Japan's last remaining giant pandas left their enclosures at a zoo in Tokyo on Tuesday as people gathered outside to bid farewell.

Ueno Zoo in Tokyo said goodbye to its star attractions on Tuesday (January 27) as giant pandas Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei departed for China.

Jan. 27, 2026 © 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC

Lucky lottery winners got one minute to bid goodbye to Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, twin pandas set to leave Japan on Tuesday amid mounting tensions with China. Getting in to the Ueno Zoo in Tokyo for a last look at the beloved Chinese diplomats was not easy,

People flocked to the Ueno Zoo in Tokyo to say goodbye to the last two giant pandas in Japan. Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei will return to China.

Hundreds gathered to say farewell to two popular pandas departing Tokyo for China on Tuesday, leaving Japan without any of the beloved bears for the first time in 50 years

Japan’s only pandas will return to China tomorrow, with relations between Tokyo and Beijing frosty. Crowds gathered at Tokyo’s Ueno Zoo for emotional goodbyes to Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei during their last public appearance Sunday;

Two hugely popular pandas are set to depart from a Tokyo zoo for China on Tuesday, leaving Japan without any of the beloved bears for the first time in more