For Pokemon’s 30th, Apple’s 11 stores in Japan become PokeStops from Nov. 16 to 30, with nonstop lures, wild Applin, and an Applin gift card limited to three per person.
Apple and Pokemon finally did the pun.
Starting Monday, Nov. 16, every Apple Store in Japan shows up in Pokemon GO as a PokeStop. And the Pokemon waiting there is Applin, the little dragon that lives inside an apple.
The event runs through Monday, Nov. 30, according to the official Pokemon GO news page and Japanese tech sites Keitai Watch, Game Watch and Mynavi. It’s part of the year-long celebration of Pokemon’s 30th anniversary.
Which Apple Stores in Japan are PokeStops?
All 11 of them, per Keitai Watch:
Tokyo: Ginza, Marunouchi, Shinjuku, Shibuya and Omotesando
Kawasaki and Nagoya Sakae
Kyoto, Umeda and Shinsaibashi in the Kansai area
Fukuoka
During store hours, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Japan time, each stop runs a special lure nonstop. The Japanese page calls it a “ha-bu rua mojuru,” an herbal lure module. Players who tap the apples placed near the stores may run into a wild Applin, if luck is on their side.
The event page doesn’t mention Gyms, Raids or anything else. It’s PokeStops and lures, which honestly is all you need when the lure never runs out.
What is the Apple Gift Card Pokemon Special Edition?
This is the part collectors will care about. Apple is selling an “Apple Gift Card Pokemon Special Edition” with an Applin design, according to Keitai Watch, Game Watch and Mynavi.
You load it with anywhere from 1,000 yen to 250,000 yen at the register.
There’s a limit of three per person, and stock is limited, so sales end when they run out. It’s in-store only, and only in Japan. No online orders, no U.S. version, at least for now.
A QR code on the back unlocks three iPhone wallpapers drawn by a Pokemon designer. One is an Applin pattern. Another puts Applin next to Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle, which is about as 30th anniversary as it gets.
Stores also get special table signs and Pokemon content on their video walls. Pikachu showed up in person at a press preview, the Japanese outlets reported.
Here’s the official #Pokemon30 “What’s Your Favorite?” spot from the Pokemon YouTube channel, which kicked off the anniversary in February:
Why Applin and not Pikachu?
Look at the logo. Apple. Applin. It writes itself.
There’s a sweeter reason too.
Applin debuted in Pokemon Sword and Shield in 2019. It’s a Grass and Dragon type, number 840 in the National Pokedex, known as the Apple Core Pokemon.
In the games’ Galar region, giving someone an Applin is a romantic gesture. Keitai Watch says Apple is pitching the card as a gift for someone special for exactly that reason.
Applin can evolve three ways: into Flapple with a Tart Apple, Appletun with a Sweet Apple, or Dipplin with a Syrupy Apple. Dipplin later evolves into Hydrapple.
What else is happening for Pokemon’s 30th anniversary?
Pokemon Red and Green came out in Japan on Feb. 27, 1996. The Pokemon Company has been celebrating all year, according to its Feb. 27, 2026, press release.
Pokemon Winds and Waves is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 in 2027
FireRed and LeafGreen got digital releases on Switch on Feb. 27, 2026
Pokemon Champions launched on Switch in April 2026
The 2026 World Championships were held in San Francisco
The anniversary campaign opened with a Super Bowl LX ad starring Lady Gaga, BLACKPINK’s Jisoo, soccer star Lamine Yamal and Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc. Pokemon GO itself turned 10 this year, too.
Have Apple and Pokemon teamed up before?
A little.
Pokemon GO came to Apple Watch on Dec. 22, 2016. Tim Cook met a costumed Pikachu when Apple Ginza reopened in September 2025, iPhone in Canada reported.
But a full retail event across every Apple Store in a country appears to be new. We couldn’t find an earlier one.
Can U.S. fans join the Apple Store Pokemon GO event?
Only if you’re in Japan between Nov. 16 and Nov. 30. Nothing in the announcements mentions stores in the U.S. or anywhere else.
Tokyo is 14 hours ahead of the East Coast, so the lures run from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. Eastern the night before.
If you’ve got a trip planned, the Ginza and Shibuya stores are easy stops between Tokyo Disney days and ramen. If not, well, there’s always hoping Apple brings it stateside. We’d buy three.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
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Hat Tips:
Pokemon GO, event dates, PokeStops, lure and Applin encounters
iPhone in Canada, Apple Ginza Pikachu visit
Keitai Watch (Nov. 13, 2026), store list, gift card details, wallpapers and gift angle
Game Watch, gift card and press preview details
Mynavi (Nov. 13, 2026), gift card details
The Pokemon Company International (Feb. 27, 2026), 30th anniversary plans
Bulbapedia, Applin and its evolutions
Nintendo Life, Super Bowl ad details
The Official Pokemon YouTube Channel, “What’s Your Favorite?” video
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