Ueno Zoo to use lottery system for tickets to view panda cub
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Female giant panda cub Xiang Xiang sits on a tree during a press preview at the Ueno Zoological gardens in Tokyo Monday, Dec. 18, 2017.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Female giant panda cub Xiang Xiang walks in a cage during a press preview at the Ueno Zoological gardens in Tokyo Monday, Dec. 18, 2017.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Xiang Xiang, a 6-month-old female giant panda, sits on a tree during a press preview at Tokyo’s Ueno Zoological gardens on Monday. The panda made the special appearance before Tokyo’s governor, a group of local schoolchildren and the media one day ahead of its official public debut.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Female giant panda cub Xiang Xiang eats bamboo during a press preview at the Ueno Zoological gardens in Tokyo, Monday, Dec. 18, 2017.
Visitors to Ueno Zoo wishing to see its 6-month old panda cub in December and January will be selected at random from those who apply, according to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.
The zoo put the female cub, named Xiang Xiang, on display Tuesday and will host five 30-minute viewing sessions daily between 9:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. through Jan. 31.
Visitors will be chosen at random from among those who apply online at pia.jp/v/ueno-panda17ss or by calling 0570-02-9111.
The metropolitan government said each session will accommodate 80 groups with up to five people in each, for a total of up to 2,000 visitors each day. To avoid congestion, each group of visitors will get to look at the panda — along with her 12-year-old mother, Shin Shin — for two minutes. There are also cameras set up in the panda house with three real-time screens for visitors to observe.
The zoo began accepting applications from noon on Dec. 6 and the first group of lucky visitors were chosen on Friday. More visitors will be selected Friday and Saturday and Jan. 19.
Successful applicants can pick up their panda-enclosure tickets at Ticket Pia agents or 7-Eleven stores.
No limitations have been set for viewing Xiang Xiang’s father, Ri Ri, in the outside enclosure.
Xiang Xiang is 189 days old, weighs about 25 pounds and is able to walk.
For more information on Ueno Zoo, visit tokyo-zoo.net/zoo/ueno
