Animal cafe is a norm in Japan as a lot of Japanese are not allowed to bring or adopt pets in their apartments per rental rules. Thus, there are many animal cafes in Tokyo are being established to fulfill the love of pet lovers for the adorable animals. Below are the 9 best animal cafes found in Tokyo, where they have unique interior designs and themes for their cafes.
1. Chiku Chiku Cafe
Chiku Chiku Cafe’s main highlight is the cute hedgehogs living in tanks with different themes and decorations. As visitors play with the hedgehogs, the friendly workers would introduce visitors about the name of each hedgehog, as well as their personalities. In fact, hedgehogs are nocturnal and remain asleep most of the time, except when they are eating. You can also purchase hedgehog snacks to interact with the cute hedgehogs while watching them perform the little cute actions. However, since hedgehogs are spiky, carrying hedgehogs could be tedious at times. Thus, you will be given a pair of oven gloves beforehand to avoid bruises while holding the hedgehogs.
Address: 1-13-5 Daikyousibuya Bld.2F, Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 150-0002, Japan.
Opening hours: Daily 11noon-7pm (last entry 6.30pm)
2. Ikefukurou Café
Ikebukuro’s Ikefukurou Café is a unique place where you can play with the adorable owls while relaxing yourself. You can also bring along your pet owl, but you are required to follow the Café’s rule. The name of Ikefukurou Café is a combination of Ikebukuro and fukurou. In Japanese, fukurou means owl. Another interesting point to mention is the owls here are named after the characters in manga. It’s advisable to make reservations beforehand so that you don’t have to wait for a long time when you’re there. Not only that, you can also request the workers of this animal cafe for having the owls sit on your shoulder! It’s definitely a heaven for bird lovers as you get to pet and interact with the owls in no distance.
Address: Sakimoto Bldg. 6F, 1-17-1 Minami-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 1pm-8pm(break from 5pm to 6pm). Sat, Sun & holidays 12noon-7pm. Last entry one hour before closing.
3. Mipig Café
Aside from animal cafes like owls and hedgehogs cafe, mini-pigs cafe is being made possible in Japan! Mipig Cafe is created to house the mini-pigs. These adorable mini-pigs have also been known as teacup piglets, as they are so small that they can fit into teacups. The pigs here are of a variety of species, which means the pigs come without a specific breed. The founders of Mipig said that this cafe is created to enhance Japanese’s awareness and affection for piglets as piglets are popular pets in the United States. Mipig Café is definitely a standout among all the animal café in Japan as it is the first café that applies the concept of piglet instead of the common dogs, cats and hedgehogs. Please note that this is a strictly reservation-only café and you have to reserve online from its official website.
Address: 4-11-3 Meguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours: 10am-8pm
4. Kotori Café Ueno
In Kotori Café, there are 30 birds in total, of different 8 species. In Japanese, Kotori has the meaning of little bird. Not to mention that the signature bird of Kotori Café is the Kozakura-inko, which is the Rosy-faced Lovebird. Rosy-faced Lovebirds always stay in pairs, be it when they are awake or asleep. Besides, you can also get along with the birds by having them on your shoulder for 5 minutes with a fee of 500 yen. Another highlight of Kotori Café is their pastries are baked by a pastry specialist from Hokkaido with bird designs. Bird-themed souvenirs such as candy and key chains are also being sold in the café too! It’s definitely a great place for you to relax after a long week of hectic life.
Address: 1-8-6 Ueno Sakuragi, Taito-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours: 11am-7pm with irregular holidays published on official websites in advance.
5. Tokyo Snake Center
The Tokyo Snake Centre is definitely the right place for you to get along with different species of snakes if you’re a snake lover. As you’re enjoying your coffee, you get to choose one snake as your tea companion. The snakes are non-poisonous and will be placed in a clear tank so that you can have a clear look of the snake. Having the snake to lay on your lap with a towel beneath would definitely be a memorable yet adventurous experience too. Needless to say, you can also exchange snakes of other species with different specialties. This snake cafe has a total of 35 snakes of 20 different varieties.
Address: 6-5-6 Jingumae | Sampo Sogo Bldg 8F, Shibuya 150-0001, Tokyo.
Opening hours: 11am-8pm. Closed on Tuesday.
6. Sakuragaoka Cafe
The highlight of this cafe is it boasts two goats, namely Sakura and Chocolat. Sakura is a pink goat while Chocolat is a brown goat. Sakura and Chocolat are both the pets of the cafe owner. Japanese-inspired Western food is being served. Although it is a goat theme cafe, no lamb and mutton are being served as food. If you’re looking for dessert, give it a try to their signature desserts, which are the “Chocolat Soft” and “Sakura Sundae” parfaits.
Address: 23-3 Sakuragaoka-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours: 11am-5am next day, on Monday-Saturday,11am-12am on Sunday and holidays.
7. Ra.a.g.f. (Rabbit and Grow Fat) – Bunny Cafe
Ra.a.g.f. (Rabbit and Grow Fat) is one of the animal cafes in Tokyo where you can interact with adorable bunnies. You can choose which bunny to be your companion, but it’s limited to choose only one bunny at a time as bunnies tend to fight with each other when they get together. You can also purchase snacks for the bunnies at the price of as cheap as 150 yen.
Address: 6-14-15 Jingumae, Maison Harajuku 3F, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours: 12pm – 7.30pm on weekdays (last entry at 7pm). 11am – 8pm on weekends and holidays (last entry at 7.30pm). Closed on Fridays.
8. Cat Cafe MoCHA
In Cat Cafe MoCHA, the interior design is wooden-based which gives this animal cafe a calming and elegant atmosphere. The stylist wooden interior is also designed for the felines to play around without being caged. You can indulge here with the soda drinks prepared of unlimited refills with only 350 yen! During feeding time, the felines will line up neatly to enjoy their treats, which is satisfying and cute to look at. Although there are fifteen cats in the cafe, the place is so clean that you can hardly find any fur within the cafe. However, you must be older than 13 years old to be eligible to visit the cafe. It’s definitely a great place to spend your weekend here if you’re a cat lover!
Address: 8F, 32-12 Udagawacho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours: Mon-Sun 10am-10pm (last entry 9:30pm)
9. Temari no Ouchi – Cat Cafe
Temari no Ouchi is a wonderful Playland for both cat lovers and cats. There is a cat Playland with a fairytale theme being set up for the cats to have fun with cat lovers. Cat lovers have to patiently wait for the cats to show themselves up according to the staff’s instructions as the cats can go everywhere within the Playland. Not only that, artificial cat paws can be found everywhere in the Playland to further enhance the theme of felines. There is also an election being held from time to time where visitors can vote for their favourite cat.
Address: 3F, Musashi Forum III, 2-13-14 Kichijoji Honcho, Musashi-shi, Tokyo
Opening hours: 10am-9pm ((last entry 8:30) daily.)
All in all, animal cafes are established to enhance the interest and affection for animals. In fact, animals are being taken good care in animal cafes are most of the animal cafes are being established by animal lovers.
