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Bears standing up against the caged, tiger-striped Jungle Bus at Fuji Safari Park
Photo: Mayuno, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Shizuoka · zoo aquarium

Fuji Safari Park

富士サファリパーク

A drive-through safari zoo at the foot of Mount Fuji, where you drive among lions and bears. From the caged Jungle Bus you can even feed them.

A male lion stretching on a rock in the safari zone at Fuji Safari Park
Photo: しんのすけ さん https://photozou.jp/photo/show/1057511/168411950 (フォト蔵), CC BY 2.1 jp, via Wikimedia Commons
The gate marking the entrance to the safari zone at Fuji Safari Park
Photo: Hideto KOBAYASHI from Machida, Tokyo, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A zoo where you drive among big beasts

Fuji Safari Park is a zoo in the city of Susono, Shizuoka Prefecture, at the foot of Mount Fuji. It opened in April 1980 and is known as one of the largest safari parks in Japan (a zoo where the animals roam free and visitors tour by vehicle).

The park is divided into the Safari Zone, home to lions, tigers, bears, elephants, giraffes and more, and an area where you can meet and touch smaller animals.

How to tour the Safari Zone

You can drive round the Safari Zone in your own car; one loop takes about 50 minutes. If you do not have a car, you can use the park's buses and vehicles.

The most popular option is the Jungle Bus. It is a bus with cages over the windows that tours the Safari Zone for about 50 minutes while the driver explains what you are seeing. Its special feature is that you can feed the lions and bears through the bars. There is also the Navigation Car, a zebra-striped four-wheel-drive vehicle, and guided tours.

From mid-March to the end of November there is also the Walking Safari, where you walk around the outer edge of the Safari Zone to see the animals.

Getting there

By car, it is about 15 minutes from the Susono interchange on the Tomei Expressway, or about 25 minutes from the Gotemba interchange. There is a car park.

By train, local buses run from JR Gotemba Station (Fujisan exit, stop 4) and from Mishima Station. Bus timetables, opening hours and prices change with the seasons, so check the official website.

Tips

  • Jungle Bus tickets are sold on the day, first come, first served, from ticket machines inside the park after you enter, and at weekends they can sell out early. If you want to ride, buy one as soon as you get in.
  • The official website notes that the animals are more active in the morning and late afternoon.
  • The park may close on days of bad weather such as typhoons (it announced a closure for a typhoon in September 2026 too). Check the official website before you set out.

Sources

Updated 28 September 2026. Opening hours and prices change, so check the official site before you go.

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