Ueno Zoological

Japan's oldest zoo opened in 1882 inside Ueno Park and still pulls enormous crowds. The giant pandas are the stars, drawing the longest lines in the morning, but the zoo also keeps snow monkeys, red-crowned cranes, and the endemic Iriomote wildcat. A monorail connects the eastern and western sections, where the western side includes a petting zoo and a 17th-century five-story pagoda that feels incongruous and wonderful at the same time. At over 400 species, there is always something to see regardless of which section you wander. Admission is modest by Tokyo standards, and with world-class museums immediately surrounding it, a full day in Ueno is easy to fill.