4,400 Visit Twin Pandas for Final Public Viewing; Japan’s Ueno Zoo Says Goodbye to Xiao Xiao, Lei Lei

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:56 JST, January 25, 2026

A crowd of 4,400 visited Ueno Zoo’s twin pandas for their final public viewing on Sunday, with the doors closing at 4:00 p.m.

According to the zoo, there were 24.6 applicants per single viewing slot on the day.

The 4-year-old pandas, male Xiao Xiao and female Lei Lei, are set to return to China on Tuesday, departing Narita Airport for a conservation and research center in Sichuan Province, China.