Want to go
ENG
JPCHI

‹ Fukuoka

Fukuoka Zoo & Botanical GardenFukuoka Zoo & Botanical Garden
Photo: yuki5287 from Fukuoka city, Japan · CC BY 2.0

Zoo & botanical garden · FukuokaWeb-checked · Sep ’26

Fukuoka Zoo & Botanical Garden

Save

A zoo and botanical garden in one, with a Ferris wheel over Fukuoka.

The zoo's ZooLab adds four hands-on booths and eight animal skeletons to what the enclosures show.

MoreWhat kind of place

The zoo and the botanical garden sit on one site at Minami Park in central Fukuoka, and a single admission covers both. Beyond the enclosures, the animal information building (ZooLab) holds six hands-on stations, a library, eight animal skeletons, and a desk where staff answer questions about animals.

Sources and evidence (22)
  • Rental strollers cost 330 yen and are sized for children under 2 — too small for an older child.source2026-08-12
  • Wheelchair rental is free.source2026-08-12
  • You can push your own stroller anywhere in the park.source2026-08-12
  • Coin lockers cost 400 yen for a large one and 200 yen for a small one.source2026-08-12
  • Easily moved items such as picnic blankets may be used on the botanical garden's lawn.source2026-08-12
  • Bubbles are allowed only on the botanical garden's lawn, and only where they do not bother other visitors.source2026-08-12
  • Pets, balloons, kites, and anything else that could get into the animal enclosures cannot be brought in.source2026-08-12
  • Feeding the animals is not allowed.source2026-08-12
  • Visitors are asked not to use a camera flash in the zoo.source2026-08-12
  • Visitors are asked to take their trash home with them.source2026-08-12
  • The Ferris wheel, the merry-go-round, and the Astro Metry ride each cost 300 yen per ride.source2026-08-12
  • The smaller rides cost 100 yen per ride.source2026-08-12
  • The rides are gathered at the zoo's highest point near the west gate, and the Ferris wheel looks out over the city of Fukuoka.source2026-08-12
  • The animal information building (ZooLab) has six hands-on stations in all, an animal desk, and a library.source2026-08-12
  • Eight animal skeletons are on display in the animal information building.source2026-08-12
  • Staff take questions about animals at the consultation corner inside the animal information building (ZooLab).source2026-08-12
  • The cafe menu at Cafe La Sombra is served from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.source2026-08-12
  • The food menu at Cafe La Sombra is served from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.source2026-08-12
  • There is a cafeteria next to the children's zoo, with takeout you can eat as you walk.source2026-08-12
  • The gift shop, Petit Monde, sells items made for the zoo and botanical garden.source2026-08-12
  • Up the slope from the penguin area is a rest building with a view, Yangon Hall.source2026-08-12
  • Yangon Hall has an observation deck and a drinking-water spot.source2026-08-12
With kidsThe part that matters

The zoo and the botanical garden run together as one park, and children through junior high school get in free, so with small kids you pay only for the adults, 600 yen each.

A parent who visits weekly with a three-year-old says seeing every area properly takes about three hours.

In the animal information building (ZooLab), kids can work the hands-on stations, stand next to eight animal skeletons, and put their animal questions to the staff at the desk.

Picnic blankets are allowed on the botanical garden's lawn, so that is where lunch goes, and the cafeteria beside the children's zoo does takeout you can eat as you walk.

The rides are at the top of the hill, so save them for the end — the Ferris wheel up there looks out over the city.

Sources and evidence (3)
  • A weekly regular's route: west gate to main gate is downhill. About three hours for everything; garden train 300 yen.sourceParents' visit reports · 2026
  • Parents' own photos and notes: the nursing room is tatami, shoes off, curtain only, no lock; ask staff for hot water.sourceParents' visit reports · 2024
  • Going since her baby was born: the zoo parking lot fills first on weekends; lunch at the lookout cafe, about 1,000 yen.sourceParents' visit reports · 2023
By age0-1 / 2-3 / 4-6
  • Ages 0-1Admission is free for junior-high age and under. Strollers and wheelchairs are exempt from the wheeled things the park asks visitors not to use, so you can go round the animals with the stroller. On the botanical garden's lawn you may spread out a picnic sheet, or anything else easy to move, and rest.Strollers are lent for under-2s at 330 yen, and the number is limited. There are slopes inside, and the rides are gathered at the highest point, near the zoo's west gate. Yangon House, the lookout rest facility up the slope from the penguin area, has a viewing deck and a water point. Big bags go in the coin lockers (400 yen large, 200 yen small), and anything that will not fit can be checked in for 500 yen (no food).
  • Ages 2-3The rides sit together at the highest point of the grounds, near the zoo's west gate: the merry-go-round is 300 yen a ride and the small rides are 100 yen. On the botanical garden's lawn, blowing soap bubbles is allowed as long as it does not get in other visitors' way.The lending strollers are for under-2s, so from age 2 bring your own; strollers are fine inside the grounds. The rules: do not feed the animals, refrain from flash photography in the zoo, and take your rubbish home. Balloons and kites cannot be brought in, since they may end up inside the animal enclosures. There is a canteen next to the children's zoo, with takeaway you can eat as you walk.
  • Ages 4-6ZooLab, the animal information house, has two hands-on corners and four hands-on booths, eight skeleton specimens, an animal desk, and a library. Questions about animals are taken at ZooLab's animal consultation corner. From the Ferris wheel at the highest point of the grounds (300 yen a ride) you look out over the city of Fukuoka.The Ferris wheel, merry-go-round, and Astro Metry are 300 yen a ride, and the small rides are 100 yen. Opening hours are 9:00 to 17:00 with last entry at 16:30, closed Mondays (the following day when Monday is a holiday). On weekends and holidays the roads around the zoo jam badly, and on weekends and holidays in the March-May and September-November seasons the car park can fill soon after opening, so come by subway, Nanakuma Line Yakuin-Odori Station (Zoo exit), exit 2, about 15 minutes on foot, or by bus 56 or 58 from Yakuin-Odori, 6 minutes.
By weatherRain, heat, cold
  • Rainy dayYou walk the zoo and the botanical garden. The rides sit at the highest point near the West Gate, and the Ferris wheel looks out over the city of Fukuoka. The indoor stops are places like the ZooLab animal information building, with four hands-on booths and eight skeleton specimens.
  • Hot dayNot checked yet
  • Cold dayNot checked yet
Time needed3 h

from the source · 2026-08source

An annual-pass holder who goes weekly with a 3-year-old (2026) puts a proper look at every area at about three hours

Family checks
Tap a mark for details
* Other not checked (7)

Indoor / outdoor, Child switch (rider swap), Steps & slope caution, Crowding (guide), Quietness (guide), Lost-child support, Stroller access notes

Green = we confirmed it. Gray = not checked yet. Gray with a line through = the place does not have it. Gray with “checked, no record” under it = we looked, but found no record of it.

Worth a look before you go

Save

Where to go next

Where it is

1-1 Minamikoen, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka 810-0037source2

Before you go

Basics

Basics in detail (24)
Hours and closures
  • The park is open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with last entry at 4:30 p.m.source2026-08-12
  • It is closed on Mondays, or on the following day when Monday falls on a public holiday.source2026-08-12
  • It is closed over the New Year period, December 29 through January 1.source2026-08-12
Fees
  • Admission is 600 yen for adults.source2026-08-12
  • Admission is 300 yen for high school students.source2026-08-12
  • Admission is free for junior high school students and younger.source2026-08-12
  • Groups of 30 or more get 20 percent off, at 480 yen for adults and 240 yen for high school students.source2026-08-12
  • Show a one-day subway pass and you get the group rate even as an individual visitor.source2026-08-12
  • Admission can be paid in cash, with a transit IC card, electronic money, a credit card, or a QR-code payment.source2026-08-12
  • Visitors with a disability certificate enter free, along with one caregiver.source2026-08-12
  • Residents of Fukuoka, Kitakyushu, Kumamoto, or Kagoshima who are 65 or older enter free.source2026-08-12
Getting there
  • The nearest station is Yakuin-Odori on the Nanakuma subway line. Take exit 2, the one signed for the Zoo and Botanical Garden, then walk about 15 minutes.source2026-08-12
  • The walk from Yakuin-Odori Station takes about 15 minutes.source2026-08-12
  • Bus 56 or 58 from Yakuin-Odori takes 6 minutes, and on weekends and holidays it runs about every 10 minutes.source2026-08-12
  • The closest bus stop to the zoo is Dobutsuen-mae, served by buses 56 and 58.source2026-08-12
  • From the Jochi Fukuoka Chuko-mae bus stop, the zoo's west gate is the easier way in.source2026-08-12
  • Bus 58 from stop C in front of Hakata Station takes about 20 minutes.source2026-08-12
  • Parking costs 500 yen for a standard car, 1,000 yen for a mid-size vehicle, and 2,000 yen for a large one.source2026-08-12
  • Roads around the park get badly congested on weekends and public holidays.source2026-08-12
  • On weekends and holidays in the busy seasons, March to May and September to November, the parking lot can fill up soon after opening.source2026-08-12
  • The park's official site suggests walking from Yakuin-Odori subway station and taking in the Josui-dori neighborhood on the way.source2026-08-12
Other
  • The English name is Fukuoka Zoo & Botanical Garden.source2026-08-12
Contact
  • The address is 1-1 Minamikoen, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka 810-0037.2026-08-12
  • The general information desk can be reached at 092-531-1968.2026-08-12

Once you've decided

See places nearby

The park sits on a hill above central Fukuoka, with the zoo and the botanical garden running together as one place. The rides gather near the West Gate at the highest point of the grounds, and the Ferris wheel opens the city out below. ZooLab holds hands-on booths, eight animal skeletons and a desk that takes children's questions. Past the penguins, a slope leads up to a rest house with an observation deck and drinking water.

Stroller friendlyYesStrollers are allowed: the official list of wheeled things you should not use inside the park explicitly excludes strollers and wheelchairs, and the park rents them out too. Note the ground is hilly. The rides sit on the highest point near the West Gate, and the Yangon rest house is up a slope from the penguins.Web-checkedchecked Aug ’26zoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jpzoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Stroller rentalYes330 yen, for children under 2. Numbers are limited (the same line covers wheelchairs, which are free). How many there are, and whether they can be booked, is not published.Web-checkedchecked Aug ’26zoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Nursing spaceYesWeb-checkedchecked Sep ’26zoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Diaper changing tableYesWeb-checkedchecked Sep ’26zoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Diaper disposal binYesWeb-checkedchecked Feb ’22mamamap.jp
Family restroomYesWeb-checkedchecked Sep ’26zoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Kids' toilet seat & step stoolchecked, no recordWe checked both official sites (zoo and botanical garden) and the park map, the Fukuoka prefecture and city barrier-free maps, and parents' reviews and blogs, and found no record of child toilet seats or seat adapters. The barrier-free maps list baby keeps and a parent-and-child toilet, but do not say whether a child seat is included. If you need one, bring a portable seat or ask at the information desk.checked Sep ’26
ElevatorYesWeb-checkedchecked Sep ’26barrierfree.pref.fukuoka.jp
Indoor / outdoorNot checked yet
Outside food allowedNot checked yet
English supportEnglish menu & signsThe official site has a full English version of the visitor information page (hours, prices, access, parking), and the park map PDF is published in English as well as Japanese, Korean and both Chinese scripts. What the official pages do not say is whether signs inside the park are in English, or whether staff speak it.Web-checkedchecked Aug ’26zoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jpzoo.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Child switch (rider swap)Not checked yet
Steps & slope cautionNot checked yet
Official family-friendly certificationExtra info — guide onlyYesWeb-checkedchecked Sep ’26fkmachi.city.fukuoka.lg.jp
Best-fit ages (guide)Extra info — guide onlyYesWeb-checkedchecked Oct ’22kids-cham.com
Crowding (guide)Extra info — guide onlyNot checked yet
Quietness (guide)Extra info — guide onlyNot checked yet
Lost-child supportExtra info — guide onlyNot checked yet
Stroller access notesExtra info — guide onlyNot checked yet
High chairYesWeb-checkedchecked Oct ’17mamamap.jp
Kids' menuYesWeb-checkedchecked Oct ’17mamamap.jp

Information changes — check the dates above.

Reviews

Ask your AI

Tap the AI you use.

ChatGPTClaudePerplexityGrokGemini

Or copy the prompt and paste it yourself: