Gunma Safari Park Drive-through Safari and Conservation

Gunma Safari Park (群馬サファリパーク) sits at Okamoto 1 in Tomioka City, Gunma Prefecture. The facility is operated by Gunma Safari World Co.; the Unimat Group acquired the operator’s shares on August 15, 2019. The park opened on May 1, 1979 as the fifth full-scale safari park in Japan and the first in eastern Japan.

Arrival and access

The park is designed around motorised access. By road it lies about 5 kilometres from the Tomioka interchange on the Jōshinetsu Expressway. There is no direct public-transport service to the park: the nearest railway stop is Jōshū-Tomioka Station on the Jōshin Electric Railway, and a taxi from that station takes approximately 15 minutes. Tomioka City’s shared-taxi service “Ai-Taxi” is also available for the final leg.

What you encounter first

The park covers roughly 360,000 m² and presents animals across large enclosures intended to be close to natural ecological conditions. Visitors meet most of the collection from vehicles: the site holds about 100 species and around 1,000 individual animals and birds. White tigers are among the species mentioned in the collection.

Because movement inside the grounds is limited to passenger cars and buses, the route through the safari is largely unaffected by ordinary weather. The park notes that on rainy days animals can come nearer to vehicles and show behaviours not often seen on dry days.

Ways to experience the safari

Observation methods are explicit and varied: you can use your own car or a rental car, join ranger-car tours, or ride the safari bus. The park also operates a dedicated feeding-experience bus that permits feeding interactions with both herbivores and carnivores. When entering the safari zone by car, a dedicated app can be used over the park’s Wi‑Fi to play zone-specific commentary and animal information.

Events and guided options extend the vehicle experience: the park runs white-tiger kennel tours, scheduled feeding sessions labelled “Mogumogu Time,” flying shows, evening safari bus tours and night safari tours. The night safari follows the common method of using spotlights in darkness to observe nocturnal animals.

Animals, partnerships and conservation record

Gunma Safari Park has maintained international links and conservation activities. Since 2000 it has had a sister-park relationship with Taman Safari Indonesia; the affiliation is commemorated by an “Indonesia Festival” and regular donations for rare Indonesian animals and forest protection. The park has accepted specimens from that sister park including Javan leopard, Sumatran tiger, white tiger and orangutan.

The park has also engaged in direct conservation and social actions: in 1993 it provided 25 buffalo born at the safari free of charge to South Africa to help save African buffalo threatened by foot-and-mouth disease. In 2011 the park invited families who had evacuated from Fukushima and were living in Takasaki City following the Great East Japan Earthquake. In 2020, after visitor numbers fell during the COVID‑19 outbreak and the park temporarily closed in response to prefectural requests, a nationwide crowdfunding appeal drew more than 4,000 supporters and raised ¥36,000,000.

Breeding achievements have been formally recognised by the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Listed awards include 1982 (bezoar goat; benihashigamo), 1983 (addax), 1984 (serval cat), 1987 (African elephant — the first successful African-elephant breeding in Japan) and 1992 (ojirojika).

A landmark moment in the park’s history was the successful birth of an African elephant on May 5, 1986: a male calf named Tango. This birth is recorded as Japan’s first successful African-elephant breeding.

Facilities, events and recent developments

The park is organised into multiple themed zones — Africa, America, Japan, Walking Safari, Asia, Tiger Zone and Lion Zone — plus a dedicated petting area and indoor contact facilities. The amusement zone (playground) is currently closed. On-site visitor services include a market-style shop (Marche) and the restaurant Savannah. Planned and recent projects include the paid facility “Fushigi no Dobutsu no Mori” (opening July 2025), an amusement complex called “Waku Waku Adventure Land” with VR experiences and gem‑digging (opening August 2025), and the introduction of an ETCX payment system using AI cameras and ETC technology supported by Gunma Prefecture (scheduled for December 2025).

The park has engagement with educational institutions: in 2019 it signed a cooperation agreement with the Chuo Animal Nursing Vocational School in Maebashi to accept practical training; the school planned to open an animal‑care curriculum in April 2021.

A cultural footnote: the park received a visit from Michael Jackson during his Bad World Tour stop in Japan in December 1988.

Safety record and past incidents

The park’s history includes several serious incidents. On August 24, 1990 a 21‑year‑old male keeper died during morning work when he was caught by the trunk of an adult male African elephant (estimated 25 years old, about 6,500 kg); the keeper suffered fractures to the head and chest and died instantly — the first fatality at the park since it opened. On August 2, 1997, while vehicles toured the grounds, a grandmother in her 60s left her car to pass a crying infant to the child’s mother in a separate vehicle and was attacked by a Bengal tiger; a grandfather who tried to intervene was attacked by another tiger. Both grandparents died; the infant was rescued by staff and survived. On August 16, 2016 a 46‑year‑old female employee patrolling in a light passenger car was attacked and killed by a male Asian black bear (about five years old, approximately 170 cm in length and 110 kg). The patrol vehicle’s window had been open and one bar of an iron grille was broken.

FAQ

Where is Gunma Safari Park located?

The park is located at Okamoto 1 in Tomioka City, Gunma Prefecture.

When did the park open?

Gunma Safari Park opened on May 1, 1979 as Japan’s fifth full-scale safari park and the first in eastern Japan.

How can visitors observe animals inside the park?

Observation is by private car, rental car, ranger-car tours, safari bus and a feeding-experience bus; a dedicated app over park Wi‑Fi provides zone-specific guidance.

What notable breeding achievement does the park hold?

The park achieved Japan’s first successful African-elephant breeding when a male named Tango was born on May 5, 1986.