Giant panda Xiao Xiao is on public display on the final viewing day at Ueno Zoo in Taito Ward, Tokyo, on January 25, 2026. Photo: VCG

　　The twin giant pandas Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei currently at Tokyo"s Ueno Zoo that are set to be returned to China marked their final day of public viewing on Sunday. Access was limited to visitors selected through an advance lottery, with the most competitive Sunday seeing odds as high as 24.6 to 1, according to NHK. Some Japanese netizens also took to the internet to express their reluctance to part with the pandas.

　　The two pandas will leave the zoo on Tuesday and travel to a breeding facility in Southwest China"s Sichuan Province, where they will be received and, after a period of quarantine, opened to the public view, reported NHK.

　　On the final open day on Sunday, around 4,400 visitors selected through the advance lottery were expected to visit the twin pandas, said the report.

　　Quotas of 400 visitors were set every 30 minutes starting on Sunday morning, with an additional special quota of 100 visitors made available for the final 15 minutes, Asahi Shimbun reported.

　　According to the statistics of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the lottery for visits between January 14 and the final open day on Sunday received a total of more than 310,000 applications, with Sunday"s lottery proving the most competitive at 24.6 times, according to the NHK.

　　After the Tokyo Metropolitan Government announced the return on December 15, 2025, Ueno Zoo drew large numbers of fans day after day, with queue time lasting more than five hours at their longest. From late December onward, advance applications were required for visits, said Asahi Shimbun.