Capybaras in the hot bath: Izu Shaboten Zoo's winter tradition (2026–27 season)
Every winter since 1982, the capybaras at Izu Shaboten Zoo, at the foot of Mount Omuro, soak in their own steaming outdoor bath. Dates for 2026–27, bath times, tickets, getting there by bus, and what else the zoo offers.
- Bath season 2026–27
- 21 Nov 2026 – 4 Apr 2027
- Bath times
- weekdays 13:30–14:30; weekends and holidays 10:30–11:30 and 13:30–14:30
- Admission
- adults 2,800 yen weekdays, 3,000 yen weekends and holidays (5 Nov 2026)
- Access
- about 20 min by Tokai Bus from Izu-Kogen Station, 35 min from Ito Station
Japan has hot springs for snow monkeys and, most famously, for people. Izu has one for capybaras. Every winter at Izu Shaboten Zoo, near Ito on the east coast, keepers fill a rock-lined outdoor pool with hot water, and the zoo's capybaras wade in, settle up to their chins and half close their eyes. The custom has spread to zoos all over Japan, but it started here, and it is one of the few Izu sights that is at its best in the coldest months. This page covers the 2026–27 season, how to time your visit, and how to make a day of it on the Izu-Kogen plateau.
How the capybara bath began
The zoo, whose name means "cactus zoo", opened in 1959 at the foot of Mount Omuro, the grassy volcano that is the landmark of Izu-Kogen. It began keeping capybaras, the large South American rodents, in 1966, when they were still rare in Japan. According to the zoo, the bath was discovered by accident in the winter of 1982: a keeper cleaning the capybara enclosure with hot water noticed the animals settling into the warm puddles and staying there. A pool followed, and the "capybara open-air bath" became a winter fixture.
It has since become something of a national institution. In 2015 Izu Shaboten Zoo signed a "Capybara Outdoor Bath Agreement" with four other zoos, Nagasaki Bio Park, Saitama Children's Zoo, Nasu Animal Kingdom and Ishikawa Zoo, under which each promises to run a capybara bath every year and to help popularise the custom. If you have seen a photo of capybaras dozing in steaming water, there is a good chance it was taken at one of these five.
The 2026–27 season: dates and bath times
The zoo runs the bath every year from November to the following April. For the 2026–27 season, it announces the following dates and times (checked on 5 November 2026):
- Season: Saturday 21 November 2026 to Sunday 4 April 2027.
- Weekdays: one bathing session, 13:30 to 14:30.
- Weekends and public holidays: two sessions, 10:30 to 11:30 and 13:30 to 14:30.
The zoo is clear that the schedule depends on the animals: on a given day the capybaras may not move much or may not bathe at all, and times can change. It also notes that once they get in, capybaras may stay in the water for up to an hour. Its advice is to avoid the crush at the very start of a session and to come by a little later, when the animals have settled and the first wave of photographers has moved on. Keep your voice down, keep some space between you and other visitors, and once you have your photo, let the next person through.
If you visit outside the bathing season, you can still see the capybaras year-round in their enclosure, and the zoo's Capybara Rainbow Plaza lets visitors walk among them and buy treats to feed them.
Tickets and opening hours
The zoo is open every day of the year. In November 2026 its hours are 9:30 to 16:00, with last admission at 15:30; hours vary by season, so check the calendar on the official site before a winter visit. Admission prices, as listed by the zoo on 5 November 2026, are higher on weekends, public holidays and long holidays than on weekdays:
| Ticket | Weekdays | Weekends and holidays |
|---|---|---|
| Junior high school age and over | 2,800 yen | 3,000 yen |
| Elementary school age | 1,400 yen | 1,500 yen |
| Children aged 4 and over | 700 yen | 800 yen |
Animal treats, the boat tours and some other experiences are paid for separately. Parking is charged.
Getting there
The zoo is on the Izu-Kogen plateau, inland from the Jogasaki coast, in the Futo district of Ito. Without a car you have two stations to choose from, both on the train line down the east coast:
- From Izu-Kogen Station: about 20 minutes by Tokai Bus, or about 10 minutes by taxi. This is the closer station.
- From Ito Station: about 35 minutes by Tokai Bus, or about 25 minutes by taxi.
The Mount Omuro chairlift is close by, at the foot of the same volcano, so the two make an easy pair. Our guide to getting around Izu without a car explains the east-coast trains and the bus passes that cover this area.
More than capybaras
Capybaras are the stars in winter, but the zoo is large, around 200,000 square metres according to its own figures, and claims some 150 animal species and 1,500 varieties of cacti and succulents. Highlights it lists include:
- Free-roaming animals: squirrel monkeys and peacocks wander the paths, and peach-coloured pelicans and swans live on the pond.
- Animal boat tours on the pond, with a choice of two courses, one of them landing on the monkeys' island.
- The Savanna Area, with giraffes, zebras and ostriches, and giraffe feeding.
- Southern tamanduas, a small anteater; the zoo says it keeps the largest group of them in Japan.
- Red pandas, which visitors can feed when treats are available, and a llama "zipline" that carries treats to the llamas on the hill.
- The cactus greenhouses, five pavilions arranged by region (South America, Africa, forest cacti, Madagascar and Mexico), with columnar cacti more than five metres tall and a golden barrel cactus said to be about 170 years old. In winter the forest-cactus house is bright with flowering Christmas cacti.
- Cactus picking: you choose your own small cacti and a pot from around 100 varieties on sale, and staff pot them up for you, a souvenir that survives the trip home better than most.
Food on site leans into the theme: the Japanese restaurant serves udon and soba made with cactus, and there is a capybara-themed burger at the main restaurant.
Making a day of it
A winter day on the plateau might start with the Omuro chairlift in the morning, when Mount Fuji is most likely to be clear, then the zoo for lunch and the 13:30 bath. In the late afternoon, take the bus down to the coast and finish the day in a hot bath of your own: Ito, with its public bathhouses, is the nearest onsen town, and our guide to choosing an onsen town in Izu compares it with the alternatives. For what else is on in Izu between December and March, from narcissus fields to the first cherry blossoms, see our month-by-month guide.
Because the bath season overlaps with Japan's school holidays and with the Kawazu cherry blossoms in February, weekends in late December, early January and February are the busiest. A weekday visit means only one bathing session, but much more room around the pool.
