Watching Pandas in Adventure World

What?
Adventure World is a zoo-slash-theme-park with as the main attraction a handful of giant panda’s. Equally famous are the safari zone and the dolphin show. The zoo tries to emphasize interaction between humans and animals by involving visitors with the feeding process and by letting them interact in various ways. Adventure World is equally a (cute) theme park with various rides, stalls and a Ferris wheel.
Where?
Adventure World is located in Shirahama (白浜) in Wakayama Prefecture (和歌山県). To get there, you can either take the train to Shirahama Station on the JR Kisei Main Line (JR紀勢本線, around 2.5 hours from Osaka) or take one of the three flights a day that departs from Haneda Airport (羽田空港) in Tokyo to the Nanki Shirahama Airport (南紀白浜空港 ). Whichever way, you still need to take a short bus ride to get to the park.
URL
Adventure World

Adventure World is famous for their panda family and that is why we went. I honestly thought we were going to a zoo, but it’s more than that. Yes, animals still live in confinement, but without getting any ethical conundrums, the available space to the animals in the park is decidedly larger than in a city zoo like for example the Osaka Tennoji Zoo which I visited recently. It might be my imagination, but I think it might be related to the fact that the animals in Adventure World were decidedly livelier. It must have been the first time I actually saw a lion move in real life.
But apart from a zoo, Adventure World is also a (very cute) theme park, with roller coasters and various rides and stands which you might associate with a good old-fashioned night at the carnival fair.

The simple truth is, Adventure World is a huge heap of fun.
There are different animal zones of which of course the huge panda habitat is the central attraction. I understand why everybody adores these creatures. They look exactly like cuddly teddy bears and their eat-and-sleep-behavior really appeals to the lazier me. Just watching them roll around in bamboo, it’s pure relaxation therapy.

But the park is obviously more than just panda’s. There is a safari zone which you can cross. The carnivore area is – for obvious reasons – only accessible by park train or car, but the herbivore area is free to wander around on foot or on rented cycle (we did it on a tandem). From this herbivore area there is access to the middle of the lion area which also serves as the spot where – for a sum of money and safely behind a fence of course – you can feed them. This feeding experience is a recurring theme in the park. We were surprised to see an elephant peel the mandarin I gave him and I had a great laugh when my wife completely missed the dolphins mouth when throwing a sardine like it was a rugby ball.
You can make reservations online if you really want to be sure to join the feeding experience, but for example on the day that we went it was also possible to pay on the day itself. This might be a risky approach in the weekends though.

The JR limited express train to Shirahama.

Sleep & eat. Eat & sleep.

Inside the carnivore safari zone.

This elephant actually peeled a mandarin.

Apart from feeding the dolphins, you can of course also watch their performance along with their trainers. Yes, along with their trainers, because unlike every other dolphin show I ever watched, the trainers at Adventure World join the fun by swimming, diving and riding alongside the animals. It made for a spectacular show.
It’s not all spectacular. There is a horse area, a petting zoo area and even a dog area. It might not sound too enticing for a zoo, but in its setting these are all areas worth visiting.

And there is the theme park-part of Adventure World. If you’re looking for a huge thrill or the highest ride, you’re not at the right spot, but I really enjoyed the ride on the main roller coaster and I regretted horribly not being in time to do any of the two “sky rides” which happen on the second floor of the main building. It actually just concerns a kind of go-cart track and a cycle-powered railway track, but it looked so fun to do, especially if there’s two of you.
And that just pretty much sums it up: Adventure World is just pure fun, and it only gets more so if you are there to share the experience.