Ueno Zoo covers an area of 14.3 hectares and is located right in the center of Tokyo. Without a doubt, the biggest attraction to visit is the giant panda.
Since I haven’t had the opportunity to see a panda with my own eyes yet, I was really looking forward to the zoo. The panda pavilion is right at the entrance to the zoo and it’s impossible to miss, especially since there’s always a long queue. When I was there, the queue was about 200 meters long. However, the giant panda tour is very well organized, several zoo employees take care of the entire queue of interested people and everything goes very quickly. In front of the pavilion itself, each visitor has only a limited time (about 1 minute) to see the panda. However, the entire time is spent slowly, so it is not possible to just stand in front of the pavilion. Even though the tour is limited in time, it is definitely worth it, the panda is simply beautiful!
Wondering how to get around Japan? Try the JR Pass! Read more…
The entire ZOO is a very nice place, full of interesting animals from all over the world. The five-story pagoda gives the zoo a Japanese touch.
The pagoda was built in 1631, rebuilt after being destroyed by fire, and in 1958 its owner, the Kan’ei-ji Temple, handed the pagoda over to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which entrusted its management to Ueno Zoo.
Source: Ueno ZOO website
Animals at Ueno ZOO:
Giant panda, Asian elephants, pheasants, snowy owls, raptors, Sumatran tigers, lowland gorillas, sloth bears, bats, South American tapirs, cranes, California sea lions, harbor seals, bears (polar bears, Hokkaido brown bears, sun bears and Japanese black bears), otters, sacred ibis, Japanese birds, monkeys (Japanese macaques, spider monkeys), prairie dogs, American bison, African animals (black rhinos, hippos, pygmy hippos, giraffes, okapi), ring-tailed lemurs, red-tailed lemurs, small mammal house (rodents, bats, armadillos, nocturnal animals), vivarium (Galapagos tortoise, saltwater crocodile, green iguana, geckos, Japanese pond turtles and other reptiles and amphibians), petting zoo (guinea pigs, rabbits, cows, goats and other domestic animals).
Tip:
The zoo is located in Ueno Park, where there are other interesting places to visit:
- Tokyo National Museum
- National Museum of Western Art
- National Museum of Science and Nature
- Tokyo Art Museum
Official website: https://www.tokyo-zoo.net/zoo/ueno/
Entrance fee: 600 yen
