Ueno Zoo
This was probably better than Tama Zoo, but both were really great. It's located in Tokyo and costs only 600 yen entrance fee, so there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn't go! The highlight is of course the two resident Giant Pandas. Apparently they sleep most of the time, so I was lucky when I went they were sitting up eating bamboo. I was never really into the whole panda thing, but when I saw them I had to concede they are really cute, and everyone should do their part to save them from extinction!
Soooooo cute!
The other highlights included underwater viewing areas for seals and the polar bear, and a petting zoo with goats that just roam free (UPDATE: unfortunately the goats no longer roam any more.).
I had to wait for about 10 minutes to get this photo
Of course they had lions and tigers and bears and gorillas and eagles and kangaroos and pretty much every other animal too, but if I was to start naming them all I would be here for a long time. There is an elevated monorail that costs about 200 yen that takes you from one side of the zoo to the other, but unless you find it difficult to walk I wouldn't recommend wasting your time. It only takes about a minute and is therefore much faster than walking, but there's usually a huge queue, and you can't see any animals or anything special to make it worthwhile really. Also the cafes and restaurants are usually busy and expensive, but there are plenty of benches around so you should bring a packed lunch with you.
Tama Zoo
Tama Zoo is further out from Tokyo than Ueno but it also only costs 600 yen. It has a similar range of animals to Ueno, but it is quite rural and surrounded by hills, making it much more spread out. The highlight of Tama is the Lion Bus, which for only a little extra allows you to get on a bus and be taken into the lion den for an up-close look at the King of the jungle. It's amazing! For cat lovers a trip to Tama is essential just for this alone. They also stick a little meat on the outside of the bus on a hook to attract the lions closer. I thought this would drive them wild, but they're so used to the routine they just wandered lazily over and licked it off.
He was this close. . .it was wild
The Lion Bus. . .zebra coloured but. . .surrounded by lions
The other highlight is the chimpanzees, who climb high above you across some telephone line type ropes. It is too high up for them to crawl down, and they can only crawl down at the end into their glass enclosures. It is still really cool to watch them teetering carelessly above you.
I zoomed in, he was up really high
Tama Zoo also has an Insectarium full of creepy crawlies, as well as a special green house which is home to hundreds (maybe thousands) of insects like butterflies and grasshoppers. It also has a pack of wolves and some tigers that are separated from you only by a deep ravine, which makes a nice change from the glass and wires that usually obstruct your view. Overall, Tama Zoo is a much more natural enclosure for the animals than the usual zoo, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It was pretty too!
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