Ehime Night Zoo 2026

 I went to Tobe Zoo(とべ動物園)’s annual "Night Zoo" event. Every year, from August through mid-October, the zoo extends its hours until 9:00 PM on Saturdays, giving visitors a rare chance to see the animals in their nocturnal element.

Walking from the parking lot to the zoo, the roadside was lined with blooming fragrant olives (金木犀). That distinct, sweet scent always makes it feel like autumn has truly arrived.

Right after passing through the entrance gates, police officers were handing out pamphlets with little reflective safety charms attached. Just behind them were parked police motorcycles and a patrol car. The Ehime Prefectural Police were running a traffic safety campaign to coincide with the zoo's night event.

They had set up boards with simple quizzes at three spots around the zoo. If you answered all the questions correctly, you got to draw a lottery ticket. The prizes ranged from A to D. Naturally, with my usual terrible luck, I pulled a D.

"Let's follow the rules and manners and enjoy riding bicycles safely!"

The D prize turned out to be a sticker of Ehime Prefecture's mascot, "Mikyan(みきゃん)" Super cute.

They were also letting people try sitting on the police motorcycles and inside the patrol cars. This was the very first time in my life sitting in the driver's seat of a police cruiser. A pretty rare experience, if you ask me.

While I was watching the penguins swimming so comfortably, one of them waddled right up to me. Seeing them up close, penguins are actually much bigger than you'd expect.

A lion family. There they were, lined up in a row, intently staring down the herbivore grazing area.

The herbivores seemingly unfazed by the lions watching them.

Monkey Mountain, where the monkeys were happily grooming each other.

Surely I'm not the only one who instinctively starts singing, 

"White ranger tiger power♪"

A rhino. Absolutely massive.

African elephants. So humongous that it honestly makes you wonder how anything can get that big.

In Japan, local municipalities have historically developed public zoos as "places of recreation for citizens and educational facilities." As a result, there are countless community-based zoos scattered all over the country, and the admission fees are incredibly cheap compared to places like the US. Tobe Zoo is no exception—it’s run by Ehime Prefecture, and adult admission is only 600 yen (about $3.80). It’s priced so anyone can drop by casually.

Another unique feature of Japanese zoos is that they name the animals. I know zoos in the US sometimes name their lions or elephants, but the tendency is much stronger here. Almost all the larger animals have their own specific names.