Neo Park Okinawa

This zoological and botanical garden is located about 10 minutes by car from downtown Nago. The vast site, nearly five times the size of the Tokyo Dome, features an area that reproduces the environment of a tropical region. There are three zones: "Lake of Thoth (African Lake)," which reproduces the African region; "Amazon Jungle," which reproduces the South American region; and "Oceania flowers and birds (Oceanian flora and founa)" which reproduces the Australian region. The park features a collection of rare and beautiful plants and animals and exhibits that combine animals and plants from the same region by zoning the species by region as much as possible.

The flying cage exhibit, in which nets are suspended in the air, allows visitors to observe animals in close proximity as they move about. Based on the desire of the first zoo director to "let visitors experience the coexistence of people, animals, and plants," the zoo protects, breeds, and exhibits rare species and natural treasures and is actively engaged in educational activities to spread knowledge about animals, plants, and nature.

In the park, there is the "Okinawa Keiben Tetsudo Railroad," a guided tour of the island that reproduces a locomotive that once ran on the main island of Okinawa and is popular with children. In 2021, the park welcomed red pandas and the angel of the desert, sand cats, as new friends, so visitors can enjoy viewing adorable animals.