When most people think of group dates in Japan, they probably picture a handful of friends gathering at a café or izakaya. But on one night in May, that scale was a little different.
Around 4,000 single men and women flocked to an amusement park in Saitama Prefecture for what may be one of the country’s biggest dating events. It shows how Japan is providing new and innovative ways for people to meet one another just as its youth are saying they find the marriage hunt to be exhausting and demoralizing.
Seibuen Night: Where boarding a ride requires finding a partner
While singles culture might be on the rise, plenty of people still want a life partner, or else “Seibuen Night” (西武園ナイト) wouldn’t have been so popular.
The event took place on May 9, 2026, at Seibuen Amusement Park in Tokorozawa. Participants had to be at least 20 years old. The evening began with complimentary drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic). After that, attendees were free to explore the park and strike up conversations with strangers.
The event’s most unusual rule was that guests could only ride attractions with a member of the opposite sex. Want to hop on a roller coaster? Grab a partner first. No standing around awkwardly, waiting for introductions and small talk. It greases the wheels of social interaction and makes it easy to start up a conversation.
Organizers also included a special icebreaker called the “Miracle Trump Game.” They handed out half of a playing card to each participant. Players then had to search the park for an opposite-sex attendee holding a matching half. The first 30 pairs to successfully reunite their cards won prizes. It’s a simple, straightforward game, but it makes for an easy excuse to approach people.
Ticket prices definitely raised a few eyebrows online, especially since they differed based on gender. Men paid ¥7,000 (USD $44), while women paid ¥4,000 (USD $25), though groups could get discounts. However, considering that the price tag comes with unlimited rides and drinks, it’s not the worst deal.
Social media reactions, from positive to cynical
The response on X has been largely positive. The majority of tweets say that it looks like a lot of fun, or that it’s a great chance for young people to get out and meet one another. One tweet by user @xx9d47 said that this was the sort of thing that people should invest in if they seriously want to fight declining birth rates.
User @yoko_yoko17 pointed out another benefit, one that has become an issue in recent times: since this sort of event encourages people to talk to members of the opposite sex, men can interact with women without worrying that they’ll automatically be labeled as a creep.
However, another tweet by @w_dragons_ claimed that the pricing disparity between men and women would have the exact opposite effect on the birth rate. They argued that it puts too much of a financial burden on the men, and if they don’t end up snagging a date, it will make them less likely to engage in marriage hunting.
The company behind Seibuen Night
This event was actually not the first of its kind; the company that organized it, Baumkuchen (バームクーヘン), has been doing nighttime amusement park rentals for group dates since 2012.
Based in Toyama Prefecture, the company started off small, hosting its events at a local amusement park. In recent years, it has expanded to other parts of Japan, because as it turns out, a lot of non-married folk in Japan find online dating exhausting. People want face-to-face interaction to get a feel for who they’re testing the waters with.
This wasn’t even the first time Baumkuchen rented out Seibuen Amusement Park for a group date. However, this event stands out for its sheer size. Four thousand attendees is nothing to sneeze at.
Baumkuchen isn’t the only company hopping onto this train, either. Linkbal, the company behind the popular machicon JAPAN platform, also operates under the same banner of nighttime amusement park rental group dates. These are closer to 1,500 participants and have been held at 17 different spots around the country, including Tokyo Joypolis and Hirakata Park in Osaka. Like Seibuen Night, these events offer unlimited rides and drinks, with plenty of opportunities for relaxed chance meetings.
Why are people so interested?
The funny thing is, it’s not like dating apps are floundering. If anything, they’re more popular than ever. According to TWENTYTWO’s Matching App White Paper 2026, Japan’s dating app market hit ¥109 billion (USD $680 million) this year. And frankly, that number is likely going to go up.
But as a certain pandemic taught us, screens are no substitute for traditional, face-to-face meetups.
Mobile Marketing Data Labo ran a survey that found workplace and school connections remain the most common way people meet romantic partners at 44.5% of respondents. That’s across all age groups, by the way, though the percentage was slightly lower for those in their 20s and 30s. Meeting partners through friends or family was the runner-up in every age category except those in their 20s, where dating apps nabbed the number two spot.
When you add in the marriage scams and the fact that some use these apps to cheat, they become even less appealing.
Amusement park group dates that offer a breath of fresh air
Looking at those statistics, it’s a bit easier to understand why events like Seibuen Night are piquing people’s interest. Dating apps might offer convenience, but many users complain about endless swiping, awkward messaging, and what is often called “time-performance” fatigue. People can spend hours browsing without ever meeting anyone in person.
Maybe that’s why a vast majority of young people, 80% in one survey, said that searching for a marriage partner has left them “exhausted.” People told survey takers that they find it hard to meet compatible mates, and that the apps, while ubiquitous and easy to access, feel like a “conveyor belt.”
Amusement park group dates promise something different. Instead of staring at a screen, participants are thrown into an environment built around shared experiences. Riding a roller coaster together, searching for a matching playing card, or simply waiting in line creates opportunities for interaction that you just can’t mimic online.
It’s too soon to say if these will gain popularity or die out. But for now, they’re a fun trade-up from the same old dating doldrums.
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Sources
夜の遊園地で大規模合コン 男女4000人が参加、アトラクションは「異性と一緒に」 産経新聞 (Sankei Shimbun)
1,500人規模「夜の遊園地貸切り大合コン」が満員御礼 全国17会場に拡大、「遊園地×出会い」体験型イベントが人気に PR TIMES（株式会社リンクバル）
国内のマッチングアプリ動向をまとめた「マッチングアプリ白書2026」を公開、市場規模は1,094億円まで拡大 PR TIMES（株式会社トゥエンティトゥ）
2025年マッチングサービス・アプリの利用実態調査 MMD研究所 (MMD Labo)
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