Want to race in a Mario Kart? Go to Japan, when you can

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Last month, thousands in Japan found one in the fantasy land of the Mario Bros. A theme park, Super Nintendo World, opened at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, ending months of delays and testing the proposition that people will want to gather in large numbers while the coronavirus is circulating to race in a Mario Kart or punch question mark blocks. open image in gallery Visitors can enjoy attractions based on popular Nintendo games such as Mario Kart The opening of the park follows the introduction of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a themed area inside the Universal Studios parks in Japan, Florida and California. “Because it’s coming straight from the imagination of Shigeru Miyamoto, it really brings the atmosphere of Super Mario Bros into the real world,” said Robert Sephazon, a game developer based in Japan who has visited the park. open image in gallery The Super Nintendo World theme park is part of Universal Studios in Osaka, Japan “Although it’s a bit of escapism, and it does really work,” he added, the pandemic never fully disappears, with masks and hand sanitising to ensure that shared touch screens do not present a danger.