Usual hours and prices, checked 2026-09-13 against the sources under “What this place is”. They can change for holidays and events — confirm before you go. Official site
Our guide
Tokiwa Park in Ube, Yamaguchi, is a park with a zoo, a plant museum and an amusement park. It is known for its great white pelicans. One of them, Katta-kun — named because his parents came from Kolkata in India — was born here in 1985, became the park's mascot after wandering off to visit nearby schools on his own, and starred in the 1995 anime film Katta-kun Monogatari; he died in 2008. Black swans given by Ube's sister city of Newcastle in Australia lived on the lake until 2011, when an outbreak of avian influenza led to a cull of the lake's swans and some ducks.
We have checked admission, opening hours and the way in: the park grounds are free and open at all hours, the zoo, plant museum and amusement park have their own hours and fees, and buses run from Ube-Shinkawa and Shin-Yamaguchi stations. The details are in “Plan your visit” below.
Written by japan-spots.com (2026-09-22) from the sources credited on this page. Distances are straight lines between map positions.
Photos
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence — see credits
- Tokiwa park — Original uploader was Historian at en.wikipedia · CC BY 2.5 · source · resized
- Hakucho Ohashi Bridge — OAzipper · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized
- Bonnet macaque ボンネットモンキー Macaca radiata — ume-y さん https://www.flickr.com/photos/ume-y/ · CC BY 2.0 · source · resized
- ときわ公園 Tokiwa Park - panoramio — 伊部リコ · CC BY 3.0 · source · resized
- Waterfall in Tokiwa Park 1 — そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
- Waterfall in Tokiwa Park 2 — そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
- Tobiagari Jizoson Shrine in Tokiwa Park 2 — そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
- View near parking area of Tokiwa Park 3 — そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
- View near gate of Tokiwa Park 2 — そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
- Bench in Tokiwa Park — そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
What this place is
Tokiwa Park (常盤公園, Tokiwa Kōen) is a park located in Ube City in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. There are great white pelicans living in an enclosure at the park. "Katta-kun", a pelican named because his parents came from Kolkata in India, was born there in 1985 and became a mascot for the park after visiting schools nearby by himself. An anime film titled Katta-kun Monogatari was made about him in 1995.Katta-kun died in 2008.Australian black swans that had originally been donated by Ube's sister city of Newcastle in Australia lived in the lake until 2011.In either 1978 or 1983 some of these were donated to Mito in Ibaraki Prefecture where some continue to reside in Lake Senba. There was an outbreak of H1N5 avian influenza there in February 2011, leading to a cull of local birds. All mute swans and black swans at the lake were killed, along with some ducks.
Visitor information checked: 2026-09-13 · Tokiwa Park: overview and fees · Tokiwa Park: access
Background text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
What to expect at this type of place: Animals
Getting there by public transport
- From JR Tokiwa Station, about 20 minutes on foot.
- By Ube City bus from the Ube-Shinkawa Station side: the 萩原線 or 萩原循環線 routes to the “Tokiwa Kōen” stop, or the Meguri-na eastern loop to “Tokiwa Kōen” or “Tokiwa Museum”.
- From Shin-Yamaguchi Station: the Shin-Yamaguchi Line (the express service is quicker) to “Tokiwa Kōen Iriguchi”.
Route checked: 2026-09-13 · Tokiwa Park: overview and fees · Tokiwa Park: access · Timetables change — check the operator before you travel.
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