Higashiyama Botanical Garden

🌡️🥵🫠On a scorching day of 33°C, I had the incredible chance to see a polar bear at the zoo! It was fascinating to watch as this majestic creature jumped into the pool, playing toys, and splashing around 🐻. Super cute!!💛 Hopefully, people and caretakers always remember how important it is to consider wildlife well-being in environments that don't reflect their natural habitats, and care more about them. The staffs from the Zoo are nice.

Wonderful zoo worth spending about a half day. With amazing animals and well planned out enclosures. The ticket and souvenir prices were also really affordable. But I do find the ticket prices for the zoo monorail a bit of a scam.

This is unbeatable during hanami season. After leaving Mexico City's free zoo and botanical gardens I figured I wouldn't be able to give out anymore 5 star reviews for paid experiences. I was wrong... This combo pack makes the San Diego Zoo feel like even more of a confusing experience for the price paid. Maybe it's an exchange rate thing, maybe it's about the number of animals, in the end I just don't know. I made it clear in my last review that I was not a huge fan of animals in captivity, but being on an island made me feel less bad about it. It's not like this Japan is so big that a theoretical habit could exist for these animals somewhere else on the island. I wasn't visiting the zoo, but the layout of the habits was so well done, I found myself stopping by to see some rare sights. In other zoos, the line to see koalas is so long that I've never actually seen a live one, so it was quite the experience. The weather was cold so bears had climbed the trees to sleep in the sun and I think it could have been the cutest thing I've ever seen. I also stopped by to see the giraffes, which were close to the front, but when feeding happens they eat right in front of you as the hanging baskets of food draw them towards visitors. Very smart placement. I saw some other animals, but I was really there for cherry blossoms, and the botanical gardens didn't disappoint. The cherry blossoms, along with many other flowers, were in full bloom and everyone was enjoying themselves. The garden section is way bigger than I imagined and I admit fatigue kicked in so I didn't even get to see everything I wanted. The venue also includes a wedding hall that makes you look like you're a baller, a huge glass atrium, an observation deck, and a train that tours the park. As a visitor, you definitely get your money's worth. Wild...

It’s a really large place, and you'll have to do a lot of walking, so I recommend wearing comfortable shoes and clothing for the best experience! There are many people on weekends, so you might not find a seat in the resting area or dining area. I suggest bringing a picnic mat to enjoy sitting outside, but only if the weather isn’t too hot! 😂