops into tsukimi season with bunny and moon-themed chocolate assortments
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Anime and Hollywood movies cross over in new Universal Studios Japan merch collection
Weekly
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Japan tripled its departure tax to fund tourism but is using the money on cherry blossoms and bears
Nike x One Piece collection brings Devil Fruits to sneakers and streetwear in Japan- Japan approves foreign resident visa renewal fee increases of up to 967 percent, starts soon
Anime fans can now wear a Seiko watch inspired by Japan’s One Piece Shinkansen
Foreign hiker on Mt. Fuji loses consciousness and dies, becoming climbing season’s second fatality
We recommend not buying one pack of Japan’s new convenience store corn soup-flavor fried chicken
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Japan’s double-decker portable rice cooker/bento maker is better than ever with new version
Monthly
12-year-old British girl who went missing in Tokyo found safe after visiting anime sites around Yokohama- 7-year-old boy left behind on Mt. Fuji by his own dad
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Pokémon Center Online designates first Pokémon items that will require Japanese ID card to buy
Japanese toilet aims to attract foreign tourists but not everybody is happy about it
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New Japanese vending machine at Shinkansen station sells cups of ice on platform
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Yearly
Japan announces sudden 400-percent increase in visa fees for foreigners entering the country
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Studio Ghibli has a new anime out, and there’s only one place in the world where you can see it
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
Tokyo subway installing new ticket gates that don’t accept payment through Suica or other IC cards
Japanese ninja certification exam attracts 131 candidates from Japan and abroad
Salomon releases Japan-exclusive Mt. Fuji hiking gear that doubles as an amazing souvenir
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Starbucks Japan adds a gooey sweet potato Frappuccino to its menu this autumn
Starting this fall, you’ll be able to take a Pokémon Jet flight to Japan
Godiva Japan hops into tsukimi season with bunny and moon-themed chocolate assortments
McDonald’s Japan reveals exclusive new Tsukimi moon viewing collection for 2026
Anime and Hollywood movies cross over in new Universal Studios Japan merch collection
Tokaido Lumière Express: Stay overnight inside the Shinkansen from Osaka to Tokyo
No, Japan’s prime minster did not make friends with a cockroach, despite what you may have heard
Japan tripled its departure tax to fund tourism but is using the money on cherry blossoms and bears
Amid foreign sex tourist rise, Japanese government considering outlawing paying for prostitution
Ministop brings bulked up Okinawan-style rice balls to mainland Japan for one week only
Nike x One Piece collection brings Devil Fruits to sneakers and streetwear in Japan
Tokyo subway installing new ticket gates that don’t accept payment through Suica or other IC cards
We recommend not buying one pack of Japan’s new convenience store corn soup-flavor fried chicken
Domino’s puts a new spin on moon viewing with Tsukimi dango-inspired tarts in Japan
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