Asahikawa Attractions｜Japan's northernmost and most popular cold-zone zoo—Asahikawa Zoo

#zoo Speaking of penguins strolling the streets, one would think of the Asahikawa Zoo in Hokkaido, which has been in operation for over 50 years and is the first zoo in Japan to breed polar bears. Its operating motto is "to convey the meaning of life" (伝えるのは, 命), hoping that visitors can learn the concept that all things are equal and that life is precious. Transportation Tips: After arriving at Asahikawa Airport, you can take bus No. 78 (two departures per day at 09:55/11:45) directly to Asahikawa Zoo. Most tourists arrive at JR Asahikawa Station from JR Sapporo, and then take bus No. 41 or 47 directly to Asahikawa Zoo. The ticket to Asahikawa Zoo is 1,000 yen (for high school students and above). The penguin walk was originally intended to help the penguins lose weight, but it turned out to be so popular. Every winter, the park will announce the time for penguin walks (approximately from December to March of the following year), and the activities will still be determined by the climate and the depth of snow on the road. This time I took a local one-day tour, starting from Sapporo and going directly to Asahikawa Zoo. Asahikawa Zoo is built on a slope. Most tourists enter through the main gate and the tour route goes up and then downhill. Group tourists sometimes enter from the East Gate (the top of the zoo), and the tour route is first downhill and then uphill. We arrived at Asahikawa Zoo early in the morning. The tour guide briefly explained the precautions and the gathering time and then we dispersed to start the tour. To be honest, the winter in Asahikawa is really cold. It was minus 2.5 degrees Celsius and there was light snow today, but everyone was not afraid of the wind and snow and could not hide their excitement. There are mostly cold-zone animals in the park, and they are probably the only ones full of energy. In order to show the animals' true life, Asahikawa Zoo has introduced a new display method called "action exhibition". For example, the polar bear area has holes dug on the ground with covers above them, so people can pop out like groundhogs to watch the polar bears' activities up close. An underwater passage was designed for seals, so you can closely observe the seals shuttling up and down, and the cute penguins jumping up and down in the water. The zoo also built an aerial passage above the passage to connect the raccoon living areas on both sides, allowing the raccoons to walk freely over the heads of tourists. Isn't it cute? There are heated rooms for other tropical animals to visit, and the gorillas are very happy swinging back and forth. There are gift shops and restaurants at both entrances of Asahikawa Zoo, so light meals, hot meals, and souvenirs are all available. Be sure to replenish calories in time. Hokkaido is vast, so don't plan your trip too tightly. When we were about to leave in the afternoon, there was a sudden snowstorm and we could hardly see the Asahikawa Zoo outside the east gate parking lot. But even so, Asahikawa Zoo is still a very important attraction. #familytravel #Asahikawa Zoo #Sapporo #Asahikawa #Hokkaido #Penguin Walk #Japan #Zoo