Maruyama Zoo

Maruyama Zoo

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
About
An amusement park and penguin pool make this zoo a popular spot for children.
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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  • Minami K
    119 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    There are ingenuity in the display method.
    Asahiyama Zoo is famous for its behavioral exhibits, but this is a good place to visit while staying in Sapporo. Access is also good. Impressive animals right in front of your eyes It's fun not only for small children but also for adults. The exhibition has been devised. You can enjoy it even more if you follow the animal guide's time.
    Visited March 2024
    Traveled solo
    Written March 25, 2024
  • Zachary H
    Tokyo, Japan5,583 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Worth the ¥800 admission
    There’s something about caged animals that always - regardless of grandeur - bothers me about zoos. With that said, Sapporo Zoo exceeded expectations. The grounds are much larger than expected and the numerous enclosures seem more spacious that other zoos of its size. Admission was ¥800 for adults on the day of our visit; a fair price.
    Visited March 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 30, 2024
  • あすたま
    Yokohama, Japan27 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    An evolving zoo
    It was my first visit in 10 years. It is easy to access because it is in the city of Sapporo, and it is not too large, so it is a good size to go around with seniors. Various exhibits have changed and I don't think what it looked like 10 years ago (sweat) A variety of animals left a lasting impression on me, especially the large elephant house and the relaxed movement of elephants indoors.
    Visited August 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written August 15, 2024
  • しま
    Suginami, Japan17 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    You don't have to go when it rains or snows
    It's indoors, so it's okay to do it in stormy weather That's true, but while animals are indoors, humans travel mainly outdoors, so it's hard when it's cold or hot. I was in trouble because I believed too much in the guidance that it could rain. When it snows, it's hard to have proper snow shoes. Inside, there were monkeys and quizzes, and I enjoyed it reasonably well.
    Visited November 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written January 13, 2025
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles781 reviews
Excellent
252
Very good
379
Average
118
Poor
12
Terrible
20

Eddie C
NZ19 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2022
It was a great visit to the zoo, especially when you have a kid they really enjoyed meeting them.

One very important note to remind everyone is if you are planning to stay until the zoo closes, make sure you leave a bit early. When the zoo closes at 4pm, the last public bus leaves at 4:36pm. the bus gets very full and if you cant get on it, you will have no way to leave but to take a 20minutes walk to the nearest JR station. there's a taxi stand next to the bus station but it is rarely a vacant taxi comes. The zoo staff does not call the taxi for you, they only give you the taxi companies number and if you have an international number, the taxi company doesn't take your order.

We visited in December and we were left stranded in the dark, cold, snow, no bus no taxi, no one to help and it is kind-of an isolated location.
Written December 29, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

taffandhubby
Cardiff, UK275 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Family
We enjoyed a family visit to this zoo, where everything was attractively laid out and well maintained. All the animals looked healthy and, generally speaking, well stimulated - constriction compared with the natural environment is always difficult to manage. Parking was easy, although might be more difficult at very busy times? The zoo is situated in a larger, very attractive park in a lovely part of Sapporo.
Written October 14, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Quang Kiet Le
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam1,154 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2023 • Couples
Took us 10 minutes on foot from the subway station. The zoo was small but well maintained. We enjoyed walking around and seeing the animals encountering their living environments. The red panda, polar bear, giraffe were among our most favourable ones. Staff could speak the basic English.
Written April 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Donna G
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2023
Deplorable conditions for some of the animals make this one of the most depressing places I’ve ever seen. How it isn’t illegal to treat animals this way is unbelievable. The hippos are jammed into an indoor pen and separated from one another. One stood with his head in the corner, his mate lay on the other side of the barrier, completely despondent. If there was something I could do, I certainly would…
Written May 5, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nick
San Francisco, CA4 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023 • Couples
Depressing. Absolutely depressing. The tropical monkey exhibits looked like prison cells with cockroaches crawling throughout. Two of the three polar bears exhibited zoochosis, pacing back and forth nonstop (the third was asleep). The pool water was dirty with small plastic debris floating everywhere. The elephants looked sad, occupying a small indoor enclosure with no stimuli. Only a few of the animal enclosures simulated their natural environment.
Written March 19, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Emmapotato
5 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020 • Solo
This is the most depressing place ive been too and i would like to credit the animals, especially the birdlife, for not committing suicide. Built by people who dont value animals as having intrinsic rights.
I shudder at the thought of there being tinier zoos in Japan.
Written January 2, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Phi Somchai
Bangkok, Thailand3,627 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
The zoo is very spacious and well maintained. It was very pleasant to stroll around here. You will need 2 hours to go around and see everything.

You will see some rare winter animals like the amur tiger, red panda, snow leopard, polar bear and wolf.

We enjoyed our visit here very much and highly recommend this place.
Written August 9, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sahil J
Jersey City, NJ3 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2015 • Family
Hi ,

I recently visited this zoo with my family and 3 year old niece. There was lot of hype all over the news in Sapporo and ads regarding the baby polar bear at the zoo, so wanted to check it out. I will say that everyone in my family was disappointed with the zoo visit , including my 3 yr old niece. Japan - Sapporo is very clean and green city and zoo is also located right next to the mountain , so I assumed it will be great experience. The animals are living in poor conditions, the cages stink badly. There was section in zoo which had monkey's and hyena's, next to the giraffe. All monkeys and hyena's were suffering from some skin issues, you can see from the skin conditions and hair falling apart, they were looking bald. Any animal owners can easily know that this is not normal and they need to checked up immediately. Most attention is given to the polar bear and his mother as they are the center of attraction, while rest of animals seemed ignored. The wolves also seemed unhappy and had their hair falling off and grown uneven...even my 3 year niece was asking us why the animals are bald ?
If you visit Japan then you will see that the people there have lot of fascination with animal cartoon characters, 8 out of 10 people you will see carrying some sort of teddy bear of cats , dogs , bear etc with them, no matter what age they are...but alas they seemed to love only cartoons and not carrying the real animals.

Hope the zoo authorities can read my review and do something for the animals.
Written June 8, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MB4652324
Niseko-cho, Japan3 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2014 • Friends
They have the tiniest cages, and the worst conditions. Especially coming from Australia and knowing how our native animals are supposed to live, seeing Kangaroos in cages was truly upsetting.
We also saw big animals such as lions, gorillas, bears, and hippos pacing their cage - as if they were extremely agitated.
The ONLY good thing was that we saw different animals that wed'd never seen before (bears and wolves) BUT would still not recommend this zoo to anyone.
Written April 8, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Michelle
Japan209 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2015 • Friends
The zoo is a pretty sad place for the animals. All the enclosures are much too small and cramp, and the animals dont appear to be too healthy. For instance, the lions and leopards are kept in tiny cages and animals like the raccoons had bald patches on their fur. Maintenance is very poor and the enclosures dont look clean at all. I went into some area by the side of the zoo and realised to my horror that it is probably where they keep some of the animals indoors at night. It is just terrible because it is even smaller than their already tiny outdoor enclosures. I will recommend not visiting this zoo as it really is rather heartbreaking to see the state these animals are kept in.
Written August 4, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Maruyama Zoo - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2025)

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