Tobe Zoo
A zoo home to Peace, the first polar bear successfully hand-reared in Japan.
piggybackjapan.com
Tobe Zoo
SaveA zoo home to Peace, the first polar bear successfully hand-reared in Japan.
From the parking lot to the gate, you walk by following animal footprints marked on the ground.
Wheelchairs are lent free at the main gate (11 of them).
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- ElevatorElevator：not checked
- Stroller OKStroller friendly：with conditionsconditions
- RentalStroller rental：not checked
- NursingNursing space：with conditionsconditions
- ChangingDiaper changing table：with conditionsconditions
- Diaper binDiaper disposal bin：not checked
- Family WCFamily restroom：with conditionsconditions
- Kids' toiletKids' toilet seat & step stool：not checked
- Own foodOutside food allowed：with conditionsconditions
- EnglishEnglish support：not checked
Green = we confirmed it. Grey = not checked yet. Grey with a line through = the place does not have it.
Near here
Worth a look before you go
Japanese · opens translatedOfficial
Feeding events at Tobe Zoo: getting close to the elephants, hippos and giraffes
Elephant brunch 11:30 at weekends, ¥300 a group, tickets from the office at 9:00. Penguin feeding daily at 15:00, free.
plus.tobemori.com2024
Japanese · opens translatedFirst-hand
[Tobe town] Tobe Zoo: going to meet Peace the polar bear
A wheelchair walk-through: the ramp beside the entrance steps is long, and the paths keep climbing and dropping.
odekakei-yo.lifeart21.com2021
Japanese · opens translatedGuide
A gentle day at Tobe Zoo: Peace, the night zoo and the hands-on events
The SKY GARDEN restaurant looks onto the elephants; a kids' Peace curry is ¥680 and the elephant plate ¥850.
yondenmap.jp2026
Japanese · opens translatedFirst-hand
The polar bears of Tobe Zoo: Bariba and Peace
A 26C Sunday in June: Peace rested all morning and only got going after the 14:30 feed. Bariba stays in on Wednesdays.
miyanomayu.com2026
Tobe Zoo · Links & reads ▾
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Basics
- Fee：Adults (18+, high schoolers excluded) ¥600, 65 and over ¥300 (show proof of age), high school ¥200, primary and junior high ¥100, under 6 free, and free with a disability certificate. Groups of 30 or more paying visitors: ¥480 / ¥160 / ¥80. Annual passes ¥2,000 / ¥1,000 / ¥500. Parking ¥300 per car.■
- Hours：9:00-17:00, entry until 16:30. From about 15:30 the animals are fed, so some cannot be seen. Closed Mondays (the next weekday if the Monday is a holiday) and 29 December-1 January.■
- Time needed：180 min
- Booking：No booking needed. Advance tickets are sold at Lawson (L-code 63354) and FamilyMart (JTB item 0245823) to ease queues at the gate, valid for a month after purchase. The east gate is machine entry only, so anyone using a discount should go to the main gate.■Official booking site ↗
- Wheelchairs are lent free at the main gate (11 of them). Coin lockers by the main gate and the stroller counter, ¥200 large / ¥100 small; oversized bags are held at the management office for ¥200. First-aid post at the main gate, AED in the Children's Animal Centre. The lower car park holds 300 cars; when it is full use the east car park (1,700) and its shuttle bus. Disabled bays beside the entrance gate — phone 089-962-6000.■
evidence & sources (7)
The restaurant at the far end of the zoo looks out over the African elephant enclosure. In 1999 a polar bear cub was born here. Of 122 polar bear births then recorded in Japan, only 16 cubs had lived past six months, and none had been reared by hand. This cub, Peace, was raised by a single keeper who took it home at night. Eight roofed shelters stand around the grounds, and nine of the animal houses have indoor viewing.
| Stroller friendly | Yes | Strollers are lent at the main gate and the information point — 60 of them, A-type and B-type, ¥100 each. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diaper changing table | Yes | Every toilet has a changing table — six in the zoo and two in the car park. The two multi-purpose toilets built at the main gate in December 2025 both have a baby seat and a fitting board, and the right-hand one also has a baby chair. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
| Nursing space | Yes (3) | Three nursing rooms with baby beds: at the main gate, inside the Children's Animal Centre, and inside the Oasis Garden view restaurant. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
| Family restroom | Yes | Every toilet has an accessible cubicle with a baby holder. Two multi-purpose toilets in front of the Fureai Centre have a changing board for older children. An ostomate-equipped toilet sits west of the management office, and the two multi-purpose toilets at the main gate (December 2025) are both wheelchair-accessible, one of them ostomate-equipped. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
| Outside food allowed | Yes | Roofed rest shelters are provided for meals, breaks and sudden rain — by the east gate, in Africa Street, in front of Tobe-no-yakata, Tiger Hill, the penguin plaza and the ape house, at the Garden of Wind and beside the African elephant area. Inside there is the SKY GARDEN view restaurant and the Tobemaru Cafe snack counter. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
| Indoor / outdoor | Indoor & outdoor | An open-air zoo with indoor exhibits in the giraffe, rhino-and-hippo, lion, elephant, ape, tiger and South American animal houses, the penguin plaza and the snake house. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
| Lost-child supportExtra info — guide only | Yes | A lost-child centre at the main gate makes announcements and looks after children; you can also tell any member of staff. | Web-checked | checked Aug ’26 | tobezoo.com |
| Diaper disposal bin | Not checked yet | ||||
| Kids' toilet seat & step stool | Not checked yet | ||||
| Elevator | Not checked yet | ||||
| English support | Not checked yet |